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The New Faculty Experience is a yearlong program beginning in the fall semester designed to welcome you to your new home and acclimate you to the various support systems Weber State offers for your personal and professional development. This program is designed to build a sense of community, and to emphasize the critical areas of teaching, scholarship and mentorship. It will comprise sessions on course design, teaching strategies, student support, travel and research grants, engaged scholarship, and more to help you cultivate your passions as part of our vibrant teaching community. If you are a new full-time faculty member, please consider participating in the New Faculty Experience. 

New Faculty Experience

Is there an area of teaching and learning that you would like to discuss in more depth?  Are you curious about how you can use high impact practices or other evidence-based learning techniques in your classroom? What about the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)?  Would you like to discuss and share your ideas with others who share similar interests?  That’s what Communities of Practice (COPs) are all about.  The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning is excited to provide an opportunity for you to participate in a community of practice in the upcoming year.  

What is a Community of Practice?

A Community of Practice is a group of 8-12 people who share a common concern, passion about a topic and come together with a facilitator to deepen their knowledge and expertise in this area by interacting with each other on an ongoing basis (Wenger, McDermott, & Snyder, 2002 p. 4).  At Weber State, these communities of practice are groups of faculty and staff who commit to regularly scheduled sessions on a focus area in teaching and learning followed by actions such as planning and trying out the techniques discussed in the group.  Your community will provide a supportive environment where members can experiment with new approaches to teaching and learning, share successes and challenges, and/or engage in the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) through collaborative research projects and dissemination of instructional practices and tools. (Etienne Wenger, Richard McDermott, & William Snyder, 2002).Cultivating Communities of Practice: A Guide to Managing Knowledge Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press, 2002.)

91¶ÌÊÓƵ faculty, students, and staff will have full complimentary access to the New York Times online (NYTimes.com) thanks to a university wide subscription that includes New York Times mobile apps, international editions and archives.

The New York Times initiative supports Weber State’s emphasis on promoting student success, supporting active learning and promoting global awareness by providing access to the International, Chinese language and Spanish language editions of the daily publication, as well as providing access to The New York Times’ historical archives and educational resources for teaching faculty. The initiative is sponsored by the Office of the Provost.

NYTimes.com covers a variety of topics through breaking news articles, blogs, videos, opinion and interactive features. With the subscription, users will be able to share content on social networks, save articles of interest, subscribe to email newsletters and set up personalized alerts. Access to NYTimes.com is available from any location, on or off campus.

New York Times Access

We have learned in the past few years how life can happen and overturn our teaching plans sometimes. However, there are options available rather than canceling class. Check out our Don't Cancel Class Workshops.

There are many articles and resources available on the scholarship of teaching and learning. Here are just a few.

Each semester, the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning holds events to promote, support and provide faculty development opportunities. These events are also designed to assist faculty in developing and strengthening their identities as teachers and scholars.

Faculty Symposium

Last Lecture

Presentations Past and Present