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DIVISION NEWS
DIVISION NEWS
The Instructional Innovation Division is growing from its start date, July 1, 2020 and has acted quickly to serve the needs of the NPC Community. The division houses support from the Libraries, Instructional Technology and Curriculum Support, Perkins Grants, Early College, and Office of Accessibility and Inclusion. We serve our students, faculty, staff, and community partners.
Innovation Connections is a monthly newsletter that features division updates and college-wide innovation and collaboration. Contact Shannon Motter if you wish to contribute to the content.
THOUGHTS ON POST-PANDEMIC CoLLEGES
THOUGHTS ON POST-PANDEMIC CoLLEGES
If the pandemic has taught us anything, it is that adaptive institutions will emerge stronger from times of change. Last fall, while we were still in “survival” mode, the department heads started reading The Chronicle of Higher Education’s Post-pandemic College Report. The report, which examines how the pandemic will shape higher education in the years to come and what the college of the future may look like, provides some interesting food for thought as we reflect upon our current practices and plan for a post-pandemic community college. Here are some reflections on how we can work together to adapt to change:
To inspire and educate a diverse student population in a difficult time, we need to focus on the interwoven aims of teaching and learning with equitable, evidence-based practice to improve access and effectiveness for all our students.
As area high schools contribute 44% of NPC’s enrollment, a seamless high school-to-college experience is key.
As a rural community college with limited resources, we need to encourage more engagement in research, innovation, grant opportunities, and professional networking.
Read more here:
Instruction Technology and curriculum SUPPORT
Instruction Technology and curriculum SUPPORT
Here is a list of technology, curriculum and design workshops happening this month.
2/16 at 10am - 21st Century Learning (rescheduled for March)
2/18 at 2pm - Zoom 201 2/19 at 1pm - Using Tutor.com at NPC
2/25 at 2pm - Curriculum Terminology
2/23 at 12pm - Making Documents More Open and Accessible by Converting to EPUB
2/26 at 11am - Quality Course Design - Faculty Learning Community
Office of Accessibility and Inclusion
Office of Accessibility and Inclusion
Apps have been around for a long time and have made many lives easier. An article published a few years ago talked about how apps on an iPhone made a man’s life more independent because he is blind. From that article, the question took seed and sprouted into, “how many other apps are there that could help people be more independent?”. It’s not like there is a search algorithm for apps used by people with limitations or disability type. This began a lengthy process that culminated in the list of Helpful Apps for Students found on the Office of Accessibility and Inclusion website.
Anyone can search the list of apps sorted by function type; time management, text to speech, speech to text, studying, etc.. The list grows and reduces as changes are made to the apps. Watch this short video to learn more:
Early College
Early College
Registration. Early College is right in the thick of Dual Enrollment registration! This Spring semester we were hoping to transition most of our Concurrent and Dual Enrollment online. While we have several key schools who breezed right into this process, we have had a number of internal speed bumps move some registrations back to paper forms.
The positive side: we have some high schools already volunteering to participate in the pilot year of any software we purchase to enhance this process! We definitely continue to look for long-term innovative solutions to enhance the overall college student experience.
Graduation. Distancing requirements caused by the pandemic have even impacted our graduation processes! Special shout-out to the Assistant Registrar for being flexible and completely meeting our needs in Early College. This year, we have set up a system for high school students to submit their information utilizing an online form, that our Early College Advisors can edit and finalize for Records & Registration processing. Fingers crossed we can get them all in by Monday, February 15th!
Marketing. We love our NPC Marketing Department! Marketing has played an instrumental part in getting us to look cool and get our name out there. This month we will be publishing the Early College Infofliers for Early College Faculty as a guide to provide an overview of resources and guidelines for our Early College faculty (including NAVIT, Dual Enrollment, and TALON). It will look similar to our Early College Infoflier for Students & Families which you can check out here.
Library events
Library events
The NPC Libraries are offering a range of events to NPC students, faculty, and staff. We will hold weekly or monthly zoom meetings with the aim of creating a supportive community during these trying times. Join the fun in order to learn, make friends, or just listen and interact with others at the college.
Every Friday at 11:30am, Coffee and Kids Storytime is open to everyone, even those without children. Come spend your lunch listening to stories appropriate for children, but also fun for adults--because afterall, everyone likes being read to, even grown ups. Read a story to the goup or just listen. Calendar of themes is on the Library Event page below.
The Data Nerds Book Club will meet the THIRD business Thursday in March at noon (March 25th due to Spring Break). We will be reading the No Asshole Rule by Robert Sutton. These books are filled with data and give insight into making our college even better. The book suggestion link is on the Library Event page bleow.
The Readers and Writers Book Club will meet the first Thursday at noon. Our next meeting is March 4th. Read any book you like and come discuss amongst friends. Just listen or share your thoughts in an easygoing, welcoming event.
Need a librarian to speak to your course or group about researching, citations, or just knowing good sources (information literacy)? Let us know. We can zoom in anywhere, anytime.
Odds and ends
Odds and ends
The final section of our Division Newsletter will contain interesting photos, recipes, and stories. The month's topic is soup and bread, in honor of the cold weather lately. The Division meets monthly to discuss the ways that we are all pushing to improve NPC and our resources, processes, and offerings. At the end of our February meeting we shared One Thing About Ourselves, which led to a great conversation on DONUTS (recipes to come in March). As the editor, I (Shannon) will share the first recipes and photos. I LOVE to cook, and it has been such a source of comfort during the pandemic, both because I can eat the delicious foods, but also from being able spend time with my family in the kitchen making them. For my family, it particularly important because we have a range of food allergies that make it impossible to eat prepared foods. Milk and eggs are two big no-nos for us for this reason. You can make the soup with dairy if you'd like. You could also add the meat of your choosing after sautéing the first batch of veggies. Let me know what you think! And stay warm.
I was so inspired by writing this recipe I made this soup again. Only this time I added a small amount of split peas and tri-colored quinoa. Delicious.
Homemade Bread
1 cup water (bathwater warm)
1 package of yeast (2 and 1/2 tsp)
1/2 Tbsp of sugar, honey, maple syrup, or other sweetener
Let sit 5 minutes or until yeast bubbles.
Creamy Vegan Vegetable Soup
Saute until tender and slightly browned:
1 diced onion and garlic
2 diced carrots
½ pepper, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
Other possibilities:
Diced leeks
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