Events

QEP Workshops: 2020

The Quality Enhancement Plan has suspended in-person meetings until further notice. We are available for phone or video chat appointments. For assistance regarding the QEP, faculty and staff can email us at QEP@ucf.edu; students with questions about Knights of Distinctions should email KnightsofDistinction@ucf.edu. Thank you for your patience during this challenging time.

The Office of the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) sponsors and hosts a range of faculty and staff development workshops that address the QEP’s theme, What’s Next: Integrative Learning for Professional and Civic Preparation, and that seek to improve undergraduate student learning at UCF.

For questions about our current workshop offerings, please email us at QEP@ucf.edu.

FCTL Summer Conference: QEP Track

Every May, the UCF Faculty Center for Teaching & Learning hosts the Summer Faculty Development Conference on the week following final exams. Full-time faculty members from all colleges submit proposals to transform courses or programs according to goals and objectives related to a defining theme.

The Office of the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) has previously invited proposals for the FCTL Summer Conference: QEP Track for projects that address the QEP’s theme, What’s Next: Integrative Learning for Professional and Civic Preparation, and that seek to improve undergraduate student learning at UCF. For more information on the 2020 track, click here.

For more information on the Summer Faculty Development Conference (via FCTL), click here.

Previous Events and Workshops:

QEP Transfer Student Success Workshop Series

(Spring 2019)

Jason Dodge, Transfer and Transition Services

The QEP-sponsored Transfer Student Success Workshop Series seeks to help undergraduate faculty recognize the challenges facing transfer students and equip them with techniques to promote student success in the major and beyond.

We are seeking faculty who want to help improve our transfer student experience through participating in this spring 2019 workshop series. Special consideration will be given to two-member teams and to undergraduate program directors, faculty advisors, faculty mentors, and those teaching courses most frequently taken by transfer students during their first semester at UCF.

Through a series of five 90-minute meetings, participants will learn from experts and work with peers on a range of issues, including the challenges faced by transfer students. These challenges include the difficulty connecting to mentors; lack of preparation for courses in their major; student concern over career readiness; and the realities of transfer shock.

The workshop series will also cover UCF initiatives such as the Provost’s Foundations of Excellence Transfer Initiative and related data; curriculum alignment with our state college partners; and, ways to better support these students in their transition to UCF (e.g., revising their four year suggested plan of study to better support transfer students, providing more structured mentoring with both successful transfer peers and faculty, creating contacts with state colleges to improve advising of students coming to UCF to help ease transition, etc.).

At the end of the workshop series, participants will create either short- or long-term plans to support, mentor, and advise their transfer students in the major.

QEP Enhancing Integrative Learning at UCF: Creating Resources and Sharing Expertise

(Fall 2018)

Anna Maria Jones, Quality Enhancement Plan

The mission of UCF’s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), What’s Next: Integrative Learning for Professional and Civic Preparation, is to prepare our graduates to successfully enter and participate in the next steps of their professional and civic lives through integrative learning. In order to achieve this mission, the QEP has funded numerous faculty and staff projects, workshops, and events focused on creating a culture of integrative learning at UCF. As we enter the second phase of the QEP, we are now looking to create a durable yet dynamic repository of resources to share the expertise of those who have championed integrative learning at UCF.

This call for proposals is for faculty and staff who are interested in helping to build this repository. Workshop participants will work together and individually to create the template and initial content for this resource. No web design experience is required for this workshop, only your expertise.

Topics may include, but are by no means limited to:

reflection and metacognitive assignments
integrative-learning assignments
ePortfolio integration
student professionalization assignments
interdisciplinary collaboration
Integrative-Learning Experience (IE) designated courses
course-level student advisory boards

Deliverables may vary depending upon the topic but will include a brief profile in an “about me” section and some discussion of integrative learning which may include reflections on best practices, implementation, challenges, success stories, and examples.

QEP Transfer Student Success Workshop Series

(Fall 2018)

Jason Dodge, Transfer and Transition Services

The QEP-sponsored Transfer Student Success Workshop Series seeks to help undergraduate faculty recognize the challenges facing transfer students and equip them with techniques to promote student success in the major and beyond.

We are seeking faculty who want to help improve our transfer student experience through participating in this fall 2018 workshop series. Special consideration will be given to two-member teams and to undergraduate program directors, faculty advisors, faculty mentors, and those teaching courses most frequently taken by transfer students during their first semester at UCF.

Through a series of five 90-minute meetings, participants will learn from experts and work with peers on a range of issues, including the challenges faced by transfer students. These challenges include the difficulty connecting to mentors; lack of preparation for courses in their major; student concern over career readiness; and the realities of transfer shock.

The workshop series will also cover UCF initiatives such as the Provost’s Foundations of Excellence Transfer Initiative and related data; curriculum alignment with our state college partners; and, ways to better support these students in their transition to UCF (e.g., revising their four year suggested plan of study to better support transfer students, providing more structured mentoring with both successful transfer peers and faculty, creating contacts with state colleges to improve advising of students coming to UCF to help ease transition, etc.).

At the end of the workshop series, participants will create either short- or long-term plans to support, mentor, and advise their transfer students in the major.

QEP-Sponsored Course Designation Workshop

(Spring 2018)

Kathleen Hohenleitner, English; Kevin Jardaneh, Office of Undergraduate Research; Dan Murphree, History; Linda Walters, Biology.

The Office of the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) invites proposals for the FCTL Summer Conference: QEP Track. Eligible projects are those that articulate a clear connection to one or more of the three interventions addressed by the What’s Next: Integrative Learning for Professional and Civic Preparation QEP and that seek to improve undergraduate student learning at UCF. These interventions are:

Guidance & Information: Augmenting existing resources and developing new resources to encourage students early in (and throughout) their academic careers to identify professional and civic goals and to provide them with information that can help them develop integrated “3C’s” (curricular, co-curricular, and career-preparatory) pathways to reach those goals (e.g., orientation workshops, integrative-learning modules, advising materials, peer-mentoring programs, Web resources).

High-Impact Integrative Learning Experiences: We will fine tune existing curricular, co-curricular, and career-prep initiatives and develop new high-impact learning experiences that will help students develop transferable knowledge and cross-cutting skills throughout their time at UCF (e.g., undergraduate research projects, cornerstone courses, integrative-learning assignment sequences, study abroad, internships).

Metacognition & Self-Advocacy: We will embed opportunities for students to reflect upon, assess, and describe the knowledge and skills that they have acquired through their integrative-learning experiences so that they can leverage these skills as they face “what’s next” after UCF (e.g., eportfolios, capstone courses, mock interviews, launching materials). Participants may work as individuals, in department teams, or in interdisciplinary teams (e.g., professor, advisor, co-curricular).

For the 2018 conference, special consideration will be given to projects that seek to develop new high-impact learning experiences for majors, such as: capstone, undergraduate research, integrative-learning courses, internships or other experiential learning, study abroad, or service learning experiences.

If you are working in a team each member must submit an application to participate in the Summer Faculty Development Conference. You will also be asked to list the names of the other participants on your team.

Participants will be expected to report on their project on the final day of the conference.


QEP Transfer Student Success Workshop Series

(Spring 2018)

Jason Dodge, Transfer and Transition Services

The QEP-sponsored Transfer Student Success Workshop Series seeks to help undergraduate faculty recognize the challenges facing transfer students and equip them with techniques to promote student success in the major and beyond.

We are seeking faculty who want to help improve our transfer student experience through participating in this spring 2018 workshop series. Special consideration will be given to two-member teams and to undergraduate program directors, faculty advisors, faculty mentors, and those teaching courses most frequently taken by transfer students during their first semester at UCF.

Through a series of five 90-minute meetings, participants will learn from experts and work with peers on a range of issues, including the challenges faced by transfer students. These challenges include the difficulty connecting to mentors; lack of preparation for courses in their major; student concern over career readiness; and the realities of transfer shock.

The workshop series will also cover UCF initiatives such as the Provost’s Foundations of Excellence Transfer Initiative and related data; curriculum alignment with our state college partners; and, ways to better support these students in their transition to UCF (e.g., revising their four year suggested plan of study to better support transfer students, providing more structured mentoring with both successful transfer peers and faculty, creating contacts with state colleges to improve advising of students coming to UCF to help ease transition, etc.).

At the end of the workshop series, participants will create either short- or long-term plans to support, mentor, and advise their transfer students in the major.


Digital Storytelling Workshop 

(Spring 2018)

Lisa Peterson, College of Arts and Humanities.

Digital storytelling is the creation of a brief narrative using digital technologies to combine voice, videos, images, music, interviews, graphics, and other electronic content to tell a story. Digital narratives allow the creator to reflect upon and analyze something of true importance to the filmmaker.

Digital storytelling is also a way to develop integrative learning across curricula, thus achieving the following QEP student learning outcomes:

  • Students will demonstrate the ability to reflect critical on past experiences and to envision a future self that builds on these experiences.
  • Students will demonstrate the ability to persuasively articulate knowledge, experiences, skills, and qualifications to diverse audiences both within and beyond the university.

Assignments that incorporate digital storytelling can provide a potent tool for students that capitalizes on their creative talents as they begin to research and tell their own stories, while analyzing and synthesizing their work for presentation to the world. It’s a process that sharpens the storyteller’s awareness of who they are and what they value. This knowledge is essential for students’ successful professional and civic preparation.

During the workshop sessions participants will learn to tell a digital story by making their own personal essay film. Technical support will be provided. Faculty then can integrate digital storytelling assignments into their curricula, and, ideally, can help teach colleagues about how to use this tool in their courses.

Digital Storytelling Workshop 

(Spring 2017)

Lisa Peterson, College of Arts and Humanities.

Digital storytelling is the creation of a brief narrative using digital technologies to combine voice, videos, images, music, interviews, graphics, and other electronic content to tell a story. Digital narratives allow the creator to reflect upon and analyze something of true importance to the filmmaker.

Digital storytelling is also a way to develop integrative learning across curricula, thus achieving the following QEP student learning outcomes:

  • Students will demonstrate the ability to reflect critical on past experiences and to envision a future self that builds on these experiences.
  • Students will demonstrate the ability to persuasively articulate knowledge, experiences, skills, and qualifications to diverse audiences both within and beyond the university.

Assignments that incorporate digital storytelling can provide a potent tool for students that capitalizes on their creative talents as they begin to research and tell their own stories, while analyzing and synthesizing their work for presentation to the world. It’s a process that sharpens the storyteller’s awareness of who they are and what they value. This knowledge is essential for students’ successful professional and civic preparation.

During the workshop sessions participants will learn to tell a digital story by making their own personal essay film. Technical support will be provided. Faculty then can integrate digital storytelling assignments into their curricula, and, ideally, can help teach colleagues about how to use this tool in their courses.


Building Research Intensive Courses Workshop 

(Spring 2017)

Kelly Allred, College of Nursing; Kevin Jardaneh, Undergraduate Research; Mary Tripp, College of Arts and Humanities; Adam Pritchard, College of Sciences; Anna Turner, College of Sciences.

Undergraduate research is a meaningful, high-impact experience that builds problem solving skills, improves time management, and increases critical thinking. Join in an interactive session exploring research-intensive courses. Learn from and work with experienced faculty from a variety of disciplines. Strategize how to incorporate research-intensive assignments into existing courses or develop new courses.


“What’s Next?” Student Professionalism Workshop 

(Spring 2017)

Vicki Lavendol, Rosen College of Hospitality Management; Kathleen Hohenleitner, College of Arts and Humanities; Daniel Murphree, College of Arts and Humanities.

Helping students connect what they are learning in the classroom to their professional goals increases student engagement and prepares them for what’s next. Learn how to incorporate professionalization assignments into any class. By the end of the session every faculty member will leave with an action plan for a professionalization assignment. 


 ePortfolio Bootcamp 

(Summer 2017)

Margaret Marshall, Auburn University; Anna Maria Jones, Quality Enhancement Plan; Natasha Jones, College of Arts and Humanities; Mandy Pacheco, College of Undergraduate Studies.

ePortfolios are a powerful, high-impact practice that help students synthesize their educational experiences and tell their own story to diverse professional audiences. Join us for a one-day bootcamp to learn best practices and new ideas for implementing ePortfolios in your classroom to ensure your students prepare for what’s next.

Events will include a keynote presentation by Dr. Margaret Marshall of Auburn University: “ePortfolios Done Well: The Role of Faculty in the Newest High Impact Practice,” followed by a panel of UCF faculty discussing their experiences in building and assessing ePortfolio assignments.

Dr. Marshall will later lead a hands-on workshop helping participants get started on their own ePortfolios. End the day with assisted computer lab time to experiment with your own ePortfolio with Q&A and assistance from Adobe Ambassadors. 


Student Professional Identity Crisis 

(Fall 2017)

Dena Ford, College of Sciences; Anna Maria Jones, Quality Enhancement Plan; Ann Marie Palmer, Student Care Services; Amy Donley, College of Sciences; Representatives of CAPS.

Sometimes students experience a disconnect between their career goals and academic performance, which can lead to professional identity crises and academic decline. In this workshop a panel of experts (including professors, counselors, advisors, and CAPs staff) will discuss a number of student scenarios and offer strategies to help students cope when their professional dreams are in jeopardy.


Student Networking & Professional Development 

(Fall 2017)

Alice Noblin, College of Health and Public Affairs.

Students need continual reminders and encouragement to go beyond the classroom and interact with professionals working in their fields. This workshop focuses on strategies for helping students connect to community and professional networking opportunities. We will also discuss valuable credentials that students can obtain before they graduate.


Proposing a Competitive QEP-Funded Project 

(Fall 2017)

Anna Maria Jones & Brooks Pingston, Quality Enhancement Plan. 

The Quality Enhancement Plan offers the Program Innovation and Enhancement Awards each year to fund projects supporting integrative learning initiatives across campus. This workshop will offer concrete advice and feedback to those planning to apply for one of  these awards in spring 2018.

Digital Storytelling Pilot Workshop 

(Spring 2016)

Lisa Peterson, College of Arts and Humanities.

 Digital storytelling is the creation of a brief narrative using digital technologies to combine voice, videos, images, music, interviews, graphics, and other electronic content to tell a story. Digital narratives allow the creator to reflect upon and analyze something of true importance to the filmmaker.

Digital storytelling is also a way to develop integrative learning across curricula, thus achieving the following QEP student learning outcomes:

  • Students will demonstrate the ability to reflect critical on past experiences and to envision a future self that builds on these experiences.
  • Students will demonstrate the ability to persuasively articulate knowledge, experiences, skills, and qualifications to diverse audiences both within and beyond the university.

Assignments that incorporate digital storytelling can provide a potent tool for students that capitalizes on their creative talents as they begin to research and tell their own stories, while analyzing and synthesizing their work for presentation to the world. It’s a process that sharpens the storyteller’s awareness of who they are and what they value. This knowledge is essential for students’ successful professional and civic preparation.

During the workshop sessions participants will learn to tell a digital story by making their own personal essay film. Technical support will be provided. Faculty then can integrate digital storytelling assignments into their curricula, and, ideally, can help teach colleagues about how to use this tool in their courses.


Virtual Interviews in the Classroom: Helping Students Prepare for What’s Next 

(Fall 2016)

Iryna Malendevych, College of Health and Public Affairs; Gian-Karlo Alvarez, Career Services. 

Translating one’s curricular and co-curricular experiences into thoughtful interview responses is an important component of students’ career development. The Department of Criminal Justice and UCF Career Services are collaborating to infuse interview preparation into online, face-to-face, and mixed-mode courses. Students review preparatory modules, complete a customized virtual interview consisting of prerecorded questions, and post their recordings to Webcourses to receive feedback from students and the instructor. Workshop participants will learn how to integrate interview preparation into their courses using predeveloped modules and Optimal Interview, a virtual, customizable interview platform. This workshop will include hands-on activities where participants will be able to practice creating interview questions using the tools available through Optimal Interview.