November 6, 2024

Fall 2025 Intensive Research Semester applications due Feb. 3

  • Application deadline: Monday, Feb. 3, 2025

To support faculty members in their lifelong development as scholars, the Mary Frances Early College of Education provides an opportunity for faculty members to engage in pursuits that improve their scholarship, revitalize their creative energy, and inform them of new and innovative knowledge and practices with the ultimate goal of developing and enhancing their scholarship through a research semester. To support this development, a faculty member may request one semester for intensive research in which they are released from instruction (up to two courses) and institutional service activities.

Eligibility
Tenured faculty members who have been employed by the University of Georgia Mary Frances Early College of Education for at least five years are eligible to apply. Administrators (department heads, associate deans) are not eligible.

Please review the program and guidelines for applying.

OAP Connections: Connect & Complete and SAGE reports

What is Connect & Complete?
The Connect & Complete Persistence Framework is a set of academic policies for undergraduate students in academic difficulty. The mission of these policies is to provide students with the tools, resources, and support to reach their educational goals. Connect & Complete offers proactive, timely, and holistic interventions centered on the students’ unique needs and circumstances. The expected outcomes of the program include:

  • Identifying students early and offering proactive outreach to increase the number and percentage of students in good standing
  • Introducing the student to a wide range of resources
  • Identifying and reducing the institutional barriers to student persistence.

Please view the steps in the process.

SAGE Reports
Earlier this semester, instructors teaching undergraduate courses were asked to submit kudos or concerns to the SAGE reporting tool. Please view the outcomes of those efforts.

Attend CLASE Distinguished Speaker Series on Nov. 14

Advancing Equity: Devising Strategies for the Classroom and the Board Room

  • Date: Thursday, Nov. 14
  • Time: 6 p.m.
  • Location: Virtual (register today)
  • Speaker: Pedro Noguera, Distinguished Professor of Education and Dean, USC Rossier School of Education

The CLASE Distinguished Speaker Series: Celebrating Latiné Achievements highlights the remarkable contributions of distinguished Latiné leaders across various fields.

Apply for the Bobbi Meeler Sahm Service and Outreach Award by Jan. 24

  • Application deadline: Friday, Jan. 24, 2025 at 5 p.m.

The Bobbi Meeler Sahm Service and Outreach Award provides funds for up to $10,000 to support public service and outreach efforts conducted by partnerships between UGA and Athens-Clarke County 501(c)3 organizations.

Application submission for 2025 opened Monday, Oct. 28 and will close Friday, Jan. 24, 2025 at 5 p.m. This program is an excellent opportunity to support public service and outreach efforts in our schools and colleges.

For more information on the guidelines and application process, please visit the UGA Public Service and Outreach website.

Call for nominations: 2025 Service-Learning Excellence Awards

  • Nominations deadline: Friday, Dec. 6

The UGA Office of Service-Learning is now accepting nominations for the 2025 Service-Learning Teaching Excellence and Service-Learning Research Excellence Awards.

The Service-Learning Teaching Excellence Award recognizes UGA faculty for excellence in developing, implementing, and sustaining academic service-learning opportunities for UGA students in domestic or international settings. The Service-Learning Research Excellence Award recognizes UGA faculty for excellence in research and scholarship related to or resulting from academic service-learning. Award winners receive a $2,500 faculty development award and will be honored at the annual Faculty Recognition Banquet during UGA Honors Week.

UGA faculty members in any career track are eligible to apply. Nominations by deans and department heads, faculty colleagues, or self- nominations will be accepted. Award guidelines are available on the Office of Service-Learning website. Should you have questions, please contact Shannon O. Brooks, director of the UGA Office of Service-Learning, at 706-542-0535 or swilder@uga.edu.

Attend "Origin" screening on Nov. 13

  • Date: Wednesday, Nov. 13
  • Time: 5:30-8:30 p.m.
  • Location: Aderhold Hall Room G5 (register today)

The LLED 8045: Humanizing Research, Pedagogy, and Relationships doctoral course will host a screening of the film “Origin” on Wednesday, Nov. 13.

“Origin,” a 2023 biographical drama by Ava DuVernay, explores the connections between the caste systems of Nazi Germany, India, and the United States through the journey of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Isabel Wilkerson, author of Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. As Wilkerson travels through these countries, she examines the violent repercussions of American slavery to the Holocaust and India’s caste system.

This film closely aligns with our course themes of humanizing research, pedagogies, and relationships, prompting critical reflection on historical injustices and their lasting impacts. It provides a meaningful context for exploring the complexities of race, caste, and systemic oppression, fostering deeper empathy in our educational practices.

Light refreshments will be provided. We look forward to an engaging discussion following the screening.

A trailer is enclosed for your consideration. Registration is required before Monday, Nov. 11.

For more information, contact associate professor Tisha Lewis Ellison.

Submit topics for Future Forward Series

The Future Forward Series offers workshops covering a broad spectrum of topics relevant to academic growth, professional development, and overall future aspirations of Mary Frances Early College of Education students.

Please help us select future topics by filling out our form.

Attend Lunch & Learn: Generative Learning and Complexity Lab on Nov. 12

  • Date: Tuesday, Nov. 12
  • Time: Noon-1:30 p.m.
  • Location: Zoom (register today)

The Generative Learning and Complexity Lab presents a Lunch & Learn event, “Exploring Change and Hope Through Liberating Structures,” with S. Fisher Qua and Henriette Lundgren, assistant professor in the Department of Lifelong Education, Administration, and Policy.

Hope is a strong modulator on our everyday experiences. Research also suggests that hope influences our long-term outcomes and sense of agency. In this session, we will explore the relationship between change and hope using liberating structures (LS). Drawing on insights from complexity science, LS are minimally specified methods for engaging more of a group’s collective intelligence, imagination, and creativity. Come prepared for a bit of restful dialogue and rambunctious engagement.

Call for applications: 2025 Advanced Leader Program

  • Application deadline: Wednesday, Nov. 20

The Office of Faculty Affairs is now accepting applications for the 2025 Advanced Leader Program. This calendar-year program is open to faculty who have served for two or more years in an administrative position at the level of department head, director, assistant or associate dean, assistant vice president or above. Nominees are expected to possess leadership experience with a record of achievement, along with an interest in administrative service.

The Advanced Leader Program provides a select cohort of seasoned academic leaders the opportunity to learn from senior administrators, experts in leadership development, and peers. Further, fellows will build relationships across the University and gain a broader understanding of the University and its operations. Individual and group coaching will provide opportunities for inquiry and reflection that will deepen self-awareness regarding leadership skills and knowledge.

Applications are due Wednesday, Nov. 20. More information, including application procedures, may be found on the Advanced Leader Program webpage.

If you have any questions, please contact Mary Carney, director of programming for faculty affairs.

Attend Monday Morning Brain Boost on Nov. 18

  • Date: Monday, Nov. 18
  • Time: 9-10 a.m.
  • Location: Aderhold Hall Room 317

Join the Staff Representative Group for a morning of coffee, pastries, networking, and learning as we welcome Jason Tiller from the Office of Academic Programs for a training on how to effectively use Microsoft Forms in conjunction with Power Automate.

Mingling starts at 9 a.m. and learning starts at 9:15 a.m. Please RSVP by Monday, Nov. 11, so we can anticipate food and beverage needs.

Outreach: First Year Odyssey seminar introduces STEM majors to the teaching profession

A new First Year Odyssey (FYO) seminar from the Mary Frances Early College of Education brings prospective science teachers straight to the source: science classrooms at Clarke Central High School.

Fourteen University of Georgia students meet once a week at Clarke Central to learn background information on teaching and observe STEM teachers in action, to create a pipeline of teacher candidates into the College of Education who will go on to teach science in the Clarke County School District and beyond.

The seminar is co-taught by Kevin Burke, a professor in the Department of Language and Literacy Education, and Julie Luft, Athletic Association Professor of Science Education and Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies Education.

Across eight weeks, the UGA students—mostly non-education majors majoring in STEM disciplines—come to class having read an education-focused reading and ready to observe a STEM class offered at the high school level. Classes they observed so far include astronomy, biology, entomology, environmental science, and zoology.

Read the full story on our website.

Kudos: Zhai publishes book; Lewis Ellison participates in 2024 NAEd annual meeting; Alumna wins SACSA dissertation award

Zhai publishes book

Xiaoming Zhai, an associate professor in the Department of Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies Education, published a new book, “Uses of Artificial Intelligence in STEM Education” (Oxford University Press), in October. The book is the result of a National Science Foundation-funded project at UGA in 2022 and marks a significant milestone in the field.

This new book offers a comprehensive dive into the integration of artificial intelligence within STEM education; meticulously curated, drawing from leading experts in the fields of AI and STEM education, ensuring authoritative and up-to-date insights; celebrates the transformative potential of AI in STEM, while also delving into the challenges, ethical considerations, and potential pitfalls.


Lewis Ellison participates in 2024 NAEd annual meeting

Tisha Lewis Ellison, an associate professor in the Department of Language and Literacy Education, served as a chair, panelist, and discussant at the 2024 National Academy of Education (NAEd) Annual Meeting and Fall Retreat, held from Oct. 23-26 in Washington, DC. In these roles, she made significant contributions to the professional development of NAEd dissertation and postdoctoral fellows.

The retreat, supported by NAEd members as well as current Spencer postdoctoral and dissertation fellows, featured networking opportunities, small group discussions, and plenary sessions. A 2015-16 NAEd/Spencer Postdoctoral Fellow, Lewis Ellison served as a NAEd/Spencer Postdoctoral Mentor (2023-24) and Dissertation Fellowship Reviewer (2023).


Alumna wins SACSA 2024 Dissertation of the Year Award

Wanda Johnson (Ed.D. ’23), a graduate of the College’s student affairs leadership program, won the Southern Association for College Student Affairs (SACSA) 2024 Dissertation of the Year Award for her dissertation, “Still, I Rise…Using Sista Circles to Explore the Lived Experiences of Black Women Who Attend(ed) Historically White Institutions as Undergraduates.”