A message from the Center for Leadership, Teaching, and Learning

Spring Spotlight: Meet Periclean Faculty Leader Sarah DiPasquale

This year, the newsletter will highlight the accomplishments of Periclean Faculty Leaders across campus. Project Pericles is a nonprofit organization that supports civic engagement within higher education. Skidmore faculty have found myriad ways of conjoining their pedagogical missions with that of Project Pericles. There is additional teaching-related content from these interviews on the CLTL Faculty and Staff Voices webpage. Go check it out!

“Doing good for others” was the central theme that emerged in the interview with Sarah DiPasquale, associate professor and chair of the Dance Department. I would describe her as a lifelong learner who is inspired by creative pedagogies as a way to help people. DiPasquale said she “recognized the privilege” of having this platform, revealing a conscientiousness and commitment to being both learner and teacher. This reflexivity is a key piece of DiPasquale’s highly constructivist and collaborative approach to teaching. During the height of COVID, she focused on creating a community of engagement through changes in content and curriculum based on constructivist philosophies, bringing problem-solving-based learning to students through changes in technology and content, which decreased isolation among the community of remote learners.

This was not the first time Professor DiPasquale sought to expand a community of learning through experience-based pedagogies. Her Project Pericles course DA 374: Dancing Towards Success was wildly successful in the mission of “doing good for others.” For this project, her students created dance residencies with social justice themes within Gloversville elementary schools in New York. This program sought to apply dance in a manner that was intersectional in nature, both socially and educationally. This collaboration not only taught local students and educators with varying degrees of experience how to engage in the arts, but also taught DiPasquale’s students how to effectively communicate with a variety of community constituencies. In creating this experience, students learned to recognize their own positionalities within the context of dance, the arts, and local community engagement.

— Michael DeCarlen-Bumiller ’23

Announcements

Support our students with TimelyCare

Student Affairs has expanded virtual health and wellness options for students by partnering with TimelyCare, a robust digital health and well-being platform that offers students free and equitable access to teletherapy services. The TimelyCare app also offers a service for faculty and staff designed to equip them with information to help struggling students. Additionally, the Student Assessment and Intervention Group (SAIG) remains a resource to share non-emergency concerns about your students (e.g., attendance). You may find the SAIG form here.

Training opportunity: Applying Universal Design for Learning principles to your course

Supported by a grant from the New York State Education Department, the CLTL and Student Academic Services (SAS) are collaborating to offer support to faculty interested in training around Universal Design for Learning (UDL). In May 2023, the SUNY Center for Professional Development is offering a training opportunity. The six-week asynchronous course will introduce learners to UDL and to the benefits of accessible content and how it promotes student success. Learners will see how UDL offers insight for more effective teaching and learning. In addition to supporting the full cost of attendance, participating faculty members will receive a $750 stipend.   

For a full description, please follow this link. Faculty interested in registering should contact Jamin Totino in SAS at jtotino@skidmore.edu.

Spring Programming

ChatGPT Workshop and Luncheon with Aaron Kendall and Ben Harwood (LEDS Team)

• When and where: Tuesday, March 21, from noon to 1:30 p.m. in Murray-Aikins Dining Hall
• Description: Emerging AI tools present unprecedented challenges and opportunities for educators and students. Responses to these tools span a broad spectrum, from doomsday outlooks to a nascent optimism to re-invigorating modern pedagogy. Skidmore students are already using these tools and writing about their academic utility, going so far as to produce guides for their effective use. This workshop will help unpack what these AI tools are, specifically ChatGPT, why they’ve suddenly become so prevalent, and where this technology may be heading. Time will be spent demonstrating how ChatGPT works and critiquing its output. Ethical considerations for the use of these tools will be addressed. In order for this to be an interactive workshop, attendees are asked to create an account at https://chat.openai.com/ and ask the AI some questions about your academic discipline prior to the workshop.
• Please RSVP here by Wednesday, March 15.

Designing for Inclusion: UDL as a Framework with Susan Pliner

• When and where: Friday, March 24, from noon to 1:30 p.m. in Murray-Aikins Dining Hall
• Description: How do we define learning? How do we create opportunity for learning? How do we know when learning has occurred? Some of the core tenets of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) rely on the articulation of the answers to these questions. Then, we get to be creative and inclusive with designing for learning, teaching, and evaluation. In this session, we will look at UDL as a framework for developing accessible and inclusive learning environments and explore practical methods. You can access Pliner’s bio and event information here. This event is supported by a grant from the New York State Education Department and is a collaboration between the CLTL and Jamin Totino in the Office of Student Academic Services.
• Please RSVP here by Monday, March 20.

Publishing Workshop with Sean Guynes

• When and where: Thursday, March 30, from 1 to 2 p.m. (virtual)
• Description: Skidmore and Union colleges are partnering to co-host a book-publishing workshop with Sean Guynes of Lever Press. Guynes will provide authors with advice on how to submit a book proposal and explain the editorial process that academic presses follow, from submission to publication. He will also allow plenty of time for questions. You can access Guynes’ bio and event information here. Registration is not required. Zoom details will be circulated via email.

Ponder This...

• Students Expect ‘Total Flexibility’ in the Pandemic-era Classroom. But Is That What They Really Need?

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