Provost Vaught's Thoughts
Dear Faculty,
Thank you for all you are doing for students as this semester progresses. The end of semester can be a stressful time for all on campus: finals are coming, reports are due, and the snow is falling! I encourage you to find time to care for yourselves, your families, and your students . As the semester winds down, please also remember to give meaningful feedback to students so they know where they stand and have time to make changes. Also, be mindful of all the many wonderful assets we have on campus (tutoring, writing center, student health services, food pantry, etc).
Happy Thanksgiving and thank you all for all you do. I greatly appreciate your great work at this fine university.
Important Reminder
Starting this semester, there will no longer be any reading or exam prep days. For more information about the academic schedule click here.
Teach an Excelerate Course!
I am recruiting faculty for the Excelerate Program for the 2nd Block of Summer 2023. Excelerate is a project-based summer program where incoming freshman and sophomore students take a GE class that will count towards their degree. This amazing opportunity is grant-supported so there are no tuition or fees.
What you need to do:
- Complete the Project-Based Learning Training through OTL, if you have not already. We can provide $500 stipends for the first 15 people who sign up for the spring training and commit to teach an Excelerate course in Block 2 of Summer 2023.
- Design a project for a GE course with an external partner (e.g., non-profit, business, municipality). Students must work in teams on this project.
- Teach an Excelerate course then receive a $200 thank you gift!
Benefits:
- We will assist you in identifying an external partner--there is no extra work you need to do!
- Your course will be capped at 20 students to give you the space to do a project.
- (Tentative) Pending funding, we are planning on providing an instructional assistant to you that can assist you and serve as a peer mentor to the Excelerate students.
- We will train your students in design thinking, effective group work, project management, and other skills necessary to complete a project successfully before you begin teaching.
- Stand out in your annual reviews and have strong evidence of teaching excellence for your RTP or promotion portfolios.
Student feedback on Excelerate:
- “As an undergrad, this was an amazing opportunity to network and get advice I needed as I continue in my major. Every single one of the professors was welcoming and helpful and I feel more prepared than ever to continue in my major.”
- “It was project-based, which made it so much easier to grasp the information…”
Contact Jessi Hill (jessi.hill@uvu.edu) for more information.
Were you born outside of the United States?
Come meet other UVU international faculty/staff at our bi-annual networking group.
Thursday, December 1st | 1pm – 2pm | UVU Fulton Library Timpanogos Room – 4th floor.
If you are able to join us, please RSVP to Veronica (Veronica.Caballero@uvu.edu) by November 22.
Dates to Remember
November 15
Faculty Success Drop-In Sessions (Rank Advancement) - 2pm
Application for Sabbatical Leave Due to Department Chair
November 17
Roots of Knowledge Speaker Series - “How to Read Sacred Architecture: Reinterpreting Architectural Roots at Jerusalem, Rome, and Salt Lake” By Bradon R. Ro
Launch to Success Series From 3-5 pm – Register Here!
November 21-26
Thanksgiving Break
December 1
International Faculty/Staff Bi-Annual Networking Group from 1-2 pm – RSVP to Veronica Caballero
December 6
Launch to Success Series From 3-5 pm - Register Here!
December 9
Classes End
December 13
Faculty Success Drop-In Sessions (Rank Advancement) - 11am
December 15
Deadline to Submit Request for Rank Advancement Form to Department RTP Chair
December 17
End of Semester
December 22
Final Grades Due
January 12
Adjunct Institute (for new adjuncts only) - Register Here!
February 1
Adjunct Institute (for new adjuncts only) - Register Here!
November Service-Learning Superstar Winner
We are pleased to announce Dr. Devin Gilbert as the November Service-Learning Superstar!
Dr. Devin Gilbert is an Assistant Professor of Spanish in the Department of Languages & Cultures, where is building and growing UVU’s Spanish translation and interpreting program. Since he arrived to UVU in 2021, his students have pursued service-learning projects in the Advanced Spanish Translation course, and he has also used service to incorporate authentic experiential learning into his translation courses. For example, in Spring of 2022, Dr. Gilbert’s translation students localized (a combination of translation and technical/cultural adaptation) Orem City’s most heavily used webpages into Spanish, garnering them recognition from the Daily Herald. The plan is to continue working with Orem City and other communities in Utah Valley to develop further authentic project-based learning opportunities for UVU students.
Some of Dr. Gilbert’s students’ individual service-learning projects include translating subtitles for TED talks through the TED Translate program, translating Latino UVU students’ Wolverine Stories (coming soon) so their family members can read their interviews more easily, translating promotional materials for UVU’s English Language Learning (ELL) program, translating patient materials for several local non-profit medical clinics — such as the Hope Clinic — and translating parent- and student-facing materials for various local schools.
Dr. Gilbert's department chair, Dr. Bryan K. Eldredge, says this about Devin:
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Devin Gilbert for his incredible service-learning efforts!
We welcome nominations for future Service-Learning Superstars on a rolling basis, and self-nominations are encouraged. To nominate, please send an email to Dr. Jon Westover (Jonathan.westover@uvu.edu ) and Dr. Leandra Hernandez (Leandra.Hernandez@uvu.edu.) with a 250-word description of the nominee, department affiliation, and service-learning course activities.
The Office of Faculty Development: Spring Learning Circles
Learning Circles are small communities of faculty that meet on a regular basis during a single semester. Each community reads a particular book or set of articles on learning and teaching and discusses the book during their sessions. Learning Circles are open to all full-time and adjunct faculty. All participants receive a Certificate of Participation for their Faculty Portfolio. Books are provided to each participant. Starting the first week of the semester, books can be picked up outside from FL 416 between 9am - 4:30pm. Spring learning circles are now open for registration. To learn more about the books available, dates, time, and registration click here!
Policy News
Policy Update
While we are still actively working on many policies, the pipeline has been a little quiet as seen from the outside. Earlier this semester, Policy 332 Remote Work entered stage two and comments will be gathered from Academic Affairs Council, Faculty Senate, PACE, and UVUSA until November 17, 2022, when stage two closes. The revisions in the policy are meant to define, clarify, and communicate guidelines, responsibilities, and expectations as well as lay out the approval process and how to become or remain eligible for remote work. Stage three is just around the corner so be ready to review the updates and contribute your comment when stage three opens to the university community.
Additionally, on November 10, 2022, President’s Council approved Policy 168 Whistleblower Anti-Retaliation to undergo a limited scope revision under Policy 101’s compliance change process. These limited scope revisions are necessary due to recent changes in state law and will be limited to only what is necessary to maintain compliance with state law.
Policy Highlight
Policy 114 – Individual Conflict of Interest and Commitment- Part 3
Other areas to be aware of that are conflicts of interest are gifts or other inducements. First, a university employee “may not knowingly receive, accept, take, seek, or solicit, directly or indirectly, any gift or loan for themselves or [for]a family member (1) if it would tend to improperly influence a reasonable person in the discharge of university duties or responsibilities, or (2) if an employee recently has been, currently is, or in the near future may be involved in any university action or decision directly affecting the donor or lender.”
A gift is defined as “A transfer of money, property, or service to another without compensation. Gifts include excessive compensation, loans with interest rates below commercial rates, and other economic benefits tantamount to a gift. For purposes of this policy, a gift does not include the occasional transfer of a nonpecuniary item or service with insignificant monetary value (less than $50) or an award publicly presented in recognition of public service.”
Second, faculty need to be aware that they “may not accept gifts, as defined [above] from students if the faculty member has been, currently is, or may be involved in assigning a grade to such students.
Third, an employee may not demand that a person “donate property, money, or services to any employee or agency, including the University”, “as a condition of granting any application or request for a contract, approval, or other authorization.”
Likewise, an employee “may not donate or offer to donate property, money, or services to any employee or agency on the condition that the University or any other agency approve an application or request for a contract, approval, or other authorization.”
$10K Faculty GEL Grant Applications Open
The GEL grant program supports a wide range of non-classroom-based projects helping faculty that seek to involve students beyond the required credit courses, providing the opportunity for hands on learning and application of knowledge.
The purpose of the GEL program is to support projects that enrich the academic or UVU community in a broad and enduring way. The purpose of the GEL Grant program is to provide these projects start up funding to gain the necessary data to prove the viability for seeking other sources of long term financial support.
The GEL Grant application is now open and the deadline is November 30, 2022 at 5:00 pm.
Do you have questions about the Faculty GEL Grants but don't know who to ask or where to go for more information? There are answers to many of your questions on the Faculty Research Web FAQ Page that can help. Don't see the answer you are seeking? You can go to the GEL Committee web page, and connect with any committee member to help guide you through any questions or concerns.
To find out more about the GEL Program and application deadlines please click here.
From the Office for Global Engagement
The Global Spotlight Initiative is an effort led by the Office for Global Engagement
to promote global awareness throughout Utah Valley University. It is carefully designed
with the intent to trigger global and intercultural engagement across campus and within
the community. Faculty may have up to $1500 of approved expenses reimbursed to their
department to help make the event a reality.
Please review the Funding Request Rules carefully (https://www.uvu.edu/global/global-spotlight/index.html) before submitting a proposal. The Global Spotlight experience must include an international
component which benefits students directly. For more information contact: Amy Barnett
– Abarnett@uvu.edu.
Have Something You Want to Submit to the Faculty Newsletter?
We are now taking content submissions for the faculty newsletter. To learn more about deadlines and to submit content click here.
Streaming Services at the Fulton Library
Did you know the Fulton Library offers streaming services? With over 160,000 videos ranging from counseling demonstrations to documentaries and feature films, we’re sure to have a resource that can enhance your course curriculum. All videos are licensed for classroom use and can be found in one of our 17 video databases or with the video search bar on the library’s homepage. Even better, there isn’t a waitlist! Streaming videos can be accessed at any time by any number of users, so your students can watch videos whenever and wherever they want.
Searching for the right video for your course? We can help by researching subject-specific titles, checking item availability, and finding alternate videos. Once you’ve found a resource that works for you, you can embed it directly into Canvas. Want to learn how to embed videos or other library material, like research guides, tutorials, articles, or ebooks? We can help with that too. If you have questions about streaming content or embedding material, contact Alan Stephens for assistance.
New Faculty Led Professional Experiences for Students Grant
Students have faced unprecedented challenges over the last few years. With the ever-changing landscape of higher education, it is important that new and innovative ways to provide engaging experiences are offered through a variety of experiences. In an effort to better serve students, the Undergraduate Research Office in the Innovation Academy is excited to announce a new grant focusing on providing students with a taste of what their chosen discipline offers for their future.The Faculty Led SPE's are awarded to faculty seeking to provide exposure, ignite excitement and growth, and encourage deeper interest for students within their chosen discipline. These experiences may include discipline specific conference attendance and/or participation, performances, hands on learning or job shadowing, etc. Providing these opportunities leads to a deeper connection to persistence and completion and solid career paths.These applications are open while funds are available and reviewed on a rolling basis. To learn more about these grants click here.