Higher Education Academy
The Higher Education Academy (HEA) is an international, non-profit organization that promotes teaching excellence in higher education. HEA is a subsidiary of UK-based Advance HE. There are more than 115,000 HEA fellows in the world. UVU is the first American institution to be accredited by the HEA to offer fellowship recognition to faculty, administrators, and staff supporting learning. Fellowships are earned through written reflection and interaction with an HEA Mentor to demonstrate how one’s teaching/supporting learning practices fulfill the dimensions of the UK Professional Standards Framework (PSF). The PSF is the heart of the HEA fellowship recognition program. This internationally recognized articulation of the necessary actions, values, and knowledge to effective teaching/supporting learning provides the framework for peer dialogue and personal reflection of practices. The PSF describes the role of those who teach or support learning across three dimensions: what practitioners do (i.e. Areas of Activity), what practitioners know (i.e. Core Knowledge), and what practitioners’ value (i.e. Professional Values). Becoming a fellow of the HEA is quite a special achievement. It gives you a chance to reflect critically on your own professional journey and to describe your practice using the Professional Standards Framework. It also gives you a sense of achievement and it provides access to a network of other fellows.
Quotes
"One of the reasons that I pursue the HEA Fellowship program was the requirement that one needs to participate in various OTL sponsored programs, which by my opinion, was the most rewarding professional experience that aligns well with my efforts to better serve our students by becoming even better teacher and mentor."
Violeta Vasilevska, Professor, Department of Mathematics
"HEA Fellowship represents my desire to constantly improve my teaching. It shows that I have made an effort to make this happen."
Kathleen Young, Assistant Professor, Department of Allied Health
"Simply put, I chose to pursue the HEA fellowship because it provided a process for me to evaluate and reflect on my teaching and support practices and gave me the opportunity to consider improvements I can make in the future."
Theo R. Okawa, Program Manager, Aviation Science
"HEA provides a distinction that shows that I care about my teaching and make efforts to incorporate the best possible practices."
Dustin Shipp, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics
"Professional development, association with other excellent teachers, ongoing benefits of membership, collaboration, inspiration, knowledge, shared values, and support. The organization mentors me as an instructor, helps me realize a satisfying career path, and helps me better serve students."
Marie Knowlton, Adjunct Instructor, Department of Literacies and Composition