2021 List of Working Groups
Enhancing the First-Year Experience
Dana Bekurs (Facilitator) (BCS), Jennifer Leach (Southwestern), Jennifer Mathews (Sewanee), Jason Rodocker (WLU), Tiffany Norris (BSC), Andrew Gurka (Richmond), Ashley Kistler (Rollins), and Brad Harmon (Furman)
Description: This working group will gathering data from ACS institutions about needs for FYE information. Goals include:
- Create a library of ACS and other liberal arts institutions that participate in the following:
- FY courses (including syllabi)
- Pre-matriculation (orientation), first semester and second semester programs (including academic and student affairs programs)
- Use of social media and other technologies; in-time communication
- FY advising models
- Specialized programs for specific student populations (i.e. first-generation, student athletes, international students, at risk students, etc.)
- Scholarly research that highlights the impact of FYE
- Bridge faculty and staff on the FYE initiative
Fostering a Sense of Belonging in the Classroom: Academic References and Practical Examples
Curtis Hurtado (Facilitator) (Richmond), Kylie Korsnack (Richmond), Brandon Ng (Richmond), Jory Brinkerhoff (Richmond), Eva Cadavid (Centre), Layne Gordon (Rollins), Brittani Sahm (Rollins), and Zeynep Teymuroglu (Rollins)
Description: Challenges posed by the COVID-19 global pandemic have exacerbated belonging-related concerns, and the shift to remote or hybrid learning models has, by intention and definition, limited contact between students. Goals include:
- Diagnose specific contexts on college campuses that frequently contribute to lack of belonging
- Explore how lack of belonging manifests differently across disciplinary and institutional contexts
- Develop practical interventions to improve sense of belonging
- Consider ways to reduce isolation and bolster sense of belonging when students are physically distanced and isolated
Resources to be created:
- Curated and annotated list of resources on belonging
- List of practical activities, examples, and practices that promote sense of belonging
Preparing Department/Program Chairs
Anne Stone (Facilitator) (Rollins), Stephanie Hansard (BSC), Joanna Wares (Richmond), MacKenzie Moon Ryan (Rollins), Valerie Renegar (Southwestern), Jeff Carlson (Richmond), and Mike Gesinski (Southwestern)
Description: There are two broad goals for this working group. A primary goal is to create a resource that equips chairs with knowledge that will better prepare them for their work. A second goal is to ensure that mentorship models are in place across our institutions to ensure faculty are supported in their work and can focus their efforts on educating students and making a positive impact in their community.
Rethinking Advising for Non-traditional Students
Beth Ann Howard (Facilitator) (Richmond), Tammy Alexander (Richmond), Gretchen Flynn Morris (Richmond), Amber Taylor (Rollins), Debbie Tatum (Rollins), Teres Cole (Rollins), Susan Montgomery (Rollins), and Lovely Durham (Morehouse)
Description: This working group’s goals are to: share ideas, resources, and processes related to student services and academic success, specifically for evening school students. Academic advisors are often a front-line resource for students when problems arise, providing guidance on everything from registering for courses to finding academic skills support to ensuring students meet critical deadlines. Collaboration between ACS institutions may help us find both reactive and proactive solutions to some of the issues our students face, with the benefit of new perspectives from colleagues at other schools.
A Post-COVID Look at Study Abroad: Sustainability and Global Experience
Ellen Sayles (Facilitator) (Richmond), Anne-Marie Bruner-Tracey (Centenary), Lori Harmann (Centre), Anne Ledvina (BSC), Naomi Otterness (Davidson), and Ruihua Shen (Morehouse)
Description: The pandemic “pause” in international activities has allowed time to think more deeply about our work and purpose. Goals for this working group include:
- Sharing effective pre-COVID sustainability efforts
- Discussing how sustainability efforts within the field of international education should change post-COVID
- Providing the opportunity to brainstorm activities that further imbed sustainability in study abroad programs, including working collaboratively toward these efforts
- Developing shared sustainability resources that can be used across ACS campuses. Each participating campus will develop an implementation plan for increasing sustainability efforts in study abroad once global mobility resumes.
“Decolonizing” the Curriculum: Tensions, Trends, and Tools
Betsy Sandlin (Co-Facilitator) (Sewanee), Kent Andersen (Co-Facilitator) (BSC), Diane Boyd (Furman), Nancy Chick (Rollins), Emily Puckette (Sewanee), Stephanie Rolph (Millsaps), Elisabeth Gruner (Richmond), and Amy Cotrill (BSC)
Description: Goals for this working group include:
- Gather, read, and discuss foundational and recent literature on ‘decolonizing’ the curriculum
- Explore distinctions and overlaps between conceptual frameworks like ‘decolonizing’, anti-racist pedagogy, and inclusive pedagogy
- Consider not only the classroom, but the curriculum itself as an important but often overlooked site for decolonizing work
- Examine tensions and risks embedded within ‘decolonizing’ efforts and frameworks
The group will share:
- Curated and annotated reading list
- Tools for decolonizing the curriculum (e.g., reflection questions to be used in backward design)
- Ideas for workshops or other faculty development opportunities on this topic
Leveraging Digital Pedagogies to Energize Learning
Michael Marsh-Soloway (Facilitator) (Richmond), Vincent Gawronski (BSC), Elizabeth Pettinaroli (Rhodes), Martin Sulzer-Reichel (Richmond), Claudia Ferman (Richmond), Hannah Huber (Sewanee), and Olivier Delers (Richmond)
Description: Goals of this working group include:
- Develop an ongoing inventory of digital resources that promote student learning across the disciplines
- Encourage participants to revise their syllabi by incorporating technological resources and capabilities that stimulate new possibilities for learning and publication
Writing Accountability Groups
Nancy Chick (Facilitator) (Rollins), Tara Strauch (Facilitator) (Centre), Ellen Barnett (Trinity), Katie Ann Skogsberg (Centre), Kara Wunderlich (Rollins), Centdrika Hurt (BSC), Linda Boland (Richmond), Mei Li Inouye (Centre), Maude Keely Sutton (BCS), Blake Robinson (Rollins), Kip Kiefer (Rollins), Kati Curts (Sewanee), Elizabeth Wiener (Sewanee), Kiyona Brewster (Centre), Kimberly Dennis, (Rollins), Courtney Hatch (Hendrix), Delphia Shanks (Hendrix), MacKenzie Moon Ryan (Rollins), Juan Guevara Pinto (Rollins), Stephanie Hansar (BSC), Matt Nichter (Rollins), and Jason Heaton (BSC)
Description: Goals of the 2 writing groups include:
- Provide structure and support to complete writing by July 31
- Meaningfully connect with faculty from across ACS campuses