What should every instructor know and do to help eliminate the opportunity gaps in their courses and programs?
What would Bellevue College need to create meaningful and sustainable systems of faculty evaluation, support, and development to ensure student learning throughout their educational journey?
How can we attract and retain faculty who are committed to teaching through a culturally responsive lens?
Over the past four years, the Faculty Professional Development (Faculty PD) workgroup has worked to answer these questions through considerable research, campus surveys, collaboration, and pilot projects. Our foundational conclusion is that Faculty PD must be embedded in Academic Affairs and tied to employment to effectively create a college culture of ensuring equitable learning opportunities for all students.
Our Goals:
- Develop a comprehensive onboarding system for faculty. When considering how to best ensure all faculty are prepared to teach students using evidence-based, antiracist practices, we focus on a transparent, timely, and substantive system that incorporates multiple areas across campus. An important part of the onboarding orients new faculty to the Bellevue College culture of teaching, learning and assessment, and the expectations of their equity-focused instruction.
- Embed into all instruction four Core Culturally Responsive practices proven to close opportunity gaps: Cultural Responsiveness (including anti-racism), High 5, Universal Design for Learning, and Canvas for Inclusion. These core practices would be introduced to all faculty – new faculty through their orientation and existing faculty through PD opportunities. Included in the orientation is a survey of equity practices beyond the core.
- Tie PD to data.
- A new position, Data/PD Liaison, in the Faculty Commons was created to focus directly on campus data and faculty professional development strategies. Humaira Jackson, Economics faculty, was selected for 2021-2024 to work closely with Office of Academic Affairs, Office of Research and Assessment, Faculty Assessment Coordinating Team (FACT), Program Review Committee, and campus programs.
- A workgroup is updating the faculty evaluation process to decrease bias and increase usefulness of data. The process of evaluation (student, self, and peer) should be to help faculty determine their strengths and areas for growth.
- Institute a campus-wide software program to centralize trainings, workshops, and other PD offerings. Several programs were reviewed that could offer the ability to inventory, offer, and track PD and trainings. In 2021-2022, the program Bridge is being set up for all-campus use.
2022 Updates
- Launched the pilot of the “Introduction to Culturally Responsive Instruction” course in Winter 2022; received positive response via student surveys and faculty reviews.
- Involved student Peer Educators in evaluation revision work as a method of continuing to revise class evaluation processes to eliminate bias, produce useful feedback, and tie to development opportunities.
- Finalized recommendations for faculty PD planning, categorizing professional learning, and onboarding.
- Collaborated with the Academic Affairs Office to create final drafts of recommendations for bargaining and/or immediate implementation.
2021 Accomplishments
- Developed an online course, “Introduction to Culturally Responsive Instruction”, with High 5, Universal Design for Learning, and Canvas for Inclusion as a potential part of the onboarding system.
- Held a year-long faculty and staff learning community on culturally responsive and sustaining practices and instruction.
- Adopted Bridge, a software program, to create a training and professional development inventory and tracking system.
- Developed two new positions within Faculty Commons, one to work with FACT/Program Review/Individuals to tie data to PD and the other to build culturally responsive practices, particularly in instruction.
Important Links:
To check out previous year FPD goals and accomplishments, check out the FPD Archive [PDF].
Why do we exist: Case Statement for Faculty PD Workgroup [PDF]
Last Updated August 5, 2024