Institution: Faculty Orientation

Faculty orientation was not an afternoon of cocktales.

Faculty orientation is a good place to garner language with which to write a teaching philosophy. At the University of Minnesota, Duluth in 2011, the atmosphere was one of reform and new beginnings, which I think likely applies to other schools as well, and suggests that today's teacher must commit to a certain role in reform and new beginnings. In the fields of strategic planning, diversity, and liberal education, UMD has completed assessments using administrative task forces, generated action steps in various web pages, and urgently hopes that faculty will cooperate in the proceeding action steps. For a new teacher like myself, with no particular preconceptions of what the job should entail, this is an opportunity to establish a reputation as a fresh voice suited to the needs of a new era. The trick is to speak the language of the institution (and controlling the conflict against another side of me that finds such institutional mindset treachery to the ambitions for art).

The following is an enumeration of my raw notes; links and further thoughts to come:

1. The new strategic plan of the university centers on sustainability and social justice, issues that "have never mattered more," and which require engagement with "the surrounding community."
2. Diversity is a huge issue at Duluth, where the student population is 92% white and 8% everything else. Moreover, as one administrator testified, some students of color leave Duluth because they experience racism on campus. A certain "Facebook event" made this retention-killing factor national news. In response, the university has made diversity one of the major elements of its new strategic plan, in what they call the "Campus Change Initiative."
1. A faculty panel on the respectful classroom: valuing difference and inclusiveness, illustrates the university's current commitment to making social justice part of all curriculum. This isn't as far-fetched as Stanley Fish might make it seem, according to Paula Pedersen, an expert on "multiple perspectives pedagogy," and the associated new wave of educational theory that is "constructivist, experiential, and student-centered." Important take-ways include: 
1. Don't let any student feel left out, especially in group activities
2. Don't play favorites
3. Make sure everyone feels that their views have value, even if they are not progressive
4. To deal with inappropriate conduct, never be afraid to say, "I'm uncomfortable with where this is going. We'll come back to it." Don't let maligned students leave hurt.
3. UMD Students are "millennials" with the accompanying sense of entitlement and inability to deal with adversity that studies on this generation have demonstrated. Overall, emotional health on campuses has decreased. Kathy Morris and Mary Keenan encourage teachers not to see mental health resources at the U as a last resort -- we should refer students who are functional, but suffering. The goal of these services is to keep retention as high as possible.
4. Assessment of Student learning, another area undergoing major reform with a full package of  actions steps now being implemented. Bottom line: good assessment data is the best way to tell when and how to raise expectations. (Also see the roadmap the school produced.)
5. UEA, the union representing Duluth and Crookston faculty. The reputation of a union, I reflected, requires us to attend to the the history of labor actions at the institution. Thus, I should create a timeline.
6. Finding Balance at the university : ideal proportions should include 50 percent teaching, 40 percent research, and 10 percent service for full time work, but moving back and forth among the job duties requires nimbleness, and for many teachers, research takes a back seat to teaching and service duties. 
7. Liberal Education, a "seriously hot topic" at UMD. Check out the reform package on its web page and consider courses to supply global perspectives, cultural diversity and environmental sustainability.
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9. Miscellaneous notes: there are grant opportunities at UMD; tech camp might be interesting; faculty should try to get undergrads to do UROPs with them; the UMD and Board of regents each have policies, and UMD at times differs from the BOR. 
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A few quotes from the day: 

"We've taken steps, we've done things."

"Do try your best not to get drawn into ongoing disputes."

"Take up a winter sport."