Faculty Learning Communities

Who: Tenure/Tenure-Track and Lecturers who identify as BIPoC
Format: In Person
Compensation: $500
Contact: Stef Baldivia and Gloria Lopez
Full Description (Google Doc)

The purpose of the Black, Indigenous, People of Color Faculty Writing Community (BIPoC-FWC) is to cultivate community and support for a diverse group of faculty to successfully navigate the retention, tenure, and promotion process, by developing scholarly and creative work, while strengthening a network of colleagues at the Chico State campus. The BIPoC-FWC is designed to create a space for BIPoC faculty to share their research ideas and publication goals, while supporting and motivating each other. All self-identified Black, Indigenous, or faculty of Color, are encouraged to apply. Members will regularly meet in a set location for a total of ten 90-minute sessions and two community building events. During writing sessions, every writer works on their own project, with mutual support offered through fellowship both prior to and following the writing sessions. Faculty will be working in a large cohort led by two peer-mentors, Gloria Lopez and Stef Baldivia. There will be a mandatory kick-off meeting in early spring based on participants availability.

Who: Tenure/Tenure-Track and Lecturers
Format: Online and Asynchronous
Compensation: $500
Contact: Beth Shook
Full Description (Google Doc)

Want to decrease course costs for students? And at the same time provide students high quality and accessible course materials? Participate in an asynchronous Canvas training designed to help faculty identify and evaluate Open Educational Resources (OER) and other free or affordable course materials for your courses. Faculty who complete the online training, including developing a cost-savings plan to be implemented in a Fall 2024 or Spring 2025 course, will earn $500 in taxable income. 

Canvas modules will cover the following topics: OER and why they are important, finding and evaluating OER, Library resources, understanding copyright and Creative Commons licenses, ensuring accessibility, curating and adapting materials for your course, teaching with open resources, and the Zero Cost Course Materials (ZCCM) designation.

Who: Tenure/Tenure-Track and Lecturers
Format: Primarily Zoom, with one in person session
Compensation: $500 for attending at least four workshops
Contact: Alisa Wade and Allison McConnell
Full Description (Google Doc)

The Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Teaching (EDIT) Series includes six workshops, and is designed to offer faculty an introduction to basic concepts of equity, diversity, inclusion, and how they can be implemented in the classroom in order to create more equitable and accessible learning environments. Each workshop explores--and models--a different facet of student-centered and inclusive teaching through tools, resources, and strategies: positionality in the classroom, antiracist pedagogy, backward design, accessibility of course materials, culturally responsive teaching and the hidden curriculum, and practices of classroom community building. Workshops are each paired with a teaching guide (and other materials) and offer the opportunity for faculty to complete deliverables that they will be able to incorporate into their course(s) moving forward.

Who: Tenure/Tenure-Track and Lecturers currently in/considering leadership roles on campus
Format: In Person
Compensation: $500
Contact: Holly Nevarez
Full Description (Google Doc)

The leadership FLC will introduce leadership styles and strategies. This FLC is designed for people who lead from wherever you are. Perhaps you are not a formal leader on campus, but find yourself leading other staff or students; perhaps you would like to be a formal leader someday and want to start to develop skills; or perhaps you are going to be a department Chair next year and want to start preparing. In any of those scenarios, this FLC is for you. We will talk about staffing, shared governance, facilitating meetings, managing difficult people, work to develop a leadership philosophy and more.

Who: Tenure/Tenure-Track and Lecturers
Format: One online FLC and one in person FLC
Compensation: $500
Contact: Chris Fosen
Full Description (Google Doc)

The Office of Faculty Development is bringing back faculty writing groups FLCs for the spring 2024 semester. After a survey was sent out in Dec 2023 to “Publish and Flourish” and “Write an Article in Twelve Weeks” participants about meeting preferences, we recognized the need for two distinct meeting patterns and goals for FLC participants. Faculty can select either option below:

• Meeting one hour a week on Zoom for dedicated writing time with minimal interruption, for the purposes of getting words down on paper and providing mutual accountability.
• Meeting two hours every other week in MLIB 455 (flex possible) for time to reflect on their writing process, plan out benchmarks for completion, and share drafts in small groups of 2-4. These groups provide accountability and increased understanding of how writing time can mesh with other professional duties.

Participating faculty will receive $500 in taxable income for completing some significant portion of their writing goals, and attending all meetings (through week 13 or 14).

Who: Tenure/Tenure-Track and Lecturers
Format: Online and Asynchronous
Compensation: $750
Contact: Allison McConnell
Full Description (Google Doc)

The Quality Learning and Teaching (QLT) Program is an asynchronous, self-paced Canvas course structured around the QLT evaluation rubric. This QLT course is designed to meet core standards in the QLT instrument through the completion of eight modules with associated deliverables that guide you to fully redesign a course (or design a new course). Topics and deliverables focus on backwards design, student engagement, authentic assessment, inclusion and accessibility, and more. This QLT course requires a final course review. While focusing on online learning, QLT provides a framework that is applicable to all modes of instruction.

• Module 1: Introduction to QLT & Course Design Goals
• Module 2: Course Overview & Learner Support  
  (QLT sections 1 and 7)
• Module 3: Assessment & Evaluation of Student Learning 
  (QLT section 2)
• Module 4: Course Mapping & Instructional Material Organization
  (QLT section 3)
• Module 5: Equity, Diversity & Antiracism 
  (QLT section 5)
• Module 6: Inclusivity & Accessibility 
  (QLT section 8)
• Module 7: Student Interaction & Engagement
  (QLT sections 4 and 6)
• Module 8: Wrap-up & Reflections

The Office of Faculty Development (FDEV) is excited to offer an NSF-funded Faculty Learning Community (FLC) focused on the implementation of teaching strategies that support student learning in STEM. Grant funding for this program is offered through Chico State Enterprises (CSE). FDEV encourages all STEM faculty to apply (tenured, tenure-track, and lecturers), especially those who are new, those who are teaching courses with high DFW rates and/or equity gaps, those who are teaching courses with high enrollment, and/or those who regularly teach STEM courses. In this FLC, participants are invited to learn about UDL in the design of assessments and the implementation of activities to promote inclusion, accessibility, engagement, and student success for participants’ courses (work on your course as part of the FLC!).During the FLC, participants will be guided through the redesign of syllabi, assessments, and activities that support student learning using UDL principles, guidelines, and checkpoints. This FLC also provides space for faculty to consult with peers who are engaged in promoting inclusion and access through the implementation of UDL. Read the full call for applications (Google Doc).

The FLC will meet monthly on Wednesdays from 12:00 - 2:00 p.m. in person (Modoc 218) and/or via Zoom.

Please review the UDL FLC Schedule-At-A-Glance (Google Doc) for information on meetings, topics, tasks, and resources.

Contact: Jamie Gunderson

The award winning CSU Teaching Climate Change & Resilience (TCCR) Faculty Learning Community (FLC) was first offered in Spring 2022 through the Office of Faculty Development. In Spring 2024 the FLC will be offered again, with the support of Chico State’s Office of the President, the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, and the Office of the Chancellor’s Innovative Teaching & Learning Programs(opens in new window). The FLC will be open to all 23 CSU campuses and aligns with the California State University Sustainability Policy, which “is intended to position the nation’s largest university system as a leader in the teaching and use of applied research to educate climate literate students.” 

We will connect faculty with a broad range of approaches and ideas, as well as resources that are well-researched, relevant, and relatable to their discipline; lots of resources to help faculty step by step to easily incorporate climate change and resilience into a course they teach. Read the full call for applications (Google Doc).

The FLC will meet for five Zoom sessions on Tuesdays from 9:00-10:30 a.m. 

Contact: Mark Stemen(opens in new window)