Spring 2024 Opening Week
- President's Collegewide Meeting
- Provost's Meeting
- How to Connect Students to Campus Resources
- Navigating Controversial Topics: Discussing Intentional Approaches
- Accessibility Café
- Overview of New SOI Reports
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Blackboard Reminders
Make Your Course Available for Students
All faculty are responsible for making their courses available for students at the beginning of each semester. We suggest that you open your courses earlier than the actual start date so that students have the opportunity to see the syllabus and textbook information. View the easiest way to do this here.
Additional Reminders
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Register Now for Professional Development Credit Offerings (GECs & Workshops)
Register now for Graduate Equivalency Course (GEC) and credit workshop (CEU) offerings for the spring semester. There are many options to choose from in multiple formats - in person, online (live or asynchronous), and on demand. All Harper College faculty (full-time and adjunct) can register for any of these opportunities at no cost.
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Spring Resources: Blackboard Course Template & More
The Academy team has developed some resources to help you as you prepare for the semester, including Blackboard course templates.
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New Year, New Library Workshops
Shared by Jennifer Lau-Bond, Coordinator of Library Instruction
Resolve to make 2024 the year you encourage all your students to attend a Library workshop! Our 45-minute workshops are being offered both online and on campus, and they are an excellent way to extend student learning outside the classroom. Topics covered include:
- Citing in MLA and APA
- Avoiding Plagiarism
And brand new for Spring 2024:
- Using AI Ethically and Effectively
- Fact or Fake? Identifying Real News and Science
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Academy & Blackboard Support for Faculty: How to Get Help
The Academy team is available on campus for drop-in support in Building F, Room F317, as well as available for remote support.
Not sure what to ask or where to start? We’re here for you! Just fill out the Academy Request Form, and an Academy team member will follow-up with you.
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Do you have questions or want to learn more about Office 365, Microsoft Teams, Windows 11, or Webex? Drop in (virtually or in person) to ask one question or stay the whole hour. Use the link above to view upcoming dates and times.
There are two sessions available for New Adjunct Faculty Orientation this week - an on-campus session on January 8 and a virtual session on January 9. Learn more using the link above.
Harper employees can enjoy a free week at the Foglia Foundation Health and Recreation Center during Opening Week, January 8-12. Participate in free group exercise classes, work out in the fitness center, utilize the elevated track and four-court fieldhouse, or swim in the six-lane pool. Learn more using the link above.
Harper Happenings is filled with information and links to many Harper events, activities, programs, resources, and services for our students and community. Learn more using the link above.
Every year Harper College Educational Foundation awards up to $100,000 through the Resource for Excellence (RFE) internal grant program. RFE funding supports innovative and creative ideas that promote equity and inclusion, and those that focus on the College's strategic goals. All Harper faculty and staff are eligible to apply for an RFE grant. The fiscal year 2025 RFE grant application window is now open. Informational workshops are available to anyone interested in applying (register here). All application documents are available on the Grants Department HIP page. Questions? Please contact grants@harpercollege.edu.
Please consider sharing the following resources and links with your students in a Blackboard announcement:
Please contact the Service Desk with any technical issues or questions: 847.925.6199, servicedesk@harpercollege.edu. You can also visit the Service Desk HIP page for information about Office 365, take-home software, Employee Technical Skills Training information, to Live Chat with the Service Desk, and more.
This video provides an overview of Harper's completion model, Flight of the Hawks Prepare to SOAR. Learn about the Search, Onboard, Advance, and Realize components of the model and see how they positively impact the student experience at Harper. You will also receive some tips and suggestions for supporting students and contributing to this model.
Use the link above to view important dates and deadlines from the Registrar's Office.
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General Education Assessments - Coming Spring 2024
Shared by the Learning Assessment Committee
Our General Education Learning Outcomes state that students should be able to effectively “Communicate information and concepts in oral and written formats” at the time they graduate from Harper.
This spring, the Learning Assessment Committee and its Communication Work Group will lead an assessment of the Communication learning outcome. Those of you who teach a course that maps to this outcome may be asked to participate in the assessment. Courses are selected at random and faculty members will be notified by their dean beginning January 2024. Be on the lookout for more information about this assessment in early spring.
Quantitative Reasoning Learning Outcome Update
A large-scale assessment of the Quantitative Reasoning outcome was conducted in 2020-2021. A follow-up assessment will be conducted this spring. Courses that are mapped to this outcome may be asked to participate.
For more information or to get involved in a Work Group, please contact Deann Surdo at dsurdo@harpercollege.edu, 847.925.6356.
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Jen Lau-Bond: 2023 Glenn A. Reich Award Recipient
Congratulations to Jen Lau-Bond, winner of the 2023 Glenn A. Reich Memorial Faculty Award for Instructional Technology! Named for Reich, former Director of User Services, the award recognizes a full-time, adjunct, or retired faculty member who has actively used technology for the purpose of improving instruction. As Coordinator of Library Instruction, Jen's remarkable contributions to integrating technology into education made her the ideal candidate for this honor.
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Save the Date for the Annual Faculty Retreat!
Harper Faculty Presents: Research-Based Practices
Dates: March 8-9, 2024
Location: Marriott Lincolnshire Resort, Lincolnshire
Program:
Friday, March 8:
- 1-5 p.m. Faculty Present on Applications of Evidence-Based Practices
- 5:30-7:30 p.m. Dinner and Faculty Story Time
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8 p.m. Attend In the Heights or socialize at the resort
Saturday, March 9:
- 8-9 a.m. Light Breakfast
- 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Faculty Share Strategies by Discipline
Watch your email and the Academy News for additional details and the link to register soon!
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Tips for Starting Strong Online in Spring 2024
Whether you are teaching online, blended, or even hyflex, these seven tips will help you to start the semester strong!
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Provide a clear structure in Blackboard for organizing materials and assignments. Providing a clear structure in Blackboard can help your students easily access resources and assignments. If you’d like a head start, the Academy can provide you with a pre-built Blackboard template for Spring 2024 that includes orientation activities and a weekly folder structure. The template is built out for the entire semester.
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Send a clear welcome message to students by January 10 via a Blackboard announcement. Welcome students and provide clear instructions on how to access materials and engage in learning activities before the first week of class to have a strong start once classes begin on January 16.
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Create a short welcome video to introduce yourself and the course. Record a short welcome video to introduce yourself and reiterate important first steps for students. Let them know how they can get engaged with the course in the first week. If possible, share your screen and provide a walkthrough of critical course resources.
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Teaching Online Successfully: Register Now for Spring Courses
Register now for a Teaching Online Successfully course taking place this spring. There are three options to choose from based on your needs: Create, Facilitate, or Enhance. Each course is two weeks, fully online, 1 GEC, and there is no cost.
Please note: Completion of either the Create course or Facilitate course fulfills the professional development requirement for new online/blended instructors at Harper.
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Upcoming Professional Development Credit Opportunities |
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January 26, 10 a.m. (CEUs: 0.1)
January 29 - February 11 (GECs: 1) register by January 15
February 5 - May 10 (GECs: 3) register by January 22
February 6, 12 p.m. (CEUs: n/a)
February 9, 11 a.m. (CEUs: 0.2)
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What's Happening @ Harper? |
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Academy for Teaching Excellence | 847.925.6174 | Building F, Room F317
Monday - Thursday, 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. and Friday, 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
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The mission of the Academy for Teaching Excellence is to create a vibrant teaching and learning culture for full-time and adjunct faculty that cultivates professional development in support of student success. |
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Accessibility: Individuals with disabilities who would like to request an accommodation or who have questions about physical access may contact the event host or Access and Disability Services at ads@harpercollege.edu, 847.925.6266, at least two weeks in advance of the event date.
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Harper College enriches its diverse communities by providing quality, affordable, and accessible education. Harper College, in collaboration with its partners, inspires the transformation of individual lives, the workforce, and society. |
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