"where faculty are committed to teaching and serving students; where enthusiasm and morale are high; and where faculty professionalism and dedication find full expression, working in harmony with students, staff, and administration to fulfill the mission of the college"
In an effort to send less e-mails. Here’s an announcement for the next 2 CASTivities. More importantly, here’s the link to our website. https://sites.google.com/site/casthwc/
The website prides itself on always be under construction. Take a look around the site. You can find our schedule for the remainder of the semester minus a few upcoming additions. The CAST team has been working hard to bring a variety of events your way. Scroll down for the announcements of the next 2 castivities (Nuts and Bolts, this Thurs at 3:30, CAST TECH Mondays, this coming Mon. at 3) and the CAST book club (Mon. 3/12 @ 3:30 and Wed. 3/14 @ 8:30 am). All events are in 1046, the home of CAST.
Thanks for reading. Scroll down for the prettier announcements. —Your CAST team
If you were at the State of the College address (and listening) you heard Metoyer mention the Mayor’s Data Portal (brief aside: up until about 8 minutes ago, I think my favorite name for “mouth” was “pie-hole.” But there’s a new sheriff in town, and it’s “Data Portal.” Imagine the possibilities: “Shut your data portal!” or “Stick that in your data portal and smoke it!” or “Stifle that portal!” or “Suck that data right back up into its portal!” I mean they’re all great and likely to give you that 10 second processing silence, which grants command of the floor. I can’t wait to use it!).
I assume that was his way of suggesting that it should be this week’s Website, and so it is.
You can have tons of fun on it, even if you don’t know Excel. There are sets of crime statistics there, alongside CTA data, and real estate stuff like landmarks.
Lots of education stuff, too. Plus, they have everyone’s Performance Metrics, too (including one of ours here, which is really, really interesting. To wit, I find it fascinating that there’s a consistent difference between the fall pass rates and the spring pass rates for remedial students (I don’t know how to do a T test, but I’d guess it’s a statistically significant difference); and I think it’s really interesting to notice that in spring of 2011 we (CCC) had more students pass a credit course than we had enrolled in credit courses in Fall 2000, Spring 2001, and Fall 2001 while the pass rates for all four of those semesters were (just about) identical. I mean I know 7% is sexier for the politics, but it’d be nice to see someone toss that stat about a bit, maybe along side one about how much less funding we’re getting from the state now than we were back then when the coffers were flush. You know–one of those doing more with less kind of stories? Would that be too much to ask? Anyway, I digress).
It is a GREAT way to procrastinate away a few hours.
Have fun with it. Tell them you heard it straight from your VPs Data Portal!
Tuesday Teaching Talk is a regular feature which, as the name implies, is an opportunity to talk explicitly about teaching (and learning) in the practical and philosophical sense that happens on, you guessed it, Tuesday. Hold on to your hats. The CAST coordinators (yes there are 2 of us) are tasked with supplying TTTs to you. Look for questions, videos, tips, etc. Enjoy!
Be honest. Be clear. But above all, be passionate.
Connect an out-of-class passion with in-class topics. Love camping or mixology? Point out that you sometimes think about the chemistry of caramelization while cooking smores over the campfire, or relate your efforts to recreate F. Scott Fitzgerald’s favorite libation. Students like a multi-dimensional teacher, and your ability to bring your extracurricular interests to bear on course materials will encourage students to do the same.
Yep. Leave it up to non-politicos for some good ideas on how to solve the SURS problem. I ran across this article (or did this article run across me, I don’t know anymore) over the weekend titled Two U of I Profs Suggest Overhaul of SURS. That’s right they’re faculty and they have some ideas they’d like to share. From the article:
Brown said the plan got good marks when discussed with legislators, labor groups, and U of I faculty. Those include University Economist Fred Giertz, who also sits on the Board of Directors of the State Universities Retirement System. He said Brown and Rich’s plan takes the time to fund pensions in a way the state hasn’t done in decades.
There’s a link at the bottom of the article to the full proposal which has a link to read the full paper. Check it out.
So, I’ve updated the union page here on the Lounge (look above this) to include the link to the new HW Union Web site that Grievance Chair/Faculty Council Rep/Person of Excellence Anthony Escuadro put together. It looks really great, and I think it’s going to be a really great resource going forward, especially over the next two years. (Plus, maybe The Realist will stop all the bellyachin’ about minutes and the rest, to the relief of a few people…)
While you’re there, be sure to find and fill out the Contract Survey that Jesu and Hector and Anthony put together to proactively collect info to bring to the Local. I’d put the link here, but I think they want to keep it among members, so if you don’t know it or can’t find it, grab one of them in the hallway or send one of them an email and I’m sure they’ll get it to you. It would be good if you took a peek at the contract first.
And when you see the local chapter Union leadership, tell them nice job! I know I will.
UPDATE–BUMPED UP FOR MORE VOTING: I’m totally surprised by the votes for “Travesty” (though overall it’s still running almost 2 to 1 positive)…still, I’m left to wonder what other people saw that I didn’t…what’s the complaint?
(And sorry, Don–I am totally unable to say with any sort of confidence what meaning I had in my head when I typed it. I’m inclined to say something like “a mockery” or “a perversion” (both synonyms in Webster’s (‘merican dictionary), but I’m suspicious that maybe that idea is a function of (or at least was influenced by) your interesting research. Hindsight bias seems likely here, so I’ll have to say I don’t know and leave it a great unsolved mystery.)
Holy Presidential Pancakes, do I love this song…I mean the original is cool enough to save the polar bears all by itself, but then they throw in Daryl Hall? Cut down my cherry tree and call me George Lincoln…all I can hear are the horns!
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And if you see that they’re coming to Chicago, please, for the love, let me know…
Next up! is a regular feature on Sundays, showcasing HWC (and beyond) events in the coming week. Use the “Comments” section to provide updates and additions!
Welcome to week 6, good people! Keep it rollin’…
Monday, 2/19: President’s Day! The building is closed.
Tuesday, 2/20: HW Transfer Center “College 101″ Workshop (11a-12:20p or 12:30-1:50p, rm 102); Full CAST meeting Session (2, rm. 1046)
Wednesday, 2/21: HW Transfer Center “College 101″ Workshop (11a-12:20p or 12:30-1:50p, rm 102); BHM Film Screening: The Interrupters (11a-1:15pm rm 408); SGA Club Day (10a-5p, 2nd floor); I.C.E. Poetry Slam (6-9p, rm 103);
Thursday, 2/22: Pride Alliance Valentine’s Day Dance (6-8p, rm 1115)*, CAST “Nuts and Bolts” (3:30, rm. 1046)
Friday, 2/23: Sabbatical Applications due today; Pride Alliance Valentine’s Day Dance (7-9p, rm 1115)*;
Saturday, 2/24: Business as usual as far as I know.
*I’m not sure about this date/time–the event is listed as taking place on Thursday in the weekly calendar of events and as taking place on Friday in the BHM event announcement email; please verify the date and time.
Please note anything I missed in the comments, please (and accept my apologies for missing it).
Though she’s rocking a sabbatical, Adriana Tapanes-Inojosa hasn’t forgotten about the rest of us. This week she sent along a bunch of stuff to check out:
PLUS, I received this link featuring AACU published research on VALUE rubrics (for Valid Assessment of Learning in Undergraduate Education) from Rock’in Tha Shoe, who writes, “Sadly, you can see that all research references are done by the Lumina foundation (mmmh??- here we go again with the business trying to dictate educational parameters).”
PLUS, Matt Usner sent this link awhile back on the power of nudges toward environmentally responsible behavior.
Just in case you’re eligible and thinking about applying for one, per your email, you might want to spend a little time over the long holiday weekend putting together your sabbatical application, since they’re due to the suits this week.
And if you don’t know how to think about it (or aren’t yet eligible), you might get some help from THIS article about how to plan a productive (and enjoyable) sabbatical.
And if you don’t know from sabbaticals, read this before filling out this.
~A great list of excuses (found on Crooked Timber)–I am making a late new year’s resolution addendum to try to use at least 70 of these before the end of the year, so if you hear me say, “I can resist everything but temptation” or “the stony grey soil of Monarghen” you’ll now know why;
~On DIY Science–about a dude who tried to split the atom in his kitchen. Seriously;
Once upon a time, I was something of a buffoon. A sit in the back row with my hat pulled low rather be anywhere but here kind of student, inclined to do a cross word rather than take notes.
Were I still that same doofus, I might be inclined to suggest a little game of Big Speech Bingo for Friday.
Of course, I’m not (at least not at work….usually), and so I’m NOT suggesting anything of the sort, but if I were, I might be inclined to put together a list of 24 phrases/words that might show up in the Don’s speech on Friday.
I was thinking about how much I’d matured since those days, when I was struck by the urge, just for auld lang syne, you know, to put together the list that I would use (note the subjunctive there, Don) if I weren’t so mature now (which I am). This is the list I came up with. What am I missing?
PhiloDave
cnepstad
mathissexy
itejeda
writingisthinking
Kamran Swanson
Realist
Matt U.
domenicorocco
speechfromtheblock
casthwc
