New Faculty Retreat

ChatGPT and AI in the Academic Classroom, Johanna Creswell Báez, Assistant Professor, Social Work, College of Public Service

This presentation explores the explosion of AI chatbots with a focus on ChatGPT in the academic classroom. ChatGPT is demonstrated and ideas for using this technology with academic integrity is explored.

Empowering Students' Voices: Engaged Writing Through the "Dunlap Method", Dr. Carole Woodall, Associate Professor, History, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences

This presentation guides participants through a process to empower student writers by focusing on the expression of ideas and use of language. The four-step method gets students engaged as critical readers and responders by boosting confidence.

Designing Writing Assignments so Students Won’t Want to Cheat, Ann N. Amicucci, Ph.D., Director of First-Year Rhetoric and Writing, Associate Professor of English, Department of English, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences

As Chat GPT makes it easier for students to farm out the thinking, drafting, and research that go into a writing assignment, faculty may want to amp up methods for detecting cheating. Rather than focusing our energy on policing student writing practices, we can better serve students by designing assignments that engage and excite students—and make it less likely students will want to cheat in the first place.

In this presentation, attendees:

1. reflect on what makes an assignment engaging and connected to students goals,
2. learn why students may choose to use AI for a variety of tasks related to writing,
3. learn strategies for designing assignments that make students less likely to plagiarize or use AI, and
4. discuss ways to revise current writing assignments.

Goal Setting and Reflection for any Discipline, Baye Herald, Senior IRC Faculty, Technical Communication and Information Design (TCID), College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences

Want to engage students in course content from day one? Want to give students opportunities throughout the semester to reflect on their own progress and understanding of course concepts? This presentation allows you to think about how to apply goal-setting and reflection in your own courses.

Activating Faculty Wellbeing for Student Achievement, Paige Whitney, Assistant Dean of Interprofessional Education and Director of the Center for Active Living, Health Sciences in the Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences

Juggling multiple responsibilities and prioritizing your own health and wellbeing can be a challenge when starting as a new faculty member In this presentation learn about the important link between faculty wellbeing and student achievement, while gaining practical tips, tricks, and resources to activate health and wellbeing for all in and outside the classroom.

An Introduction to Faculty Course Questionnaires (FCQS), Grant Clayton, Associate Professor, Teaching and Learning, College of Education

FCQs are the only metric of teaching that is used across all parts of the CU system. Although departments may weigh them differently, IRC and tenure-track faculty must use FCQs as part of their teaching evaluation. This presentation starts with an overview of the instrument and conclude with details about the domains for FCQs, adding additional questions, and ways to use FCQ data for improving teaching.

Instruction that Works from the Student Perspective, Curtis Turner, UCCSTeach, College of Education

In this presentation, high-impact instructional strategies are discussed. The research-based strategies presented are simple to implement and provide exceptional results for your instructional effort. Participants can add anything we talk about to their practice the very next day.

The latter part of the presentation includes a small panel of successful UCCS students who share their experiences regarding instructional strategies that have worked well for them.

Mentoring Circles with the Teaching Fellows

Mentoring circles are designed to provide a space for faculty new to UCCS to talk about first-year experiences, to help with preparation for the first-year review, and to offer a network of support. Email Angie Dodson to receive more information or express interest in being a part of a mentoring circle.

Interactive Digital Notebook

Welcoming Remarks 

Jerry Phillips, Director, Excel Science Center

Connecting Students with Faculty and Campus: Strategies for Student Success (Keynote)

Ann N. Amicucci, Ph.D., Director of First-Year Rhetoric and Writing, Associate Professor of English, Department of English, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences

Students who make connections with faculty, other students, and organizations and events on campus are more likely to be successful in college. This presentation will share strategies faculty can implement in online and in-person classes for building relationships with students and facilitating students’ ability to connect with each other and the campus community.

PowerPoint Presentation | Handout

Student Support and Campus Resources Breakout Sessions

1. Supporting First Generation Students
   
   Jesse Perez, Director, Excel Languages Center

   • This session is designed to give you a foundational framework for supporting first-generation students on the UCCS campus. Your efforts can be the catalyst a first-generation student needs to feel valued and understood which can contribute to student retention and persistence outcomes. At UCCS, we want our first-generation students to take pride in being the “first to go” in their family!
     
     PowerPoint Presentation | Handout
      

2. Good Teaching is the Result of Carefully Planned Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment
   
   Grant Clayton, Associate Professor, College of Education, Teaching and Learning

   • This presentation introduces planning curricular goals, instructional methods, and assessing student learning to maximize student success. This interactive session will help faculty with the inter-relationship between curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
     
     PowerPoint Presentation | Handout

Teaching Fellows Breakout Sessions

1. Making Headlines and Memes
   
   Tre Wentling, Assistant Professor, Women’s and Ethnic Studies, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences 

   • Do headlines spark your interest? Have you shared a meme with others or imitated it yourself? Making Headlines and Memes is a creative assignment that promotes active reading, writing practice, and oral communication as well as the promise for engaging in-class discussions.
     
     PowerPoint Presentation | Handout

2. Empowering Students’ Voices: Engaged Writing Through the “Dunlap Method”
   
   Carole Woodall, Associate Professor, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences, History 

   • This interactive session will guide you through a process to empower student writers by focusing on the expression of ideas and use of language. The four-step method gets students engaged as critical readers and responders by boosting confidence.
     
     PowerPoint Presentation | Handout

Final Hour with the Faculty Resource Center

1. Implementing Open Educational Resources (OER) at UCCS
   
   Susan Vandagriff, Scholarly Communications Librarian and Assistant Professor, Instructional and Research Services, Kraemer Family Library
   
   Katherine Cliff, Senior Instructor, Mathematics, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences
   
   Patrick D’Silva, Instructor, Philosophy, College of Letters Arts and Sciences

   • Using the OER SUCCESS model, this interactive session will explain what OER are and why they are used, provide resources for locating OER, offer strategies for implementing OER into a course, and touch upon student creation of OER.
     
     PowerPoint Presentation | Handout
      

2. Promoting Access and Inclusion in Teaching with Universal Design
   
   Angie Dodson, Faculty Development Coordinator, Faculty Resource Center

   • Using the Faculty Resource Center’s ACCESS Model, this session will provide an overview of universal design and accessibility, describe teaching strategies that support universal design and access, facilitate an open discussion about opportunities for next steps.
     
     PowerPoint Presentation

3. Connecting with Teaching Resources, Technology Support and Canvas Resources
   
   Jackie Crouch, Instructional Technologist, Faculty Resource Center
   Steven Rodela, OIT Academic Support Manager
   
   FRC Resources Handout | OIT Resources Handout