| University of Maryland
University College Faculty Development Office The University of Maryland University College, one of 11 public, degree-granting campuses in the University of Maryland System (UMS), was founded in 1947 to serve adult, part-time students. UMUC enrolls more students than any other UMS institution in its undergraduate and graduate programs, both statewide and overseas. Fall 1995 enrollments worldwide totaled 34,981. Approximately 650 statewide faculty and 775 overseas faculty teach at UMUC. The Faculty Development Office was established over ten years ago to serve undergraduate statewide faculty. The office is a line-item in the institutional budget and is staffed by two full-time administrators (a director and assistant director), two full-time clerical staff workers, and two part-time student workers. The director reports to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Statewide Undergraduate Programs. The Faculty Development Office promotes collegiality among UMUC faculty, fosters effective teaching and professional growth, provides mentoring and support, and recognizes teaching accomplishments. Specific programs include: Workshop Series: Each year, approximately 30 faculty workshops are presented on topics ranging from basic teaching/learning strategies to effective uses of educational technologies. Peer Mentoring Program: Approximately 150 peer mentoring partnerships are arranged each year for faculty offering courses both in the traditional classroom and via various distance formats (including interactive video, instructional television, computer conferencing, and voice-mail conferencing). Teaching Innovation Grants Program: Twelve grants are awarded each year to faculty for projects that enhance teaching effectiveness. Teaching Excellence Awards Programs: The Faculty Development Office administers several programs to recognize faculty teaching accomplishments. Nominations for the annual Stanley J. Drazek Teaching Excellence Awards and Teaching Recognition Awards are solicited from students each semester. As part of the selection process, nominees are requested to prepare and submit teaching portfolios. Faculty Communication: Faculty Focus, a journal for faculty containing articles written by UMUC faculty worldwide, is published twice a year. Faculty Reporter, an informational newsletter, is published once a semester. FacTalk, an online faculty discussion listserver, is open to UMUC faculty worldwide. The Faculty Development Office also maintains a website that provides descriptions (and online signup) for upcoming events, information on faculty support services and programs, and links to useful teaching/learning web resources. Student Course Evaluations: The Faculty Development Office processes approximately 50,000 student courses evaluation forms each year for courses taught in Statewide Undergraduate Programs. Faculty Consultation: The Faculty Development Office provides one-on-one mentoring for faculty on teaching-related issues, maintains a small lending library, and produces and disseminates guidebooks for faculty on specific teaching/learning topics. |