UC Professional Development Modules for Teaching Excellence
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What are the Teaching Excellence Modules?
What are the Teaching Excellence Modules?
The UC Professional Development Modules for Teaching Excellence are online training for instructors on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in teaching and learning at the University of California. These modules were developed by the UC Centers for Teaching and Learning and are supported by UC Online and UC Graduate, Undergraduate and Equity Affairs.
All UC instructors are invited to complete the modules, including faculty, staff, lecturers, and graduate teaching assistants and associates. Each module is currently offered annually as a facilitated online institute with peers from across UC campuses. Soon they will also be available as a fully asynchronous course that can be completed anytime. To register for a module or institute, participants must have a UC email address and Net ID. Those who complete the modules will receive a Certificate of Completion from UC Online.
The 5 modules are:
Building Learning Connections Across Cultures
Creating Inclusive Classrooms for LGBTQ+ Students
Alternative Grading Practices
Teaching and Learning at the Intersections
Teaching with Access in Mind
Teaching Excellence Module Descriptions
Teaching Excellence Module Descriptions
Alternative Grading Practices
Alternative Grading Practices
Alternative Grading Practices examines approaches to assessment and grading in higher education and introduces strategies for rethinking traditional grading systems in order to better support learning, fairness, transparency, and engagement for all students.
Introduction to Equitable Grading Practices
Assessment Designs & Case Studies of Equitable Grading
Rubrics and Feedback
Reflection | Temperature & Inventory Check
Cross-campus online institute: August 3-7, 2026
Building Learning Connections Across Cultures
Building Learning Connections Across Cultures
Building Learning Connections Across Cultures introduces educators to evidence-based strategies for fostering inclusive and equitable learning environments across cultural differences. The module explores racial equity, inclusive curriculum design, and approaches to supporting meaningful dialogue and social justice efforts in higher education.
Foundations of Racial Equity
Bias, Microaggressions, and Asset-Based Thinking
Inclusive Curriculum Design and Equitable Teaching Practices
Action Planning and Continuous Improvement
Cross-campus online institute: TBD (March 2027)
Creating Inclusive Classrooms for LGBTQ+ Students
Creating Inclusive Classrooms for LGBTQ+ Students
Creating Inclusive Classrooms for LGBTQ+ Students equips educators with tools for supporting LGBTQ+ students in higher education settings. Participants engage with LGBTQ+ histories, terminology, identities, and inclusive pedagogical practices while developing strategies for inclusive curriculum design and building affirming classroom environments.
Foundations and History of LGBTQ+ Communities
Discrimination, Biases, Microaggressions, & Asset-Based Teaching
Inclusive Curriculum and Equitable Teaching
Action Planning and Continuous Improvement
Cross-campus online institute: February 1-12, 2027
Teaching and Learning at the Intersections
Teaching and Learning at the Intersections
Teaching and Learning at the Intersections explores how overlapping systems of identity and power shape student experiences in higher education. Grounded in intersectional approaches to teaching and learning, the module considers how race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, class, and other social categories intersect in classroom spaces. Participants will develop strategies for inclusive curriculum design and engage in critical discussions on advancing social justice and equity in higher education.
Intersectionality Foundations
The Intersectional Operation of Oppresive Systems
Teaching and Communication Through an Intersectional Lens
Alliances, Advocacy and Sustaining Intersectional Practices
Teaching with Access in Mind
Teaching with Access in Mind
Teaching with Access in Mind focuses on accessibility, disability, and neurodiversity in higher education teaching practices. Participants examine how classroom structures and institutional norms shape access to learning, while developing strategies for accessible curriculum design, inclusive pedagogy, and practices that support student agency, autonomy, and equitable participation.
Foundations of Disability Justice and Neurodiversity
Curriculum, Communication, and Pedagogy
Advocacy and Sustaining Inclusive Practices
Backstory of the Teaching Excellence Professional Development Modules
Backstory of the Teaching Excellence Professional Development Modules
Established in September 2022 and completed in June 2026, the UC Professional Development Modules for Teaching Excellence project, formerly known as the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEI & A) in Teaching and Learning: Online Modules for UC Campuses project, received three successive years of funding from UC Online to develop comprehensive DEI & A trainings for all UC instructors, including faculty, lecturers, and graduate teaching assistants and associates.
This project represents a multi-year collaboration across UC campuses, involving members of the UC Instructional Design Faculty Support (IDFS) community of practice and the UC Teaching and Learning Centers (UC TLC), as well as graduate and undergraduate student researchers. While these groups have a history of sharing materials, collaborating on research, and co-creating content, this project provided a unique opportunity to work together with a larger scope. The project is co-lead by UC Santa Barbara, UC Berkeley, and UC Irvine, with strong support from all UC campuses, which have contributed to its design, testing via UC Online, and evaluation.
The mission of this project is to develop and design online modules that train all UC instructors in DEI & A principles and practices in teaching and learning. As of June 2026, this was the only cross-UC collaborative project to train instructors on making equitable classrooms a reality for UC students.
The project’s vision was to equip educators with research-based DEI & A principles and practices, enabling them to create welcoming teaching environments that empower and engage the student learning experience.
The goals of this project were to:
Create a cohesive set of online modules to train UC faculty and graduate student teaching assistants and associates in DEI & A principles and practices in teaching and learning.
Design interactive experiences that promote equity-mindedness and critical self-reflection among UC instructors.
Collaborate with UC campuses and members of the UC IDFS community of practice and the UC TLC to collect, access, and evaluate existing DEI & A materials and needs.
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