Greetings, Friends, 

The best part of my job at Stearns Center is learning about all the remarkable work you are doing--and I know I don’t even see the smallest part of it! 

This month, as we all are looking for glimmers and connections to sustain us through the closing of the academic year, I’d like to let you in on the game. So I’m inviting you to send us your 50-word Good News About Teaching story. We’ll post any we receive by Monday, May 19 anonymously online and let you know where to find it in a couple of weeks; we’ll also raffle off some gifts to participants. 

Keep scrolling for more opportunities and good news: Our first-ever summer reading and listening programs (no pan pizzas, sorry, but other perks!), our regular writing retreat, and summer opportunities to join faculty groups exploring AI, alternative grading, classroom inquiry, and civic engagement courses. 

E Shelley Reid, Ph.D. 

Executive Director of Engaged Teaching 

You tried something new in your teaching—and it worked! That success could spark a classroom inquiry project: a systematic investigation of your own teaching and students’ learning. Teaching Insight Week (June 2-5, 2025) offers group and one-on-one sessions to help you explore, plan, and carry out your own classroom-based research project.

Receive a $250 stipend to participate in the inaugural STEM Education Retreat on June 2. In the first year of the program, faculty will engage with the newly developed AI in STEM workshop. Participants will be asked to review the asynchronous and synchronous workshop materials, provide feedback and workshop how to incorporate the material into a STEM course of their choosing. Asynchronous material review will need to be completed prior to the in-person session. Limited to 10 participants.

Did you love summer reading programs as a kid? Do you want up to 2 free books, prizes, and gift cards? Join the Stearns Center’s Summer Reading Program to read books you choose from our list, receive recognition, and earn prizes! Faculty of all appointment types eligible to participate. Sign up by Monday, May 19 to receive your free book(s) (supply is limited, first-come-first-served!). 

The Lunchtime Lab program will allow faculty to look in-depth at the impact of AI on each level of student learning. In the first lab on June 9, faculty will focus on learning objectives that ask students to remember. Faculty will craft and workshop assignment ideas and collect student feedback about the assignment. Faculty will receive a $250 stipend for participation; limited to the first 9 registrants.

This summer consider participating in an AI mini course. In early August, the Introduction to AI Inspired Pedagogies mini course will run for faculty who are interested in updating their assignments in the age of Generative AI. However, if you have already participated in the introductory AI Mini Course, then consider enrolling in the Intermediate course offered this May.

Join a Summer or Fall Faculty Learning Community to explore alternative grading practices (e.g., specifications grading, ungrading, contract grading), with a focus on exploring evaluation methods to foster student growth and learning. Meeting days/times and readings will be selected based on participant interest. Priority deadline to register is May 15 for summer and August 15 for fall.

The retreat will be held on Wednesday, May 28 & Thursday, May 29, 8:30-4:00pm both days. This retreat will be hosted both in-person and online. The retreat offers uninterrupted writing time and a supportive and collegial community of peers to boost your writing productivity.

Faculty of all appointment types are invited to join our 2025 Keystone Concepts in Teaching Summer Listening Program. Faculty are invited to engage with podcast episodes, provide feedback, and use this programming to build a short, direct teaching action plan. There are 4 levels of engagement where faculty can earn a certificate and stipend payment upon completion before August 4. Sign-up by May 19.

April 16, we published Ep. 17: Exploring the Learning Management System: Canvas. Drs. Breana Bayraktar and Lila Fleming visit us to discuss Canvas, including key ideas, tips, and considerations whether you’re an experienced Canvas user or new to teaching.   

This week, we published Ep. 18: What Teaching Engineering and Computing Students Tell Us About Teaching. Drs. Raven Russell and Laurel Marsh join us to discuss some of the key stressors and big issues for new and “less new” faculty today.

The Stearns Center seeks volunteers to serve as session hosts for virtual and in-person sessions for the 2025 Innovations in Teaching and Learning Conference on September 25-26, 2025. Session hosts introduce presenters and keep time during the session.

Photo by Natalia Vargas Calancha/NVC Photography

‼️Final Canvas Details‼️: Spring 2025 is the last semester in which courses can be taught in Blackboard. Starting summer 2025, courses that use the LMS must use Canvas (all sessions). Access to save any content from Blackboard will end on July 15, 2025.

Looking to develop a new course, revise an existing one, or seek guidance on best practices? Our team is here to support you. Take ~5 minutes to complete the form below to helps us understand your needs, goals, and any specific challenges you may be facing. Once submitted, a member of our team will review your request and follow up within a few days to discuss next steps and determine how we can best assist you.

OSCAR holds celebrations three times a year, inviting undergraduate students to share their projects with the George Mason University community and celebrate what other George Mason University undergraduate students have accomplished this year. Save the date for our Spring Celebration May 6! It is an in-person event with poster presentation sessions, musical performances, videos, food trucks, and more.

The Office of Community Engagement and Civic Learning, as part of George Mason's QEP is seeking faculty to participate in our Summer 2025 and Fall 2025 Curriculum Development Cohort. The goal of these cohorts it to provide faculty with time, training, and resources to incorporate civic learning into the curriculum. Email CECiL Director, Kristen Wright at kwrigh22@gmu.edu for more information!

Career Services is hosting our next training on Monday, May 12 from 9:30 am to 3:00 pm, catered lunch provided. Attendees will gain access to our faculty toolkit, full of low effort, high impact practices you can easily include in your syllabi, share in advising meetings or add to your resources in Canvas. Learn more.

The AI Taskforce has collaborated and published initial guidelines for George Mason Faculty's use of AI. While not only targeted at teaching, it does discuss some safeguards that apply in a teaching context. Please review them and email Stearns@gmu.edu if you have specific questions about how this may impact your teaching.