Weekly Newsletter: Tuesday Is News Day

Tuesday, February 20, 2024

This week is your last chance to register for the cookies...I mean CLS Curriculum Conference! If you've been meaning to register since we started promoting it at the beginning of the semester, now is the time to do it! See the first CLS announcement for links to the conference website and registration. 

A quick note about summer textbook orders: you can ignore the email from the bookstore. If you are teaching during the summer, you indicated your textbook selections either in the summer sign-off (full-time) or the Google form (adjunct), and Sue put the orders in with the bookstore.  

I also want to really plug the tagging of artificats for the college assessment. Tagging takes almost no time, and having a lot of CLS participation Is Important. It's voluntary--and It's an easy way to support our students with the kind of data that people are always talking about. Our assignments are GOLDEN--I've seen a bunch--and It would be epic If CLS had the most tagged assignments of any department. Not that It's a competition or anything, but....I'm just saying, we make ourselves look extra, extra good. (And, honestly, we help our students a ton, which Is what really matters. Also, winning matters. It does. Just not as much as helping students.😇)

Have a great rest of your week! And, If you have something newsworthy for next week--please send it our way. Also, If you want to share the newsletter with someone, feel free to share the link. We are not precious about It! In fact, just the opposite, extra shares makes our hair silky and our skin glow--link away!

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Deadlines! 

February 23

Register for CLS Curriculum Conference 

February 29 

Student deadline for Research Symposium 

Complete Orientation/Onboarding Survey

March 1

MSTA Application for Adjunct Faculty In eStaffing

March 27

Data Summit (Full-time faculty required; adjunct faculty and staff encouraged)

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CLS Announcements

Last Call: CLS Curriculum Conference, Register to attend by Feb 23

When you were filling out your Faculty Reflection Form in January, perhaps you realized that you were short on Professional Development hours. Or, maybe you just need a little pedagogical inspiration. If so, sign up to attend the inaugural CLS Curriculum Conference (CCC). Earn some PD, engage in sparkling conversation with your colleagues, and dig into relevant topics like Grading, AI, Critical Reading, Tutoring, Instructional Design, and Engagement. (Plus, there will be cookies!🍪)  

When: Friday, March 1, 2024    12p - 4pm 

Where: Highland Campus with Hyflex options

Explore session details at the CLS Curriculum Conference Website

And register to attend by February 23 CLS Curriculum Conference Registration 

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Please Promote: African Americans and the Arts, Feb 22

Literary Works of Our Past: Voices that shaped cultural movements

Date: Thursday, February 22nd, 2024

Time: 4pm-5:30pm

Location: TRHT Center, Bldg 4000, Highland Campus

Description: Black literature has heightened the scope of how Black people have been viewed throughout history. Join us as we read excerpts from writings of Black authors as they used their voices to cultivate a livelihood of belonging for Black Americans. Students, faculty, staff and community members are welcome. 

Here's complete list of Black History Month Events at ACC this February.

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Survey about Orientation and Onboarding, submit by Feb 29

Hello, full-time and adjunct faculty!  Please help the adjunct faculty hiring/onboarding committee improve orientation, onboarding, and mentoring for new adjuncts by completing our survey by Thursday, February 29. Even if you weren't recently hired, you were at some point new or have worked with new faculty and have valuable information to share.

This survey is anonymous.  The committee thanks you in advance for taking a few minutes to provide the benefit of your expertise.

Faculty Orientation and Onboarding Survey

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MSTA and HPH for Adjuncts 

The timeline for MSTA (Multiple Semester Term Appointment) and HPH (Highest Priority to Hire) is upon us.  Before the March 1 deadline,  I will review our available MSTA/HPH slots and let y'all know exactly how many we have. Note--this Is separate from the DCAA (Dual Credit Annual Appointment), which Is under evaluation by the Dual Credit Committee. MSTAs, HPH (more on that later), and DCAA will all be announced on the same day. Keep your eyes on the newsletter for selection criteria for MSTA and HPH--it Is forthcoming! If you have had/held MSTA status for 3 years, you do not need to reapply.

ESTAFFING MSTA CALENDAR APPLICATION PROCESS FOR APPOINTMENT

Announcement of MSTA Process to Adjunct Faculty: Feb. 12, 2024

Timeline to submit MSTA Application In ACC eStaffing: Feb. 19, 2024-Mar. 1, 2024

MSTA Selection by the Dept. Chair: Mar. 4, 2024-Mar. 8, 2024

MSTA Approval by the Dean: Mar. 20, 2024

MSTAs Notified of award via email: Mar. 22, 2024

Application Process and Deadline 

• Check to ensure that your department is accepting MSTA applications. 

• To apply for a MSTA, log in to the ACCeStaffing system at https://eapps.austincc.edu/eStaffing during the period of Monday, February 19 through Friday, March 1, 2024. 

• Expand the Faculty Menu by clicking the plus sign (+). 

• Click the “MSTA Application” on the Faculty Menu. 

• All Adjunct Faculty members who have not held MSTA status for three consecutive years will be prompted to submit an application for the appropriate Department. Follow the on-screen instructions. 

• Submit your MSTA application by Friday, March 1, 2024. 

For technical assistance with the MSTA appointment process, please contact ACC Tech Support at 223-8324. 

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Heads up (with appropriate eyewear): Solar Eclipse, April 8

Hey, Hey CLS! You have probably heard about the April 8 total eclipse. I don't (yet) have word from ACC on this, but I think we can anticipate quite a bit of traffic in our area due to astronomy tourists. According to Visit Austin:  "The eclipse will be visible throughout the Hill Country from 1:32 pm - 1:41 pm CST on April 8, 2024. Austin locals and visitors will experience about 1 minute and 46 seconds of the total solar eclipse at 1:36 pm CST." The entire eclipse takes about 2 hours.

If you are in class on that Monday, please consider delaying any major assessment or in-class project (or extending the due date) since students may have difficulty getting to class on time due to traffic. In addition, if your DLS or face to face class corresponds with the timing of the eclipse, you could consider a break in the classwork to encourage students to experience this event. (Remind them to use special glasses and not to look directly at the sun.)

And do be careful!!!!!

"These late eclipses in the sun and moon portend no good to us. Though the wisdom of nature can reason it thus and thus, yet nature finds itself scourged by the sequent effects. Love cools, friendship falls off, brothers divide; in cities, mutinies; in countries, discord; in palaces, treason; and the bond cracked ‘twixt son and father." Gloucester, King Lear

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CLS Book Club, April 18, 7pm

The CLS Book Club will meet Thursday April 18th at 7pm at Easy Tiger @ the Linc. We'll gather both to talk about Gwen E. Kirby's Shit Cassandra Saw and to swap old books. 

Feel free to join us, whether you signed up to do so or not. Please reach out to Chris Gardner if you have any questions. 

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Digital Humanities, Peer Dialogue Opportunity

Student engagement and belonging are key indicators of student success. Digital Humanities is an LAHC initiative that attempts to address these factors by affording students an opportunity to use technology to showcase their work and aspects of their lives. Student products can take many forms, such as a video produced in conjunction with a persuasive paper or graphics used to highlight concepts or data. 

We would like to schedule a time to meet with those interested in pursuing this type of curriculum development. Interested faculty members can contact Jason Vidrine at cvidrine@austincc.edu to schedule a small group or individual meeting.  

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CLS Department Chair Election

Later this Spring, CLS is due for a Department Chair election. Alex Watkins will be the election coordinator, and so you'll be hearing from her soon. The election runs through the Dean's office--so please direct your questions there!

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Please Promote: Student Research Symposium, Deadline Feb 29

The Liberal Arts Gateway is sponsoring a Student Research Symposium that "provides a platform for students from diverse disciplines to present their research projects, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange."  Research projects from all ACC courses will be considered. 

Submission Deadline: February 29 

Event details: Friday, April 19th,  1-3:30pm, Highland Campus 

Check out the Symposium Website for more details.