Meetings/Events

Congratulations

Dr. Richard Riedl has been named chair of the Department of Leadership and Educational Studies. Dr. Riedl had been serving as interim chair.

Kudos to all those involved in the planning and implementing of the ground-breaking ceremony for our new building. We especially appreciated the assistance of Teaching Fellows who served as guides for those attending. The ceremony and reception were well received. We were very glad to be inside the tent, however, for the proceedings. If anyone would like to see one of the “gold” shovels that turned the earth, drop by my office

Kudos to Alecia Jackson and Lisa Mazzei. Experience and “I” in Autoethnography: A Deconstruction. International Review of Qualitative Research Vol. 1, No. 3 (Fall, 2008).

Kudos to all of the students who participated in the recent dance marathon to raise over $11,000 for our Parent to Parent Program and the Western Youth Network!

Thanks to Geri Miller, her graduate assistant, and the custodial staff for their planning and displaying of informational materials about different religious celebrations during this holiday season. We hope you will take a moment to peruse the materials on display in the lobby of Duncan.

Holiday Luncheon

We hope everyone will make a point of coming to the RCOE Holiday luncheon scheduled for this Wednesday from 11:30-1 in 03; try to take time to join colleagues for good food and conversation prior to the completion of the semester.

Commencement Attendance

Although Commencement is unusually late this year (will not happen next year ), I hope as many faculty and staff as possible will attend. This is a combined commencement with Arts and Sciences; both graduate and undergraduate candidates will be recognized. Event begins at 10 a.m. in the Convocation Center. Faculty should plan to be at the Center by 9:30 a.m. with regalia.

Online Compensation

The Board of Trustees approved a change in the supplementary pay policy this week; the change addressed the offering of online courses. Previously, no extra compensation was offered for teaching a course that was more than 50 percent online. In an effort to stimulate more online course development and teaching, the following provision has been approved and will go into effect with the spring semester.

For courses that are taught online with minimal face-to-face interaction, the compensation will be 5% of the faculty member’s 9-month equivalent salary. For the purpose of this policy, a course will be considered online if the face-to-face interaction within the course consists of no more than 10% of the contact time normally associated with the course if it was delivered in a face-to-face manner. This category excludes courses that are delivered through synchronous electronic delivery methods such as NCIH.

Note: there appears to be some confusion among faculty about mileage reimbursement and the travel stipend; these are two different payments. The mileage reimbursement is just that, reimbursement for the cost of traveling to and from a destination to teach a course. If one uses a state car, of course, no reimbursement goes to the individual but the college still has to pay the motor pool charges; if one uses his or her own car, there is reimbursement at state rates directly to the person. The travel stipend, on the other hand, is a percentage of one’s 9 month salary paid according to the distance of the teaching site from Boone, ranging from no stipend for any travel under 20 miles up to 4.5% for anything over 60 miles. Everyone receives this stipend regardless of whether a course is taught in-load or over-load and it is intended to be compensation for “travel-related duties and time commitment associated with instructing students at a remote location…”

Building Update

Construction documents for the new building have been sent to Raleigh where they will be reviewed by the appropriate agencies; usually the documents come back with either suggestions for revisions or questions; these have to be responded to until Raleigh is satisfied. Upon approval from Raleigh, the university then can proceed with issuing a call for bids, etc. I have been informed by both the architect and Design and Construction here on campus that our building has generated a good deal of interest state-wide from contractors, and it is anticipated that the bidding on the project will be heavy and highly competitive—good news for us!

SALT ALERT

Rumor has it that we may face another budget reduction in early February. In an effort to forestall losing some of our funds, namely those used to support SALT grants, I would ask that all PI’s for the grants who have not yet filled out contracts or begun to order materials should make every effort to do so before leaving for the holidays. If funds are not encumbered, we will have great difficulty justifying holding onto the money.

Contributions for Custodial Staff

If you have not had a chance yet to make a holiday contribution for the custodial staff and wish to, we are still accepting contributions; please provide cash if at all possible. Contributions may be left with Lynn Church in our office.

An Appeal

Chi Sigma Iota, the counseling honor society, is sponsoring a food and money drive until December 17 to benefit the Hunger Coalition. The Hunger Coalition has expressed their dire need of food or monetary donations. Please consider contributing to their cause to make a difference in the community. Food donations can be placed in the CSI food drive box located in front of the HPC and CSI bulletin board, and monetary donations can be placed in the collection envelope located in the HPC office where a graduate assistant can help you. Items in need are canned tuna, fish, and chicken, cereal, peanut butter, pasta, canned vegetables and fruit, and any healthy non-perishable items. No sweets. Shawn Collins, CSI Chapter President.

Holiday Books

On December 3, at W. W. Ashurst Elementary School on Marine Corps Base Quantico (Virginia), Deputy Secretary Ray Simon joined Lt. General Pete Osman, USMC (ret.), President and CEO of the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, to announce the donation of more than 12,000 free, new books as part of the Department’s 2008 Holiday Book Donation.  These books will be distributed to underprivileged children across the country through the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program (see http://www.toysfortots.org/).  This donation is the latest in a multi-year effort by the Department, the non-profit entity First Book, and major U.S. publishing companies to promote literacy and provide new, age-appropriate books to children in need.  The campaign began in 2006 with the distribution of books to schools, libraries, and communities affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.  Since June 2006, campaign partners and contributors have collaborated to distribute nearly three million children’s books.  http://www.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/bookcampaign/.

Quote to Note:

"It is not unreasonable to expect our K-12 education system to prepare these young students for college. There is nothing sadder than seeing students graduate from high school, sometimes with honors, only to learn that they must take remedial courses to get up to speed. Many of these students are African-American or Hispanic and attend high-poverty, inner-city public schools. What does it say when we tolerate an achievement gap between these students and their peers? What does it say when African-Americans (ages 25 to 29) are half as likely to earn a college degree and Hispanics are about three times less likely? What does it say when we are not challenging these schools to change their ways or close their doors?"

Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings (12/2/08), speaking at the Federal Student Aid Conference

Who’s Going to Be the New Secretary of Education

Much debate is occurring about who may be named the new Secretary of Education to replace Margaret Spellings. For one view on this post, see this Op-Ed piece from the New York Times.

More Collaboration for “Generation Net”

Teaching students who are part of "generation net" should involve more interactive lessons, which are more effective for these students living in the digital age, according to this analysis. Teachers should focus on collaboration and group work and less on lectures, while also catering more to individual student needs. Sci-Tech Today.

Pleasant and Safe Holidays

I wish you all very pleasant and safe holidays. No Update will appear again until we resume operation in January.

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“Change is a Journey, not a Destination.”
—M. Fullan