CTE - Teaching Excellence Program: Other Opportunities

In addition to the programming offered by the CTE, faculty members can attend professional development workshops at the college and in their professional organizations. 

Department and/or School workshops. Many academic departments on campus sponsor their own professional development series, events, and workshops. The chair or dean may invite

• the CTE to provide a specialized training
• an external speaker or guest to discuss a topic specific to the field or discipline
• a faculty member from the college to speak about their teaching and/or scholarship

These opportunities are usually tailored to the specific fields and disciplines of that department or academic school, and as such, can be incredibly valuable.   

Professional organizations. Professional organizations provide faculty members with an excellent resource for teaching topics, practices, and resources from their specific field or discipline.  Often, these organizations will hold specific conferences and/or panels about pedagogy in the faculty member's field, which can be an invaluable source of information and inspiration. Faculty members should consult the professional organizations in their fields for more information. 

Pedagogy conferences. These conferences are specifically geared to the sharing of pedagogy theory and practice. While not as tailored as field-specific organizations, these organizations work to bring together educators from across academe to discuss new trends, theories, and research in many areas of teaching excellence. For more information about these opportunities, consult with the CTE. 

Continuing education. As faculty members, we should model what we teach our students, such as a love of lifelong learning. Many institutions of higher education offer continuing education opportunities specifically in the field of pedagogy. For more information about these opportunities, consult with the CTE. 

If you are interested in attending a professional development session outside of the CTE, you may want to consult with the CTE or your mentor about if it will satisfy a requirement and if so, the area of teaching excellence it would be categorized as.