Title III Strengthening Institutions Program Grant

Academic and Technology Infrastructure Enhancement as a Foundation for Professional and Curricular Development

Activity Two

Director: Monica Joslin, Dean of Academic Affairs

Activity Two focuses on providing three separate but overlapping and related strands of faculty and curricular development. The first involves preparing faculty to expertly use the technology acquired under Activity One. The Academic Technology Center, which is located in Murdock Hall, is the focal point of this training. The Director of Academic Technology is working with the Academic Technology Advisory Group to form AT related programs, workshops, and ongoing support systems. A second, equally important strand provides support for program and course expansion, including facilities enhancement, faculty release-time for course development, market surveys and needs analyses, acquisition of needed library collections, fact-finding visits to exemplary programs at other colleges, and the development of field placements for an expanded service learning program. The third strand provides support for pedagogy and the development of assessment strategies. The Activity Director and the Coordinator of Professional Development is working with the Professional Development Committee to implement these plans.

Academic Technology Center

The Academic Technology Center, under the direction of the Title III-funded Academic Technology Director, provides ongoing and comprehensive professional development, support and training to MCLA faculty.  The Faculty Training Lab, which is part of the Center, offers the following services: 

•  Individualized WebCT training and limited instructional design support.
• By-appointment or drop-in support for faculty with instruction-related technology questions and issues.
• Planned and scheduled individualized support for the translation of face to face courses to a hybrid or fully online format.
• Monthly sessions on topics of faculty mutual interest re: academic technology at MCLA. 
• By-appointment, individualized support for full time faculty for recording classroom sessions, preparing study materials, or using other audio/video resources via the web or First Class. 
• By-appointment or drop-in support for review or practice with the standard technology setup for Murdock classrooms.

Individualized WebCT or First Class course support was offered for the spring 2007 semester. A stipend-supported hybrid course for MCLA faculty in how to set up a First-Class course support area was offered in November 2006 and continued through the start of the spring 2007 semester. During the summer, seventeen full and part time faculty members received stipends to work with Academic Technology Center staff to improve their skills in technology-mediated instruction. The training included sessions on teaching with blogs and wikis, Blackboard, PowerPoint, and Photoshop.

A Title III-funded part-time Academic Technology Coordinator was appointed in November 2006 to provide additional support in this area. 

Academic Technology Advisory Group

All academic departments were invited to send representatives to the advisory group, which was formed in fall 2005. The advisory group includes eleven faculty members from ten academic departments, both Title III Activity Directors, and the Director of Academic Technology. The following subcommittees were formed in spring 2006:

• Online Teaching
• Goals for Academic Technology at MCLA
• Murdock Hall Technology
• Wireless Laptops: Goals, Best Practices, Evaluation
• Online Course Guidelines and Recommended Policies

Subcommittees have been considering how their area of focus will help advance MCLA’s Strategic Plan. Planning is only one aspect of the advisory group’s function, which also concerns active involvement in current projects. ATAG activities have included field visits to other institutions for the purpose of research and consultation regarding their multimedia systems. During the fall and spring of the 2006-2007 academic year, ATAG representatives visited Williams College, Hudson Valley Community College, and Lyndon State College and returned with information regarding the pros and cons of the colleges’ multimedia setups. As a result of these visits, the advisory group was able to make well-informed recommendations regarding the outfitting of multimedia classrooms in Murdock Hall. The advisory group has also been conducting the Listening Project, a series of interviews with Department Chairs and faculty members regarding their program-specific technology desires and needs.  In addition, the group's agenda includes discussion of online course development and questions related to classroom computer etiquette, appropriate uses of technology, and campus technology decision-making and budget protocols.

Master Professional Development Plan

The Activity Two Project Director and the Coordinator of Professional Development are developing a Professional Development Master Schedule for 2007-2008, and a Professional Development Committee consisting of faculty members and administrators was formed in September 2005. Ongoing professional development has included stipend-supported training sessions and workshops on WebCT, Adobe Photoshop, PowerPoint, First Class, and the instructional uses of blogs and wikis.  In addition, thirty-thousand dollars in grant funds are budgeted, over the course of five years, for guest speakers and consultant services related to faculty development. During the 2006-2007 academic year, Title III funds contributed to consultant fees for Global Information System training and a panel presentation on e-portfolio implementation. Planning for the 2007-2008 academic year includes sessions on student learning outcomes assessment and data collection.

Support for Course Development

Title III funds are budgeted for release time, honoraria, or summer stipends for faculty members interested in working on course development and program expansion, including Tier Three Capstone Courses, accelerated courses, fully or partially online courses, and courses incorporating a service learning component.

Library Acquisitions

The grant has budgeted $120,000 over five years for library acquisitions, and, thus far, approximately 45 reference volumes were purchased in August 2006, and additional funds have been used to maintain continuous subscriptions to four online database services--Lexis/Nexis, Communications and Mass Media Complete, MLA International Bibliography, and PsycArticles.

Fine & Performing Arts Program Facilities Upgrade

Laboratory facilities for the visual arts, music, and theater programs need to be upgraded and expanded in order to support the new Fine and Performing Arts major. Such facilities will provide for more advanced art and art history coursework, greater options for upper-level electives and lab courses, and more opportunities for students to be active in the region’s rich cultural community. Prospective art teachers will be able to pursue all the coursework necessary for teacher licensure.

• Visual Arts Lab: The Fine and Performing Arts Department used $35,000 in Title III funds to renovate the Visual Arts Lab and assure its conformance to new safety and hazardous materials handling protocols. Upgrades to two rooms include space expansion, fresh paint, additional electrical outlets, PCs, projection and multimedia equipment, and eighteen work stations with new easels and professional color correcting studio lighting.
• Music Lab: Title III funds are budgeted for the purchase of new lab equipment and technology, including recording equipment, amplifiers, sound boards, mixers, and microphones; the redesign of the existing stage to accommodate larger ensembles; and the soundproofing of existing practice rooms.
• Venable Theater:  Funds are budgeted for needed upgrades including a dedicated line for the stage lighting system and additional dimmers.

Updated 8/17/07