CPI Announcement

Dear colleagues,

In addition to announcing our annual call for CPI innovation grant applications, I am pleased to announce two new appointments in the Center for Pedagogical Innovation, and to provide an update on some CPI initiatives. Jennifer Rose, professor of the practice, has been appointed as director of the CPI and Amy Grillo has been appointed as professor of the practive in education studies.

Jen Rose has been  at Wesleyan since 2007, offering courses in statistics, applied data analysis, and statistical consulting, directing the IRB, and supporting a number of learning assessment projects. As CPI director, Jen now oversees all CPI initiatives, including the univerisal design, inclusive pedagogy, and design pedagogy initiatives supported by the CPI's Andrew W. Mellon grant; Wesleyan's Coursera initiative; and individual faculty support for telepresence courses, active learning, and project-based learning.

Amy Grillo came to Wesleyan from Mount Holyoke. Amy's position is a new role, housed in the Center for Pedagogical Innovation, that is intended to support Wesleyan's Education Studies minor and undergraduate students interested in becoming teachers, as well as Wesleyan faculty via pedagogy workshops. I hope that you will join me in welcoming Amy, and congratulating Jen on their new roles.

This fall, Amy Tang, associate professor of American studies, is offering a second iteration of her faculty-led Seminar on Race and Pedagogy. Ten faculty will join her in discussions to generate strategies for confronting the pedagogical challenges that arise in classrooms where race is a particular concern. This initiative focused on inclusive pedagogy is a collaboration between CPI and the Resource Center, and is supported by the CPI Andrew W. Mellon grant.

Barbara Adams, Andrew W. Mellon postdoctoral fellow in design, is offering a number of design pedagogy workshops over the coming year. She is also working with Jessie Cohen, Wesleyan's archaeological collections manager, to partner with Connecticut Valley Hospital to develop a course in exhibition modling. The course, supported by the service-learning initiative at the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life, will combine pedagogies drawn from museum studies, archaeology, design, digital humanaties, and content-specific disciplines.

The CPI's office for Faculty Career Development, directed by Peter Gottschalk, is offering a number of workshops and salons designed to bring faculty members together to foster a sharing of ideas. For more information, visit the OFCD Workshops & Salons page.

Finally, I invite you to apply for a CPI innovation grant to support your own pedagogical initiatives. Possible requests could include funding to attend a workshop focused on innovative pedagogical approaches, bringing in guest speakers focused on pedagogical innovation, or funding for other ideas that may enhance your instruction.

Applications for spring 2019 funding should be submitted to me by email by December 1. More detailed information is available in the attached memo. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Best wishes,

Sheryl Culotta
Associate Provost