Miscellaneous Logistics
On this page you will find a variety of guidance that does not fit into the other pages.
1.Faculty resources:
Faculty Handbook. This has lots of valuable resources for faculty: mission, vision and purpose; organization; policies; faculty policies; faculty responsibilities.
Student Handbook. This is a similar resource to the Faculty Handbook, but geared for students: mission and guiding principles; programs and accreditation; tuition fees; equal opportunity; privacy rights and responsibilities; community and technology requirements; student policies; student conduct; semester (credit) hours; certificates and transcripts; complaints and grievances; library.
Faculty Compendium. The compendium offers many tips for teaching in Moodle and serving as a Wilmette Institute Faculty member, from A to Z. (This is a course on Moodle, so you will have to log in to Moodle to see it).
Faculty Memorandum of Understanding. All faculty must sign this memorandum.
Mutual Expectations for Faculty and WI. This document outlines the responsibilities of the lead faculty, other faculty and the Wilmette Institute to fulfill essential quality standards for our courses. All faculty must agree to these provisions.
2. Other resources:
Images of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. The Wilmette Institute follows the policy set by the Universal House of Justice about images of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. Whenever something about 'Abdu'l-Baha is published, it should only use photographs, not paintings or drawings. Therefore, we only use photographs of 'Abdu'l-Baha in our courses and on our web pages.
Paywalls and purchases. The Wilmette Institute as a rule does not require the purchase of anything for a course other than when a course is based upon a book, the purchase of which is made clear before the course begins. This means that we avoid directing the learners to sites that have a paywall, or to membership sites like The New York Times, Etsy, JSTOR or PBS.
Style Guide. This style guide is for Wilmette Institute courses, and it covers spelling for Bahá'í words, aspects of accessibility (which are more extensively covered on the Accessibility page), proper ways to reference central figures and institutions, and guidance about document use. Additionally, here is a style guide for original compilations.
Bahá'í National Office Editorial Style Guide. This is more comprehensive than the above style guide, and it covers usage, terminology, and jargon issues.
Inclusive Language Guidelines. The Wilmette Institute strives towards diversity in its staff and student body. Towards that end, we request all instructors to be mindful of the language used in our courses to describe people and groups. Inclusive language is paramount to helping all participants feel included and welcome. Please review the attached document for this purpose.
Resources for Baha'i Materials.
Most published Bahá'í scripture in English is available online: bahai.org
Historical Bahá'í periodicals are available here: Bahai.works
Scholarly works, commentaries, and unofficial translations are available here: Bahá'í Library
Course catalog. This resource has valuable information about the courses offered by the Wilmette Institute.
For faculty to know how to channel student issues, please see the graph below which is in the student handbook:
Revised: 04/01/2022
Staff Role and Contact Details
Main Responsibilities
Registrar, Admissions, & Student Services
Nicola (Niki) Daniels
learn@wilmetteinstitute.org
Phone: (847) 733-3466
(leave a message)
Course scheduling and student queries about courses
Changes to course dates and mentoring assignments
Issues WI email addresses and uploads faculty and instructor bios and CVs
Public Website: updates courses and webinars; creates and updates other pages as needed
Maintains Catalog & Student Handbook
Assists students with login (Moodle)
Assists faculty with coordinating publicity
Manages Zoom accounts; assists faculty with Zoom
Manages YouTube channel; uploads Zoom class videos and staff meetings to YouTube
Prepares faculty training videos/coaches faculty in Moodle
Collate/advise faculty on student statistics (demographics & feedback)
Newsletter Chief Editor: oversees editorial team, publishes monthly Newsletter and weekly News at a Glance
Digital Support Associate
Hasti Khoshnammanesh
hmanesh@wilmetteinstitute.org
Manages Moodle and oversees its maintenance
Coordinates faculty in developing learning materials and adhering to the course management protocols
Creates designs and illustrations for marketing campaigns
Uploads new content for new and updated courses
Coaches faculty in Moodle editing
Reviews course materials for accessibility, readability, consistency, and balance
Collects and distributes Course Statistical Report and Analysis
Manages digital marketing and social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn)
Manages and maintains Wilmette Institute’s Google Workspace and public website
Edits and proofreads the Newsletters
Associate Director and Academic Program Coordinator
Chitra Golestani
cgolestani@wilmetteinstitute.org
The Associate Director assists the Director with various responsibilities and oversees the following areas of endeavor:
Academic Advisory Board - Consults with the Executive Team about recommended names for the board, sets agenda items, plans meetings, and implements advice from the Academic Advisory Board.
Office of the Registrar, Admissions & Student Services - Oversees the work of the registrar, admissions, and student services to ensure that the Institute's vision, mission, and policies are upheld. The institute believes that the accompaniment of students is essential for success; therefore, there is a collaboration between the Associate Director, registrar, and digital support associate to ensure a meaningful and quality learning experience for students.
Chief Academic Officer
Justin Scoggin
jscoggin@wilmetteinstitute.org
The Chief Academic Officer of Wilmette Institute oversees the Office of Academic Affairs, including the Academic Program Coordinators, the Extension Course Coordinator, the Course Development Specialist, and the Webinar Task Force. In addition, the CAO oversees the Course Development and Assessment Team, the Curriculum Committee, and the Professional Development Committee.
The CAO supervises or is involved in certificate program design, development, setting learning outcomes, and certificate program faculty professional development. Lastly, the CAO is our DEAC Compliance Officer.
The CAO is responsible for curriculum development, coherence among the mission statement, program, and course learning outcomes, academic quality, course development, and assessment. The CAO also oversees the development and documentation of an emerging pedagogical model appropriate for WI’s academic objectives and oversees professional development and faculty support.
The CAO is also directly responsible for elaborating, updating, implementing, or supervising the implementation of all academic policies and handbooks. The CAO supports processes related to faculty hiring, support, and removal. Finally, the CAO develops relationships and strategic agreements with universities and other educational institutions.
Course Development Specialist
Ymasumac Marañón-Davis
ymaranon@wilmetteinstitute.org
Contributes to the curriculum committee developing and evaluating program curricula
Participates on the course development and assessment team, identifying course learning outcomes, development, and evaluation
Designs courses with Wilmette Institute faculty and Instructors
Creates and nurtures a pedagogical structure of learning
Develops and supports professional development opportunities for faculty and staff
Coaches faculty through a process of an emerging pedagogical framework
Assists the Wilmette Institute team in organizing a strong process of organizational learning
Acting Director
Derik Smith
director@wilmetteinstitute.org
Phone: (847) 337-7750
Strategic Plan
Institutional Effectiveness Plan
Oversees accreditation
Faculty training/support/complaints