| The University of Northern Iowa
Center for the Enhancement of Teaching World Wide Web location: http://www.uni.edu/teachctr The University of Northern Iowa is a public, comprehensive university with about 800 FTE faculty, 10,500 undergraduates, and 2,500 graduates. The Center for the Enhancement of Teaching was established in January 1993 from a recommendation by the Faculty Senate. The Center is a line item in the University's budget and is funded through state appropriations. It reports to the provost, the University's Vice President for Academic Affairs. The director of the Center is a tenured faculty member who serves on a permanent appointment. In addition to undergraduate students who work as office assistants, the Center has a variable number of "faculty associates" who are supported through release time and other arrangements. The non-personnel budget for the Center is about $30,000 in continuing funds, exclusive of other special appropriations. The Center's overall goal is to contribute to the University's mission-emphasizing high-quality undergraduate education-through activities that focus on faculty development and are linked to curriculum development and organizational development. In the examples outlined below, as well as other activities, two principles undergird the Center's role in the University: inclusiveness and collaboration. Together, these two principles help define the Center as a professional development cooperative for all faculty. New faculty orientation and development: Prior to the beginning of fall term, all new faculty participate in an orientation program that welcomes them to the University, facilitates their payroll sign-up and use of University services, provides inspiration and support for their teaching, and introduces each of them to a mentor or contact person. At the end of the first week of classes, a dinner for new faculty and their guests is hosted by the provost and attended by the president, deans, department heads, and faculty mentors. A variety of teaching seminars are designed for new faculty during their first year at the University. Workshops and conferences: The Center supports both University-wide and college events that address concerns for quality education. In addition to workshops offered throughout the academic year, annual conferences draw faculty, staff, and students into cross-disciplinary conversations that focus on university strategic priorities for learning and teaching. Feedback and consultation for instructional improvement: All faculty are offered collegial opportunities to obtain feedback and discuss possibilities for improving instruction. In addition to classroom observations and student feedback, the Center serves as a network for introducing and "training" faculty as instructional consultants with one another. Resources for teaching as a scholarly activity: The Center maintains a library of faculty development materials as well as encourages and supports practice-centered inquiry on teaching and learning. Publications, presentations at professional and disciplinary meetings, and project grants are some of the means used for emphasizing teaching as a scholarly activity. Qualities of an Educated Person Project: In response to one of the University's strategic priorities, the Center is engaged in a multi-year project to identify and translate into curricular and co-curricular practice the qualities expected of students who graduate from UNI. |