A Faculty Learning Community (FLC) is a small group of faculty and staff members working together to increase their knowledge and/or skills on a topic of mutual interest.
An FLC provides the structure and support for this group to discuss, share, and encourage one another to reach their full professional potential. In addition to shared learning, FLC members work on personal projects that put into practice what they are learning. Finally, the community is expected to share their knowledge and accomplishments with the wider university community.
Fall 2022 and Fall 2023
MSU Denver lists “accessibility” as one of its core values and the CTLD has developed the Accessibility Competency Certification Program to help faculty and staff make classes and materials accessible. This FLC will build on that work, exploring models for an interdisciplinary disabilities studies minor that would give students and faculty the opportunity to study disability through the lenses of different disciplines. The FLC will examine different models for an interdisciplinary disabilities studies minor and explore the feasibility of building such a program at MSU Denver.
We will meet 3-4 times in fall, with meeting days/times determined by participants. Remote participation will be possible. Meetings will last about two hours.
If you are interested in joining this FLC, please contact:
Elizabeth Kleinfeld
Fall 2023 – Spring2024
Students of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds experience an achievement gap. Neuroscience research offers innovative approaches to designing and implementing brain-compatible culturally responsive instruction.
In this yearlong FLC, after an introductory session participants will complete 9 chapter summaries/analyses of the book Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain, by Zaretta Hammond. They will end will a ‘report-out’ session where intended changes can be discussed with their peers.
Key Take-Aways: deepened understanding of how one’s culture programs the brain to process data and how it affects learning relationships; ‘key moves’ to build students’ learner operating systems and prepare them to become independent learners; as well as, prompts for action and valuable self reflection.
If you are interested in joining this FLC, please contact:
Darcy Beery
Beginning in Spring 2024
This FLC will provide theory and practical ideas related to trauma-informed educational practices in the university classroom. Each week will focus on part of the curriculum (online or in-person) and/or on the syllabus and have participants implement specific ideas into their classes as we move through the year.
If you are interested in joining this FLC, please contact:
Perri Corvino or Kathryn Young
Spring 2023 – Fall 2023
Translanguaging is the communicative norm of multilingual communities, where named languages, dialects, and non-linguistic resources are used dynamically and interchangeably to facilitate meaning-making (Otheguy, García & Reid, 2015). Within education research, translanguaging has been described as a theory, as a pedagogy, and as an ideological stance (García & Wei, 2014). Translanguaging as a pedagogy has historically been studied within K-12 bilingual education contexts (Martin Corredor, 2021). It is just now gaining momentum across K-12 contexts and within higher-education institutions (Fine, 2022).
As an Hispanic-serving institution with a focus on teaching and learning, MSU Denver’s faculty and students are uniquely poised to contribute to this international conversation. In this Faculty Learning Community, we will explore the tripartite nature of translanguaging through readings and discussions during Spring 2023. We will support each other to modify course syllabi and gather as a learning community to reflect on opportunities and challenges related to enacting those modifications during Fall 2023. We will share key take-aways from this collaborative work with the MSU Denver community as well as with the national higher-ed research community through collaborative conference presentations and peer-reviewed manuscripts.
If you are interested in joining this FLC, please contact:
Caitlin Fine or Lina Martin Corredor
Visit the CTLD S0TL page for information.
Visit the OER Faculty Resources Page for information.
If interested in becoming a facilitator for one of the below listed FLCs, please complete the FLC application.
Proposed Commitment: 1 semester. Faculty participatnts will visit each other's classes to gain insight and solicit feedback. Group discussion and reflection will take place before and after. Facilitators will coordinate scheduling of observations and community meetings
Proposed Commitment: 1 semester. The facilitator will recruit a faculty member that uses some form of active learning in a class. The FLC group will meet with this "example instructor," then attend and observe their class, then meet 1-2 times to debrief. THe goal would be to do this twice in a given semester.
Proposed Commitment: 1 semester. The facilitator will recruit a faculty member that works to make their classroom discussions more inclusive and effective. The FLC group will meet with this "example instructor," then attend and observe their class, then meet 1-2 times to debrief. The goal would be to do this twice in a given semester.
Proposed Commitment: Either 1 semester or year-long. Faculty will learn, apply and discuss the principles and practice of Universal Design for Learning (UDL).
Facilitators: Christina Foust or Nicole Predki
This Faculty Learning Community (FLC) will define and focus on the benefits of experiential, community engaged, and service learning for students, faculty, the community, and the university. The FLC will also give faculty practical tools to implement experiential, community engaged, and/or service learning into their course(s).
In the fall, sessions will cover such topics as: what are experiential, community engaged, and service learning? How do you locate a community partner and foster a relationship with them that is mutually beneficial to the class and the community partner? What are the benefits and challenges to this type of learning?
In the spring, our focus will be more practical and applied. For example, participants may create a list of possible community partners and consider how to establish a relationship with them. Participants might formulate activities and assignments that realize community-engaged or service learning in an existing class. They might develop new service learning or community engaged course syllabi, including how to designate a course as a “SL” course in Curriculog. Facilitators are open to additional topics and outcomes as desired by participants.
Facilitators: AnnJanette Alejano-Steele or Cynthia Krentz
The benefits of teaching students across disciplines are well known in literature (Merriman, et al., 2020). Recently, most healthcare professions were charged by their accrediting bodies to offer IPE in the classroom. However, IPE is gaining popularity in the humanities, arts and non-healthcare sciences also (Okstad & Dahlk, 2021). Interdisciplinary faculty collaborations lead to better student outcomes by increasing cognitive abilities to think critically, to see the same material through different lenses, and to practice collaboration skills; however, the steps to create and deliver IPE can be daunting.
This Faculty Learning Community will provide space and colleagues with evidence-based practice resources to help you design an interprofessional activity that will be used to increase active learning in your classroom. We will assist in goal setting, communication tactics, learning objectives and outcomes, and strategies to overcome barriers in collaboration.
The CTLD, led by Bridget Arend, offered a Scholarship in Teaching and Learning Faculty Learning Community (FLC) during the 2022-23 academic year. Faculty and staff were encouraged to join to learn about SoTL, further an ongoing SoTL project, or develop a new project around a burning question or idea. Visit our SoTL webpage for further information
Led by Zach Clark, a member of the Instructional Accessibility Group, this FLC will begin in Fall 2022 and continue through the Spring 2023 semesters. Participants will audit live courses, workshop content and resources, as well as research tools and practices. Ultimately, the FLC will work to identify barriers within STEM education and develop methods for removing them.
Facilitators: Ally Garcia and Kristy Lyons
The Research Incubator FLC will establish a forum where MSU Denver faculty and staff can discuss research challenges, potential collaborations, challenges, and opportunities. The one-year FLC will focus on designing and building a system that matches complementary research skills across disciplines, fosters mentorship and collaboration, and engenders conversations about challenges commonly faced by faculty/staff engaging in research and ways to potentially address these challenges. The FLC will include discussions specific to faculty/staff ongoing or future projects, as well as establishing an ongoing association for continued discussion in these areas.
The Research Incubator FLC is open to all faculty and staff who have a desire to work with colleagues across campus to plan, conduct, and disseminate research findings.
Facilitator: Becky Cottrell
Facilitators: Sheryl Zadjowicz & Elizabeth Kleinfeld
Facilitators: Jeff Loats and Meredith Flynn
Facilitator: Emily Ragan
Watch an introduction to Effective Teaching Using Open Educational Resources
Facilitator: Christian M. Itin
Facilitator: Chris Pink
Watch an introduction to Writing Effective Exams and Fair Student Assessments
Facilitator: Jeff Loats
Facilitators: Elizabeth Kleinfeld and Sheryl Zajdowicz
Description: MSU Denver has had a robust undergraduate research (UR) program for six years; we are ready to take things to the next level by exploring models for an Undergraduate Research Journal. Research indicates that students who have their work peer reviewed are challenged to sharpen their insights and writing, while student editors gain collaborative skills and new insights into writing and publishing processes. This FLC will explore the feasibility of different models of an URJ in terms of organization, logistics, budget, student-centeredness, faculty involvement, brand compliance, and sustainability. Fall and Spring.
Facilitators: Katia Campbell and Lisa Nelson
Description: The goal of this FLC is to develop a framework for a collaborative, cross-disciplinary formal dialogue program to serve the campus community. We will review relevant scholarly articles in the field of dialogue and deliberation, including intergroup dialogue, and explore various theories and models of existing dialogue programs in higher education settings including curricular and co-curricular elements.
Facilitator: Samuel Jay
Description: This FLC will use thoughtful, but critical contemporary commentary to structure in-depth and serious conversations about hardware, software, data, apps, security, privacy, and everything else that relates to technology’s presence in our modern experience. The end goal is to develop a rich, thoughtful, and educated comprehension of the existential effects of contemporary technology to encounter it, process it, and leverage it as scholars, teachers, colleagues, and humans.
