Team Activities
Individual Accomplishments
Jacqueline Richard
I have:
- Incorporated active learning strategies in my courses (e.g. minute papers/gallery walks)
- Incorporated more diverse and inclusive examples in my teaching (i.e. Scientist Spotlights)
- I've begun to include a discussion on Bloom's Taxonomy
Next steps: Refine Bloom's discussion and offer more study strategies.
Holly Kilvitis
I have:
- Incorporated active learning strategies in my courses (e.g. exam wrappers)
- Taken a more active approach in communicating with students to ensure they have the necessary resources in order to succeed during these difficult times of COVID-19
Next steps: Incorporate Scientist Spotlights
Christie Landry
I have:
- Incorporated Scientist Spotlights in my classroom
- Incorporated more active learning strategies as I'm developing a new course (i.e. Gen Bio)
Next steps: Refine my assessment/objective alignment
Team Accomplishments
Strengthening our Department/Program
Accomplishments/Action Plan:
- Developed master syllabi for new Environmental Science courses
- We implemented 3 professional development workshops
- Increased student participation in student satisfaction surveys (in progress)
- Participation in a virtual open house to recruit students to Geology and Environmental Science programs
- Revised the time frame of initiating activities that enhance employability due to COVID-19
Next Steps: We plan on continuing to monitor course-level outcomes data for both our existing and newly created STEM courses.
Developing our Campus Community
Engaging our Colleagues:
- Continue to work with our Global Online Division to align course objectives with assessments in an equitable way
- Workshop participants included faculty, including adjuncts, from science, business, nursing/allied health, and math departments
- We received positive feedback and encouragement to continue our professional development workshops in the future
Next Steps:
- Continue to offer professional development workshops every semester for our Fletcher faculty
- Offer a book club to Fletcher faculty (e.g. Bloom's Taxonomy readings, Teach Students How to Learn by Saundra McGuire
Team Members
Jacqueline Richard
Jacqueline received a Teaching in Excellence award last year and is in the final stages of establishing an Associates of Science in Geology degree program for students at Fletcher. Her geology YouTube channel was voted #3 in all of Geology YouTube in 2019.
Courses
Jacqueline teaches Physical Geology, Historical Geology, Natural Disasters, Sedimentology & Stratigraphy, and Physical Science.
Holly Kilvitis
Holly was an NSF Graduate Research Fellow and graduated in 2017 from the University of South Florida with a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolution. She conducted research in Kenya and Senegal on an invasive bird, the house sparrow, and has published 10 articles on her research. Holly also helped develop curriculum for all of USF's Biology II labs, and hopes to continue developing curriculum at Fletcher.
Courses
Holly teaches Principles of Biology, Fundamentals of Biology II (Lab), as well as Anatomy and Physiology I & II (Online).
Christie Landry
Christie has been involved in creating engaging coursework and updating labs and materials in biological sciences courses, including incorporating CUREs (Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences) into the curriculum. She has participated in Faculty Mentoring Networks and workshops/Summer Institutes sponsored by HHMI to improve teaching in STEM courses, and she was recently awarded the Academic Affairs Award for Teaching Excellence. Her research interests include impacts of hypoxia on fishes and bacteriophage hunting in environment.
Courses
Christie teaches Anatomy and Physiology, Microbiology, Introduction to Research, Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy, Pathogenic Microbiology, and Laboratory Internship.
Institution
Fletcher Technical Community College is located in Schriever, Louisiana, about 30 miles southwest of New Orleans. They serve about 3000 students per year, 21% of whom are under 18. Twenty-two percent of their students are black or African-American, 65% are women, and 45% are enrolled in some or all distance education courses. Sixty-percent of their full-time first-time undergraduates were awarded Pell grants.
Program/Department
There are 4 full-time and 10 adjunct faculty in the Natural Science Department. While students currently only take Natural Science courses to fulfill a natural science degree requirement, Fletcher is beginning to build program tracks and degrees in the science department. Typically there are 400-500 students who take the courses in a year. The department is part of the larger STEM division. This STEM division is a new division. Before 2019, the college was all under one division - Liberal Arts and Sciences. In January 2019, in an effort to develop Science and Math degrees, STEM became its own division which includes Science, Mathematics, Industrial Production Technology, and Drafting.