Weekly Newsletter: Tuesday Is News Day

Attendance Certification

Please remember to certify attendance for all of your class sections.  This process is quick, painless, and really important to our students and ACC. (Plus, they'll come find you If you miss this deadline!)

You will receive an email from the Registrar/Glynis Miller titled "Class roster student attendance certification" with these instructions: 

Student attendance certification is submitted using the MyACC / Course Management / Attendance Certification system. 

1. From the main ACC web page, go to Faculty & Staff and choose MyACC

2. Find the Course Management heading, and then click Attendance Certification

3. Select the desired Term and Course

4. Once in the course, find the View box options, and select the Certify Attendance Roster. 

5. All entries in the drop-down field default to an initial entry of 'Attended' to begin with. Faculty will then change the entry using the drop-down field to 'Never Attended', as needed. A selection must be made for each student.

6. Hit 'Submit' at the upper right corner of the roster to have your certifications recorded.

If you have questions like what counts as attendance? you can check out the Attendance Certification FAQ page. 

Deadlines by semester

8A week - September 3  

16 week - September 11

14 week - September 20 

12 week - October 3

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Join a CLS Committee

Everyone is welcome to participate in CLS committees! Full-time faculty are required to join a committee; adjuncts are paid for committee work.  You can learn what the CLS Committees are up to by reviewing our Back to School 2024 slides (starting on slide 27).  

Please use the Committee Requests Form to let us know which committee(s) you're interested in working with this year.  

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CLS Fall 2024 Institutional Program Review SWOT Survey, Due Sept 30

It's time for our SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats) Survey!

Overview

Every three years, all ACC Departments are asked to conduct an instructional program review; Spring 2025 is the Composition and Literary Studies (CLS) Department’s year for this! We must gather feedback from people who have an interest in the CLS Department to help identify the positives and negatives inside our department (the “S” and “W”) as well as outside of it, in the external environment (the “O” and the “T”). Gathering this information can help us with both strategic planning and decision-making. 

Take the Survey before September 30th

CLS Fall 2024 Institutional Program Review SWOT Survey

Questions?

Contact Carla Coleman

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Blackboard Q & A, Fridays 3pm-4pm 

Need help setting up your Blackboard page?  Have a quick question about a Blackboard function?

Email Amber Clontz for the Zoom invite; she's hosting regularly on Fridays 3-4pm. 

• Can’t make the day/time? Send your availability to request an alternative :) 

Brought to you by the Textbooks & Technology Committee 📚🪱💻

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Best Practices for Starting Strong

From Dr. Kisha Barrett, Associate Dean of Belonging and Purpose

I’m excited to share a brief yet impactful video resource that offers practical tips on learning and using names in the classroom. This simple but powerful practice can make a significant difference in building connections, a sense of belonging, and creating a supportive learning environment.

As leaders, your influence is vital in encouraging these practices across our college. Please feel free to share this resource with your faculty to empower them with tools that can strengthen our community bonds.

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Heart of Texas Writing Project, Saturday Workshops

Sidonie Phillips shared a great professional develop opportunity with the Heart of Texas Writing Project.  Throughout the year, HTWP hosts Saturday Workshops at University of Texas; the next one is titled "Starting a Year with Love at the Center" on September 7, 9:30-12:30.  You can register here. 

Sidonie says, "HTWP is an amazing community of teachers and researchers dedicated to authenticity, asset-based pedagogy, and equity. I can't recommend it enough!" 

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Please Promote: Student Advocacy Center

Make sure that your students know about ACC's Student Advocacy Centers. Located at every campus, these centers support students with food, clothing, transportation, childcare, and other basic needs and connect them to additional resources. They also host great events for students and their families!

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Call for Volunteers! 2025 Co-Req Summit 

We're in the process of building a Committee to Coordinate the 2025 Co-req Summit: Co-req Yo'Self before You Wreck Yo'Self!

Please contact Ursula Parker if you are interested in being on the committee to develop the 2025 Co-req Summit.

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LAHC: Pathway Discovery Session, Sept. 10, 10am-12:30pm 

Like the Liberal Arts? Want to show students what’s cool about composition? Yearning to share your love of learning (and literature)?

Join us for the Liberal Arts Pathway Discovery Session on September 10th at HLC Building 2000 between 10 AM and 12:30 PM! CLS will be in Room 2226 - Building 2000 with lots of fun activities (including, but not limited to: a book swap, BookTok, photo-ops, and Literary Jeopardy!).

For more information, email Theo Yurevitch!

Additionally please let your students know about this event and the book swap specifically! Feel free to take the message below and drop it right into a BlackBoard announcement:

Hello, class!

Please join the CLS Department on September 10th at the Highland Campus Building 2000 between 10 AM and 12:30 PM for a Liberal Arts Majors Fair! This will be a chance to meet with different faculty and departments within the Liberal Arts. There will be a kick-off event at 10 AM in room 1409 and then from 10:30 AM on, Composition and Literary Studies will be in room 2226. Come for fun games, to get goodies, and to join our book swap (bring a book, take a book--or just take a book)! 

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Please Promote: Join the Club! 

Please share this announcement with your students to help them get involved at ACC:

Do you wish you knew more ACC students? Interested in connecting with others with similar interests? 

Join the Club!  Come learn WHY and HOW to GET INVOLVED at ACC!

Join us for a feature documentary on the life of a social scientist, Robert Putnam, and his work on the loss of American community life over the last half-century. 

The film screening will be followed by opportunities to join a discussion on the film or to learn how to get involved through student organizations, volunteer opportunities, and voting. 

Tuesday, September 24, 2024

10:30 AM - 12:00 PM Film Screening
Highland Campus (HLC), Building 2000, Room 2.1550 (Presentation Hall)
Followed by a discussion and information tables on ways to get involved until 1:00 PM
Highland Campus (HLC), Building 2000, Room 2.1550 and Room C1401 (outside the Presentation Hall)

RSVP HERE

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Volunteers Needed for Student Evaluation Workgroup

Gale Spear and Marcus McGuff need faculty volunteers to assist students with mock evaluations.  They'll be asking students to run through the new evaluations and would like to have a few more faculty on hand to help with student questions.  Let Gale know if you can help out for any portion of the event. 

Where: HLC, Upper Social Staircase

When: September 12, 12p-3pm (1, 2, or 3 hours)

RSVP: Send Gale Spear an email to express interest by September 4

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Register for Teaching: The Spiritual Practice, deadline Sept. 16

Check out this Fall 2024 Faculty Interest Group (FIG), hosted by CLS faculty Amy Wink.  Teaching: The Spiritual Practice will explore teaching as a spiritual practice and "focus on how we come to understand our work as calling, what keeps us going, and how we can deepen our understanding of the inner meaning that fuels us." Click here for more details about Teaching: The Spiritual Practice. 

Time: 10:30-12:00 pm

Modality: Zoom (online synchronous)

Dates: September 20, October 11, November 15, December 6

Registration form: https://forms.gle/j2xUu8h6SDmsRg2Q6

Deadline to register: Sep 16, 2024 EOD. 

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Mental Health, PD Opportunities

We are so pleased to bring you two awesome professional development opportunities this fall! 

1) The Meditating Professor with Lupe Mendoza has been specifically geared toward CLS faculty to give you what you need to help build resilience in your students and yourself while promoting creativity in your classroom and your life. 2) Students come to us with some heavy stuff. We are not trained to deal with it. Emily is. Let her help you navigate choppy waters by attending Faculty Consultation sessions with Emily Olson. 

Click here to register for one or both opportunities now. 

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English Major Degree Audits

If you'd like to help our majors graduate on time, please volunteer to run a degree audit on one or two students who are near completion. It takes about 10 minutes. 

Email Theo Yurevitch to get the student names; he will get you onto the spreadsheet you need to be on and will assign you a student or two.

Basically, you get a student's ID, look up their transcripts, fill out the English AA audit form, and email the student, their advisor, and Wendy Elle or Theo Yurevitch the completed form. We have a template for the email to the student/advisor. So, the lion's share of the work is you + the audit form. Then copy, paste, attach, and send!

English Degree Audit Process

English Degree Audit Form

How to Access Student Transcripts - YouTube Video

The English Degree Audit Form - YouTube Video

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Become a CLS Mentor 

Quick Details about the Mentor Role: 

Mentor requirements:  Three years teaching at ACC; "very good" or "excellent" student evaluations. Complete online ACC mentor training.

Mentor stipend:  $200 per mentee per semester; an expectation of about 10 hours of contact with mentee, including in-person meeting (if possible) and optional classroom visit.

If you are interested in mentoring a new or returning CLS faculty member in the Fall 2024/Spring 2025 semesters, then please complete this I Want to Be a Mentor form.