Week of January 5–9
Washburn Tech conducted its Spring Semester Professional Development sessions. Instructors were invited to provide feedback via a survey to inform planning for future professional development opportunities.
Below are the results.
Meals on Jan. 5th
Breakfast: 38 Approved, 1 Could of been better, 1 Did not care for it
Lunch: 26 Approved, 4 Could of been better, 3 Didn't care for it, and 7 did not eat
Jan. 5th Presentations
Dean Smathers: 39 found it Beneficial, 1 No opinion
Accessibility via Zoom: 12 found it Beneficial, 18 had no opinion, 8 not worth their time
Dr. Bryant-Collier: 29 found it Beneficial, 9 No opinion, 1 not worth my time
BREAKOUTS
Recommended repeat sessions (top 5)
Tips for PowerPoint (17 votes)
Flipping Classroom (14 votes)
A.I. (10 votes)
Panupto, Google Forms & YouTube (9 votes)
Accessibility, Basic Teams, Curriculum Follow-Up(8 votes)
Accessibility by Sue Taylor Owens: 8 Beneficial, 2 Somewhat Beneficial
Advance Teams with Jospeh Gonzales: 3 Beneficial.
Advance Teams with Jamie Fluke: 7 Beneficial, 2 found it Somewhat Beneficial
Are You a Guru with Mark Green: 9 Beneficial, 2 Somewhat Beneficial, 1 Not Beneficial
Basic Teams with Alan Beam: 4 Beneficial, 1 Somewhat Beneficial
AI with Alan Beam: 8 Beneficial, 2 Somewhat Beneficial, 1 No opinion, and 1 Not Beneficial
Curriculum Follow-Up with Marie Hall: 8 Beneficial, 1 Not beneficial
Flip Classroom with Cody Beaculair and Mitch Nerem: 13 Beneficial, 2 Somewhat Beneficial, 2 No Opinion
Follow-Up with Dr. Steve Bryant-Collier: 7 Beneficial, 1 No Opinion, 1 Not Beneficial
Google Forms with Alan Beam: 2 Beneficial, 2 Somewhat Beneficial
How to hit'em with the Velvet Hammer by Hannah Laspisa: 7 Beneficial, 8 Somewhat Beneficial
IT with Derek Kucharczyk: 2 Beneficial, 3 Somewhat Beneficial, 1 No Opinion, 1 Not Beneficial
KJCC with instructors from KJCC: 3 Beneficial,
Keys to Effective Communication with Christa Beemer: 4 Beneficial, 4 Somewhat Beneficial
Lecture to Lab with Sam Swoyer: 5 Beneficial, 2 Somewhat Beneficial
NCCER with Chris Mullins: 3 Beneficial, 3 Somewhat Beneficial
Panupto with Michael Clouser: 6 Beneficial, 3 Somewhat Beneficial
Still Struggling with your PD with Alan Beam: 3 Beneficial, 1 Somewhat Beneficial
TCF with JW Patterson and Nancy Hutzell: 1 Beneficial, 1 No Opinion
Teaching Consultations with Laura Keighley: 7 Beneficial, 1 No Opinion
Tips for PowerPoint with Alan Beam: 3 Beneficial, 4 Somewhat Beneficial
Train the Trainers with David Tenpenny: 4 Beneficial, 1 Somewhat Beneficial
WWVP Grant with Sarah Velequez: 4 Beneficial
YouTube with Mark Warren: 10 Beneficial, 5 Somewhat Beneficial
OVERALL FEEDBACK With comments
Critical Friends Groups: 14 (36.8%) Doing Beneficial was beneficial, 15 (35.9%) Doing Somewhat Beneficial, 6 (15.8%) No Opinion, 3 (7.9%) Was not beneficial
COMMENTS
It was interesting to see the different instructional approaches taken by the individuals on our team. I learned some things too!
Expanding our knowledge in other areas.
Like seeing what other instructors teach but was time consuming.
I really enjoyed watching others lecture, and getting feedback on mine, it was a great learning experience
Interesting
The main thing I liked was getting to see other people's ares and things that they do.
I enjoyed getting to know the other instructors a little better but everything else was not for me.
Great way to see other teaching techniques, get out of comfort zones, and see other parts of campus.
I like to see what other teaching tools other instructors are using in their classroom.
Using the term CFG was not beneficial. It would be incredibly helpful to type out what an acronym means if it has been a month or more since it's been used. The CFGs themselves are nice in theory, however there was very little coordination after the first one. An example being mine which had one group member show up, and radio silence from the others. Even the first one had 1-2 members missing.
Very time consuming- no one is going to give negative feedback to a colleague’s face in front of a group
had a great team, we all worked together
I think the benefit was more comradery and appreciation of what the other departments are doing......which was very positive.
I really liked getting to work with other departments and all of the hands on components, Getting to see what they teach/how was really neat
Our group was great and got learned new topics as well as how to do things better. Thank you Hannah and Cody.
This was a good way to see what and how others do what they do and to get feedback.
I enjoyed experiencing other instructor's teaching styles
I felt that this was more stress inducing and took time away from preparing my class than it was helpful. While it is a great way to get to know other instructors, teaching them something that they didn't sign up for or were not interested in, really caused un-necessary stress and was intimidating. I did not like to participate in this activity at all.
Willingness to volunteer next year to be part of CFG:
15 (42.9%) Yes, I would teach and let peers watch,
9 (25.7%) I don't want to teach but would be willing to watch a peer,
13 (37.4%) I have no interest in either.
Program Day: 10 Beneficial, 8 Somewhat Beneficial, 11 No opinion, 3 Not beneficial
COMMENTS
I"m a program of one!
seemed like busy work from our asst. dean, could have used that day as a work day
The only meeting we had was a division meeting an it was sometimes beneficial.
Im not exactly sure what was suppose to be done on this day.
making sure everyone is actually working on their program to be ready
Yes, we hadn't met in a long time. It was good to get reports from all departments. We needed more time worked into our agenda to regroup, communicate, and prepare for the Student Success Days coming up!!
We did get to have our division meeting that was long over due
I did like the agenda and work sheet, it provided structure and topics to discuss within department
I was trying all day to get my CNE exam completed via Live Proctor so wasn't around and available. I like having open time though to handle things.
WU Police: 9 Beneficial, 10 Somewhat Beneficial, 8 No Opinion, 5 Not Beneficial, 4 Did not attend
COMMENTS
It's National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day!
We all have concerns about safety with the way the world is changing.
The presentation got away so much on the active shooter that I don't remember what it was supposed to be about but it was helpful otherwise.
Did not seem prepared. Seemed to say follow protocols, then backtracked by telling personal story about advice he gave his niece. Next time suggestion: take to 2-4 classrooms and do a "survey".
Based on the number and passion of concerns being brought up, there needs to be formal follow-up in future meetings or though the Safety Committee with feedback that can be submitted ahead of time.
Obviously good discussion and showed overall staff concern that follow-up for a plan for better communication and preparedness during a facility safety event is needed!!
Face to face communication is always a go to.
Needs to be prepared
This seemed contradictory and was unclear. The officer(not Charles) told us he instructed his children to go against the policy of their school and break a window and run, and he would pay for the window. It seems like this example to us maybe should have been kept to himself. Its contradictory for him to tell us to follow our policy but to tell his loved ones to violate policy. That doesn't feel right. He was asked about knifes and if students could have them and at what length, his reply was to check the policy . . . which was the question in the first place what's the policy. I know we have a flip chart, but if something terrible were to happy our lack of time send to clarifying our plan could be evidence against us. No one I asked around our table knew what our plan was if we have an active shooter. The other officer mentioned Officer Charles could always get a hold of us through the intercom when concerns about communication came up, we have been told my Kent/Keith's team the intercoms do not function. There seems a disconnect with that. Some instructors mentioned they had plans or meeting spaces, but without communication of the plans they could create bottlenecks or other instructors may be planning on using the same space. At the end of the presentation it was left with send concerns to Safety Committee, they may have a rough couple meetings
CPR: 9 Beneficial, 1 No Opinion
COMMENTS
Needs to be a separate class for more advanced CPR trained individuals
First Aid: 4 Beneficial, 2 Somewhat Beneficial, 2 No Opinion
COMMENTS
it was all videos, no hands on
GENERAL COMMENTS ON THE WEEK
PowerPoint breakout wasn't listed for our opinion, but it was very helpful!
The breakout sessions were helpful but, the amount of content covered in a single day felt somewhat overwhelming (information overload). Splitting the sessions across two days, with morning sessions and dedicated afternoon time for instructors to work in their rooms, may improve the overall experience. Additionally, some clarification around the required professional development beyond the CTEL certificate would be appreciated. A clearer distinction between required and recommended activities, and how these expectations align with higher education standards, would be helpful, as many instructors have expressed that the current approach can feel more reflective of a high school model than a higher education environment.
At times, there is a perception that the volume and structure of required activities may be more about maintaining engagement or requiring an earlier return than the broader university calendar, and that the level of oversight feels more hands-on than what is typically experienced by faculty at the university campus. Additional context around the purpose and necessity of these expectations would be helpful.
One of the best things this week was getting into other people's area to be a student and seeing what environmental things may affect our students or to see how they do things. Would be great in the future to have tours of all the areas and maybe a short explanation on what they teach.
There needs to be a training for the instructors (not an hour!) on conferences. How many want to go to a conference but missed "deadlines", or they want to go to a summer conference/training that isn't even scheduled until late winter (thus missing deadlines, don't know costs, etc.). I would enjoy seeing the last few years of conference spending: admin versus instructors.
Knowing what is happening on which day was very unclear for some of the days. Things like having a day just labeled "Program day" or "Complete CFGs" was unhelpful without explaining what the program day was or what CFG stands for without digging through emails or old note, which I'm sure most people didn't do. Having extra time to do things was beneficial though.
Too many breakout rooms. It was an overwhelming amount of information to process by the end of the day . Maybe a max of 4 with time to go to our office and get our hands dirty implementing something we learned. I know valuable information was communicated but it was too much in too short a time
I would like to utilize Dawnielle more, see more "working" together things even if its to come up with solutions to problems.
Thank you Alan!
More timely approval of instructor requested PD/conferences and/or a clearer outline of the existing deadline and approval timeline would be great to know. There have been many times non-instructors have gone to PD/conferences during the school year (which there was $$ for), but when its time for an instructor to request one, the approval process is very long like 3 to 6 months and we always have to wait and see what funds are remaining. I also feel if anyone takes the time to find and attend approved PD/conferences which is more specific to their content this should be encouraged and rewarded by perhaps allowing them to skip one or more breakouts as their PD hours would on average far exceed the minimum and those of their colleagues. It would be nice if we found away to reward those who are actively trying to grow and improve outside what's provided for them here.
I had other issues which would have been a better use of my time, so I ended up working the weekend, to make up for my time.
OTHER COMMENTS
Breakfast
Biscuits and Gravy added to the menu would be nice.
good - thank you
Breakfast was fine. Nice selection at least/
just always the same stuff
Great variety! Perfect!
Always have protein
delicious
Lover the fresh fruits
Lunch:
Only because I was craving Mexican food that day.
Too many colorful foods and mixed things. I'm a simple person like chicken strips and fries simple : )
the food was a bit bland and not a ton of options for picky eaters
Green Beans were hard, meatloaf was dry
Dean Smathers:
Thank you Dean Smathers!
I like the communication
Accessibility via Zoom:
Could have been condensed--I guess it was since the connection ended! Just showing us the highlights to get started and then allowing us to attend Sue's breakout to get specifics answered would have been more constructive.
Very difficult to understand the presenter via zoom. May have been more helpful if the presenter was in person.
Already attended several of Dr.Chang's CTel events, presentation should of have be optional
People needed to know more on why accessibility is important other than just "it's the law". Might helped them accept it better.
This needed to be in-person and allowed more time.
In person would have been more benficial
It would be better to give instruction for 5 minutes then let people try it and ask questions as they go. Some will have questions others not so let them do productive things with that time
Our program uses an outside source for all educational materials. We only utilize D2L for grades
Hard to understand from my tables postion
very hard to understand
Hard to understand, too much for intro to people that hadn't had the notion at all yet
obviously...would be better in person
this was boring and did not give a clear expectation or explanation.
I understand the need for accessibility, but it seemed like a workshop may have been a better option.
Dr. Bryant-Collier:
Always prepared and enjoyable
Great Job as always
Always a great, interactive presentation!
Some examples from staff seemed to contradict the message of treating students consistently with regard to attendance
Always brings good points, makes it fun and engaging
Accessibility Sue Taylor Owenrs
Sue was very helpful, as always.
She did talk a little fast, but I know she needed to cover alot. I am slow with technology so a bit fast for me.
Advance Teams Joseph Gonzales
He's so sweet and helpful. We took him off topic and he rolled with it so nicely to advance our tech applications overall.
Advance Teams Jamie Fluke
No Comments made
Are You a Guru Mark Green
This was a fun session!
Very interesting. It was also nice to have a totally different option that may not be directly related to what we do every day, but may be good for our mental health.
I learned about healing with sound, which was great hands-on learning and about being a guru.
Was very enjoyable and relatable to what we do.
So intriguing! I could listen to him lecture all day.
interesting and kept your attention
Basic Teams Alan Beam
Saw some aspects of Teams I was unaware of.
AI Alan Beam
No comments
Curriculum Follow Up Marie Hall
helped to get things added to hand book for 2026
Flip Classroom Cody Beaculair & Mitch Nerem
I have better understanding of Flipping the class.
They did an excellent job
NCCER and similar organizations are very helpful as resources for instructors, especially new instructors. Also, making new instructors aware of the "flip classroom" method, the availability of high quality resources like NCCER, and the teaching methods of other instructors that have success would be beneficial.
good PPT...nice team teaching
Follow Up Dr. Bryant-Collier
Good discussion!
lots of great conversation
Google Forms Alan Beam
I will be trying Google Forms instead of the tools I've been using to collect information!
How to hit'emn with the Velvet Hammer Hannah Laspisa
I didnt agree with the softer approach she uses, but do understand what she was saying
Interesting concept
Helpful ideas...good phrases to help correct with boundaries
IT Derek Kucharczyk
Gave me information to share with new students
KJCC
Very interesting. Appreciate these guys and what they do!!
Keys to Effective Communication Christa Beemer
Great information for a class with students
Lecture to Lab Sam Swoyer
Sam was great! loved the info he had for us
NCCER Chris Mullins
NCCER seems extremely helpful in keeping course material relevant to industry.
Panupto Michael Clouser
Very easy to use and understand
A little overwhelming but excited to try it. He made it look easy and walked us through it well. It looked a little too easy for him though, and i know I will be slow at first trying it.
Still Struggling with you PDP Alan Beam
I have a better understanding of the expectations of the PDP.
Great information
TCF
No comments
Teaching Consultations Laura Keighley
Great information with CTEL Consultations.
Great presentation by both ladies. Glad to know and try this resource that is available to us.
I will/have started using Slido
I taught this. Think CFG refresher was good and then eye opening to folks about the other Consultation aspect offered through WU
Tips for Powerpoint Alan Beam
No comments
Train the Trainer David Tenpenny
Great information to help with advanced students
WWVP Grant Sarah Velequez
Short, informative, and to the point!
YouTube Mark Warren
He has come to my shop to help with this.
Would have been nice to have it all ready and going on time.
Helpful actually getting software loaded and shown how to use it.