Vol. XXXIV, No. 8

February 28, 2005

This Week at Valencia.

Monday, February 28:

Instructional Affairs Committee, 8:30 a.m., East Campus 3-113

Career Program Advisor, 3 p.m., West Campus TBA

Wednesday, March 2:

Design & Operations/Deans Only, 1 p.m., Winter Park Campus TBA

Alumni Association Board of Directors, 5:30 p.m., East Campus

Thursday, March 3:

College Learning Council, 2:30 p.m., East Campus 3-113

Friday, March 4:

Student Development Group, 9:30 a.m., Winter Park Campus 123

"Intimate Abstraction: Works by Miami and New York Painters", Anita Wooten Gallery, East Campus, runs through March 18

Course Outline Builder Goes Online

The Course Outline Builder is an on-line authoring tool designed to facilitate both the development and the approval processes for Valencia Community College course outlines. The Builder was created in response to needs identified by the Curriculum Committee and others for a brief, common outline format as well as electronic storage and retrieval of current course outlines. Existing outlines had become outdated and many did not address TVCA or assessment methods.

Now, that the authoring process is supported by technology, faculty have more time and energy to focus on the most important part of the process-thinking together about what students will be able to do as a result of their learning experiences in the course and determining how they will know students have been successful. For example, common course data is pre-loaded in the system and the Builder prompts the authoring team though each stage of the process step-by-step. Alignment among course learning outcomes, TVCA, and assessment methods is reflected for the authors in the final outline. Although the format for each Valencia outline is parallel, addendum may be added to an outline as needed to accommodate the needs of individual courses or disciplines.

Following approval by departmental faculty and the Curriculum Committee, course outlines will be stored in a curriculum database and become accessible on-line in a brief, parallel format that clearly focuses upon student learning. As more outlines are placed into the database, it will be possible to generate overviews (curriculum maps) of discipline-wide and the college-wide curriculum.

The Outline Builder was developed by the collaborative efforts of the members of the Offices of Academic Affairs, Information Technology and the Learning Evidence Team. To access the Builder, log into Atlas and click on "College Services". Select "Faculty Tools" and then click on "Course Outline Builder."

The latest from Leadership Valencia

Best Landscape Management Practices: This workshop is designed to provide information and guidance on turf grass and landscape management practices. The topics that will be covered include pollution reduction and water conservation, design and installation of landscape, irrigation, mulching, mowing, pruning, fertilization, and pest control. Come join us for this highly informative and fun workshop, presented by Clarence Canada on Tuesday, March 1, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., West Campus, Room 114, registration code GBLMP.

Learning-centered Teaching Strategies: This hands-on workshop will provide participants the opportunity to examine diverse teaching and learning strategies that accommodate the learning styles of students and promote both acquisition and applications of knowledge and understanding. This workshop will be presented by Susan Ledlow on Thursday, March 3, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m., West Campus, Room 6-202, registration code LLCTS210 or Friday, March 4, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m., East Campus, Room 3-113, registration code LLCTS211.

Word Styling: Go beyond word processing - to Word Styling! Avoid the common word-processing mistakes most people make, such as multiple spaces, poor use of tabs and too many fonts. By making use of Styles in Microsoft Office, you can easily change the look of your document, coordinate your fonts and appearance across multiple documents, and increase compatibility with the Web. Thursday, March 3, 1:00 - 5:00 p.m., West Campus, Room 6-220, registration code TWS303.

Maximizing PowerPoint for Teaching: Take your presentations to the next level with this quick session covering the following topics: Taking your show on the road, incorporating flash, video and other multimedia elements, timing multiple animations, customizing your background design and making your presentation accessible to your students in different formats. Thursday, March 3, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m., Osceola Campus, Room 2-116, registration code TMPT.

AAWCC - Path to Leadership: We continue our series of brown bag lunches through this academic year with various Valencia leaders as they share their own story about their Path to Leadership. Each person's interpretation of leadership and their journey is unique. Note: Dessert will be provided. Sponsored by the Valencia Chapter of the American Association for Women in Community Colleges (AAWCC). This workshop will be presented by Ann Puyana on Thursday, March 3, 1:00 - 2:15 p.m., East Campus, Room 4-212B, registration code PPTL303.

Highlights of the 30th Annual Conference of American Mathematical Association: Come and learn what was shared in special closed door workshops and panel discussions at this past November's conference. In this workshop we will look at concerns and issues unique to new mathematics faculty members and learn new ways in which to incorporate and practice the seven essential competencies of a Valencia educator in our professional lives. This workshop will be presented by Kurt Overhiser on Thursday, March 3, 1:00 - 2:30 p.m., East Campus, Room 1-216B, registration code PMATH.

To register for any Leadership Valencia workshop, mail a completed registration form to DTC-1, fax to ext 3134, or register online at http://valenciacc.edu/leadership/regstr.asp . For additional information please e-mail Heather Coxe at hcoxe@valenciacc.edu .

Hello and Goodbye.

A warm Valencia welcome is extended to Leticia Cadet, Staff Assistant III. Health Related Programs, mc 4-14, ext. 1095; Chester Crawford, Custodian, East Campus, mc 3-3, ext. 2705; Isaac Lopez, Custodian, East Campus, mc 3-3, ext. 2705; and James Moreno, Operations Specialist, Valencia Enterprises, mc 8-1, ext. 6640.

A fond farewell and best wishes are extended to Romena Jackson, and Gustavo Morales, both are retiring 3/31/05.

Kudos

Dr. Mike Bosley, Director of Student Development, was awarded the Vee Seavers Choate award for outstanding contributions to the Florida Junior Community College Student Government Association (FJCCSGA). This state award is given by the Advisors Association to one person each year who exemplifies a spirit of service and commitment to the organization and student leaders in Florida.

Thank you.

I want to express an enormous thank you to everyone for the beautiful flowers, the cards, the calls, and the concern during my recent hospitalization. I am back and doing fine. But, please don't let either Bill or I ever consider simple knee surgery again! Thanks again.
                                  - Mardi Snider

Thanks to all of you at Valencia for your prayers, cards and calls during my recent surgery. I would also like to express a very special thank you to the ladies in the Career Development Services Office as well as the Internship and Job Placement Office who have been carrying the load above and beyond their daily duties while I have been out. They are a very thoughtful staff to work with.
                                 - Karen Jenner Jessup

Submissions to the Bulletin are encouraged, so please e-mail your achievements, awards, recognitions, and relevant information for the college community to Mary Jane Jones, Staff Assistant in Marketing and Media Relations. Deadline for submission is 5 p.m. on the Tuesday preceding each Friday's distribution. Mary Jane can be reached at ext.1017, or mjjones@valenciacc.edu.