A tree with bright gold leaves stands right outside my office window. As the days grow greyer and shorter and wetter, the leaves take on a brighter glow. When I remember to take a moment to pause during my work day, it is usually spent staring at this tree and its brilliant leaves. Just a moment to soak in the temporary beauty of fall on our campus. 

This time of year makes me reflective and grateful, and when I look back on fall quarter so far, the highlights that stand out to me are the many opportunities I’ve had to interact with Evergreen students, so I’d like to pause for a moment to thank these students who support our work and inspire us with their courageous pursuit of further education in these uncertain times.

When I have the opportunity to interact directly with Evergreen students, it is the best reminder of why I am here and why I want to support our faculty. Thank you for welcoming me as part of this community.

Jaime O'Connor, Assistant Director
Washington Center for Improving Undergraduate Education

The Learning and Teaching Commons newsletter is delivered to your inbox on the first Friday of the month during the quarter. Click here to read past newsletters

Open November 5 - February 6

It's that time again! The Learning and Teaching Commons and the Commons Advisory Council are looking for your great ideas for improving teaching and learning at Evergreen. What ideas would you like to discuss with colleagues? What skills would you like our community to sharpen? How can we best support our students? Submit your Summer Institute proposals now for consideration for the 2026 program! 

All the details are available on the Summer Institutes website or by clicking the links below:

Evergreen Faculty and Students Facilitate Upcoming Washington Center Collaborative Workshops

The Washington Center is pleased to offer free, virtual workshops to our national audience throughout the academic year. Our program this year features many of your colleagues who have volunteered to share their expertise.

As we find ourselves midway through the quarter, and winter draws near, what type of inner resources do we draw upon to nourish and sustain us through this time?  

How do we resource ourselves when we are dealing with a collective sense of heaviness, as well as facing personal challenges? These challenges could be related to health, family, finances, etc. You might have students, family, or friends who are impacted by many of the pressing societal issues during this time. [Read more→]

Evergreen students and faculty have an invaluable resource in the support provided by peer-tutors in the Writing Center and QuASR. We asked our tutors what they wish faculty knew about students right now, and here's an excerpt from their responses. [Read more→]

" . . . many Evergreen students are non-traditional and do not have the same foundation as many other college populations in things like citations, the traditional essay, study skills etc. and that not teaching those skills leads to students getting stuck before they get to the bulk of the assignment and can foment a lot of shame. . . . "

"Students are not getting clear instruction about how to clearly communicate math." 

Have a question for the tutors? Send it to learningandteaching@evergreen.edu.

Next month: Learn what the tutors wish students knew about tutoring!

The Washington Center and the Washington Learning Communities Consortium are pleased to announce the 2026 Integrative Learning Curriculum Planning Retreat at Rainbow Lodge April 23-24. 

The Integrative Learning Curriculum Planning Retreat is designed to support faculty building integrative learning experiences for students. Sessions provide value for both those newer to integrative learning and those with many years of experience in linked or paired courses, clustered courses, first-year experience programs, living-learning communities, or coordinated studies programs.

This two day retreat experience at the serene Rainbow Lodge is designed with flexible programming options to allow participants to collaborate with others and to work individually or with institutional teams on curriculum design and development. A focus on student success will frame sessions focused on designing integrative assignments, effective team teaching, and guided pathways.[Learn more→]

Student government and Student Activities are re-launching a comprehensive annual Student Life Survey to collect data about how students would like to see their student fees used to improve the programs, services, events, and activities available on campus. The goals of the survey are to: 

Capture services, events, and activities participation and trends among current students 
Utilize data to inform future program, events, and activities planning
Identify priority areas of service improvement
Enhance student life and engagement at The Evergreen State College

We are asking for support from staff in encouraging student to complete the survey through sharing the announcement below before November12, 2025.

Thank you for your support!

All the best,

Kayla Mahnke Hargett
Director of Student Activities and New Student Programs

——

Email/Canvas Announcement Template Language:

Complete your Student Life Survey today! Help student government and college departments improve the programs, services, events, and activities that are funded by your student fees. Find the survey on my.evergreen.edu until November 12, 2025 at 8 p.m.

Submit your survey today to enter to win one of twenty $25 gift cards to Greener Bookstore! 

Questions? Contact Student Activities at studentactivities@evergreen.edu

Monday, November 17 | 3-5 pm | Social Justice Center

Join licensed therapist Evergreen alum Lexi Alberts, LICSW lexialbertsconsulting to explore the signs and symptoms of burnout and stress, and discover practical strategies to help you thrive in the face of workplace burnout.

Through education and group discussion, participants will gain insights on how to strategize for collective-care and self-care, and better understand their own burnout symptoms. This workshop will draw on shared knowledge of how to best care for ourselves and others in the face of stress — you can expect to learn new techniques, while also getting helpful reminders of skills you already have in your toolbox!

Evergreen is hosting two Academic Fair events—in-person and remote so you can choose the format that fits your schedule and curricular preferences.

Remote Academic Fair

For: Classes that meet online or in the evening or on weekends
Date: Wednesday, December 3
Time: 4:30–6 p.m.
Location: Zoom (link will be posted at academicfair.evergreen.edu on the day of the fair)

In-Person Academic Fair

For: Classes that meet on the Olympia campus during the day
Date: Wednesday, December 3
Time: 2–3:30 p.m.
Location: Evans Hall Lobby

More Info on our Academic Fairs website

Teaching at Evergreen Canvas has undergone a remodel!

Key improvements include:

Get started by visiting the Welcome page.

As always, the Learning & Teaching Commons is here to support your teaching. We look forward to receiving your questions and suggestions at learningandteaching@evergreen.edu. 

The Undocumented Student Task Force wants to ensure that all faculty and staff have access to current resources and policies for supporting our students.

Resources for faculty include:

Syllabus language, which reflects the same language that is currently on the Learning and Teaching Commons site for syllabus statements and resources. 

The most updated resource handout for supporting undocumented/immigrant students at Evergreen. This bilingual resource includes11 ways you can support undocumented students at Evergreen.

Evergreen policy: Evergreen recently updated the College’s Immigrant Rights and Non-Discrimination policy, which includes protocols in the event of immigration enforcement on campus and protection of student data. We’re including the link and a recast of the most important information. 

Community Resources, a list of local organizations for immigrant rights advocacy

The Writing Center and Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning Center (QuaSR) are now part of the Washington Center while maintaining their physical locations in the library. Bringing together the staff who support faculty learning with those who support student learning in writing and quantitative reasoning creates opportunities for enhanced collaboration around teaching and learning practices.

FALL 2025 HOURS & EVENTS | WRITING CENTER & QUaSR

There are many opportunities for faculty to share their achievements, and we want to encourage you to contribute to the wealth of knowledge in our Evergreen community. Learn more about how to share your work with our community.