Each year, the CFD hosts a mini-conference centered on a specific theme. This year's theme is "Expanding Mindsets: Inspiring Listening, Communication, and Critical Thinking in our Classrooms.” To enhance teaching practices by fostering the skills that engage active listening, constructive dialogue, and critical reflection, the Center for Faculty Development will host a 2-day mini-conference with one pre-conference session. The theme of “Expanding Mindsets” focuses on adaptable pedagogy and high impact learning that promotes effective teaching behaviors and student success in a rapidly evolving world where the volume of information available on any subject creates constant learning challenges. Conversations will include specialists from a wide variety of academic disciplines exploring communication, mentorship, and the development of growth mindsets.
The CFD mini-conference will feature two keynote speakers. On September 30, from 10–11 a.m., Tony Perez will speak on “Cultivating a Course Culture to Support Student Motivation, Engagement, and Success.” Dr. Perez is an associate professor of educational psychology and the graduate program director in the department of STEM education and professional studies, with a secondary appointment in the department of psychology. He is also the Provost’s Fellow for Student Academic Success. On October 1 at 12:30 p.m., we will also welcome our second keynote speaker, Dr. Dorothe Bach, associate director and professor of the Center for Teaching and Learning at the University of Virginia. Dr. Bach will speak on "Generative Listening: A Tool for Fostering Creativity, Celebrating Difference, and Deepening Connection."
The mini-conference includes a specialized workshop with mentoring expert Etta Ward, chief empowerment officer at Full Circle Consulting, LLC and former assistant vice chancellor for research development at Indiana University, Indianapolis. Last semester the Office of Undergraduate Research collaborated with Ms. Ward and hosted a series of online mentoring workshops for the Թϱ community. She returns to offer more mentorship training.
The CFD mini-conference has a flexible schedule since sessions occur in many formats. Some are face-to-face only or hybrid while others happen on ZOOM. The full program is below.
We welcome you to this wonderful mini-conference and invite you to participate. Please go to the CFD Events Registration Page for more information and to register.
Pre-Mini Conference Panel Discussion: September 29
12:00 noon to 1:00pm: COIL and International Education: High Impact Learning Builds Global Mindsets
Patricia Schiaffini-Vedani, Director International Collaborations, Mindy Gumpert, Adjunct Assistant Professor, Human Movement Studies and Special Education, Nicole Willock, Professor and Chair, Philosophy and Religious Studies, Agnieszka Whelan, Master Lecturer, Art, and Angela Wilson, Clinical Assistant Professor, Medical Diagnostic & Translational Sciences.
On ZOOM:
This panel discussion will introduce high-impact instruction using the COIL method (Collaborative Online International Learning) and the virtual exchange programs with faculty and universities abroad that have been developed at Թϱ. Թϱ faculty members who have taught COIL courses will share their experiences.
Day 1: September 30
8:45-9:00am Welcome to our Days of Teaching, Director of the Center for Faculty Development & Professor of History Annette Finley-Croswhite and CFD Associate Director of Faculty Innovation and Teaching with Technology M’hammed Abdous will open the conference.
Hybrid, Perry Library 1310-1311 and on ZOOM:
LIGHT BREAKFAST PROVIDED
9:00-9:50am: Motivating Students to Read using Reading-Writing Connections,
Carolyne King, Assistant Professor of English, Director, Writing-across-the-Curriculum and Writing-in-the-Disciplines.
Hybrid Perry Library 1310-1311 and on ZOOM Hybrid:
Understanding some of the difficulties behind student non-compliance with reading; practice building comprehension through explaining “what and why” of assigned readings; participants will be provided examples and practice building reading assignments.
10:00-11:00am: KEYNOTE: Cultivating a Course Culture to Support Student Motivation, Engagement, and Success
Tony Perez, Associate Professor of STEM Education and Professional Studies
Hybrid: Perry Library 1310-1311 and on ZOOM:
We can't control the attitudes and beliefs that students bring into the classroom at the start of the semester. However, we can cultivate a classroom culture that sets the conditions for students to be motivated and engaged in our courses. Dr. Perez will discuss how the messages we communicate and the classroom structures we create can support or thwart adaptive student motivation and belonging.
11:30am-12:30pm: Decision Frames and Having Difficult Conversations: Lessons from Teaching Management Courses
Jay O’Toole, Associate Professor of Management, Provost’s Fellow for Faculty Development.
ZOOM:
Having difficult conversations is a skill that requires practice. Simply stating that we want our graduates to be insightful and prospective leaders who promote empathy, mutual understanding, and recognition of differences is not enough. It is crucial that we give our students the theoretical foundations and opportunities to practice engaging in difficult conversations, especially when ideological differences seem to be widening. Dr. O’Toole will share lessons he has learned from teaching management classes and offer insights on how he has encouraged discussion in both in synchronous and asynchronous learning environments.
1:00-2:15pm: Guest Speaker and Workshop: Effective Mentorship: Intentional Strategies for Success
Etta Ward, Chief Empowerment Officer, Full Circle Consulting, LLC, and Former Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research Development, Indiana University, Indianapolis
ZOOM:
Mentoring experiences offer a world of possibilities for professional and personal growth. This includes the mentored experiences across a wide range of academic contexts, including faculty mentorship of graduate students. Effective mentorship requires intentionality and care. In this session, participants will explore the definition of mentoring relationships, discuss the importance of creating safe spaces that welcome the whole person, and learn how to build trusting and inclusive environments to foster a mutually beneficial experience that does no harm.
3:00-4:00pm: Championing Queer Student Success
Cathleen Rhodes, Master Lecturer of Women's and Gender Studies, Director, Gay Cultural Studies
Face-to-Face, Perry Library 1310-1311
AFTERNOON SNACKS PROVIDED
LGBTQ students face unique challenges in college, and faculty play an important role in providing opportunities for success. This presentation will provide faculty with practical strategies to create learning experiences that ensure the retention of queer Թϱ students.
Day 2: October 1
9:00-9:30am: Wrap Up From Day 1
Annette Finley-Croswhite, Director, Center for Faculty Development and Professor of History
Face-to-Face Perry Library 1310-1311 Not on ZOOM
LIGHT BREAKFAST PROVIDED
9:30-11:00am: From Micro to Meaningful: Cultivating Inclusive Excellence in Medicine
LaConda G. Fanning, PsyD, RN, LDC, LSATD, Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine, Virginia Health Sciences, Renee Morales, MD, Assistant Professor, Clerkship Co-Director, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Virginia Health Sciences
Face-to-Face Perry Library 1310-1311, Not on ZOOM
This interactive training session is designed to help medical students and faculty recognize, understand, and respond to microaggressions and implicit bias within healthcare education and clinical environments. Through case-based discussions, self-reflection, and skills practice, participants will explore how subtle forms of bias impact learning, teamwork, and patient care. The session will also introduce evidence-informed strategies for creating a more inclusive and psychologically safe learning environment, aligned with professionalism and equity goals in academic medicine.
12:30-2:00pm KEYNOTE: Generative Listening: A Tool for Fostering Creativity, Celebrating Difference, and Deepening Connection
Dorothe Bach, Ph.D., Associate Director and Professor, Center for Teaching and Learning, University of Viriginia
ZOOM:
Are you interested in sharpening your own and your students’ listening skills?
Would you like to learn how to expand your students’ capacity to productively engage with ambiguity and complexity? What if you could harness radical listening as a tool for building and strengthening collegial support networks in this time of change?
In this interactive session, participants get a taste of a listening process that builds learners capacity to sit in the “not-knowing”, to articulate ideas with greater nuance, to make meaning from lived experience, and to deepen their appreciation for human difference and interconnection. After a brief introduction to embodied thinking, participants learn tools for establishing a generous space for thinking and experiment with a radical listening practice around an issue, conundrum, or question of their choosing. Together, we will generate takeaways for our work with students and other contexts in the academy in which listening can play a transformative role.