Galloway, N.J. - Stockton faculty members engaged in immersive experiences this past June through the Faculty Resource Network (FRN) program offered at New York University. The professional development opportunities and Summer Scholar in Residence enrich their work here at Stockton.

Below, find their reflections:

 

Michael Rodriguez, Professor of Political Science

“One of the true gems of Stockton University is its longstanding membership in the NYU/FRN Program. The range of professional development opportunities it offers to faculty of all ranks is among the most important sources of professional development at the university, particularly in terms of course development, pedagogy, and scholarship. I have participated in 22 NYU/FRN programs (15 summer seminars, five winter seminars, a book club, and the University Associates Program). These programs have been true ‘game-changers’ throughout my career at Stockton. NYU/FRN seminars generated a new course (POLS 3345 Politics of Immigration), a published book chapter on birthright citizenship, a co-authored book ‘Race and Identity in Hispanic America,’ and a second published book chapter on the pedagogy of critical reading and writing. The seminar I completed this summer on using museums as a pedagogical tool was especially timely because I am revising two courses to include museum exhibitions and artifacts. In addition to the tangible impact of these seminars in terms of new course development, scholarly publications, and pedagogical innovations, the seminars also offer intangible benefits of immense value - e.g., exploring new areas of academic interest and engaging colleagues from throughout the United States in sustained intellectual engagement.”

 

Audrey Latourette, Distinguished Professor of Business Law

Summer Scholar in Residence

“The Summer Scholar in Residence (SIR) allows for an extraordinary opportunity to both utilize the depths of research materials in the Bobst Library, and in my case, the New York University School of Law Library, and consult with a research librarian who volunteers to serve as a research consultant. 

As a result of my past participation as an FRN Scholar in Residence, I have been invited to speak at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine related to scientific research fraud, meetings of NYU faculty from a variety of schools, including law faculty, dental faculty and others, University of Puerto Rico, University of Sacred Heart, and Chaminade University, among others, addressing issues as diverse as liability of advisors regarding advice tendered to students, plagiarism and copyright issues.

My research this summer addresses the dramatic rise beginning in mid-2021 in the cases of unlawful restrictions of faculty First Amendment rights in an array of university administrative decisions emanating from institutions across the country. The increasingly significant and profiled topic of First Amendment rights for faculty on university campuses and the decisions rendered by university administrators about those rights has engendered a plethora of commentary and litigation.”

Latourette’s research this summer will continue into Fall 2022. She plans to use it to create a proposal for a presentation at the February 2023 Annual Conference of the Pacific South West Academy of Legal Studies in Business to be held in Palm Springs, California, which will address the First Amendment professorial rights issues on university campuses raised in this current research.

 

Tara Crowell, Professor of Public Health   

“I learned about the FRN during my first year at Stockton (22 years ago) from the late great Paul Lyons. He encouraged me to apply for the summer workshop, and his advice was like the old motto from EF Hufton: 'When Paul talked, you listened.' Thus, during my second year, I applied and attended a wonderful workshop that enriched me as a teacher, scholar and honestly a human being. Then, life happened, and I had three kids in less than five years, and my FRN experience was put on hold. However, I was anxious to start participating again once my children were old enough. Over the last six or seven years, I have attended four different FRN summer workshops, each one renewing my love of teaching, learning and research. In addition, I have actively encouraged my fellow faculty members to apply to the various seminars and workshops FRN offers throughout the year.”

 

Mary Lou Galantino, Distinguished Professor of Physical Therapy

“The spirit of FRN is undoubtedly a time of reflection, rejuvenation and reinventing our best teaching strategies with a new perspective. This significantly impacts our students and keeps faculty current with the latest technology and access to abundant resources. I have been fortunate to attend various workshops throughout the last decade, which enabled my teaching skills to be honed, especially during the pandemic. Mental health needs were essential during the pandemic, and a workshop addressed student mental health issues with various strategies during an online 2020 FRN. It was priceless and timely, and I was able to engage with faculty across the U.S., optimizing our ability to triage students accordingly. I implemented various assessment strategies and upscaled stress management resources in my teaching, remediations for students, and precepting opportunities. FRN 2022 highlighted best practices in teaching using Open Education Resources, direct application of resources from colleagues in other institutions, and explored teaching in a virtual reality (VR) lab. While we incorporate simulation in the School of Health Sciences, it is exciting to explore VR possibilities in the future at Stockton. FRN plants the seeds in the garden of learning for faculty and students, and we all grow together, collaboratively. I sincerely hope more faculty will have the opportunity to experience a week at NYU, as it will clear the way for innovative teaching.”

 

Naz Onel, Associate Professor of Business Studies

"This was my first time attending the Faculty Research Network at NYU. I was one of the few fortunate ones accepted to attend this amazing networking community. I participated in the weeklong "Designing Assessments for Online, Blended, and In-Person Courses" seminar. Participating in this seminar taught me a variety of ways to develop appropriate learning objectives for my courses and evaluate these objectives with different assessment methods effectively. This seminar enriched my knowledge of the assessment of courses. It provided access to ample amounts of resources, which will help me enhance my teaching, improve student impact, and make a valuable contribution to my colleagues at Stockton."

 

Amee Shah, Professor of Health Science

“I have successfully attended five FRN summer sessions in my seven years at Stockton. Each time, the topics have been able to richly inform my specialty interest in issues of racism, diversity, inclusion and equity through a variety of thought-provoking entry points—diverse, surprising, and non-traditional—such as learning through blues and jazz, pop culture, Marvel Comics Universe, social media and migration and immigration narratives. This type of learning goes beyond what one can get from scholarly books and conferences alone. 

In terms of outcomes, I have been able to develop and offer much-needed classes that address the priority areas of race, diversity, inclusion and equity in Health Sciences, as well as in General Studies. Through my work on various university and program committees on student success, curriculum development, and faculty senate task forces, I have provided recommendations and resources, thanks to what I learned through this network summer experience.

Overall, I find these network summer discussions to be a rich, reflective time to evolve beyond the ordinary and predictable or the safety and comfort of staying within one’s expertise. I find this weeks’ time to be incredibly fruitful, as it helps create new ideas while enrichening one’s existing portfolio.”

 

Rachel Kirzner, Associate Professor of Social Work 

"This year I attended my third FRN summer experience. Each year has been different. My first year was in Summer 2020. I was accepted to the technology and pedagogy one-week workshop. Little did I know that the seminar itself would become an exercise in technological pedagogy when the pandemic hit and the workshop shifted to online. I was able to directly apply the material to my remote teaching the following year and used what I learned to become the Stockton Faculty Fellow for Technology and Pedagogy in 2022.

Last summer, I did the FRN Scholar in Residence one-month experience. I was able to live on-campus at NYU for a month and consult with a national expert in qualitative analysis. I've worked on several qualitative studies at Stockton, and my consultant deepened my knowledge and skill in this type of research.

This summer, I attended a one-week seminar on assessment. I'm chair of the Bachelor of Science in Social Work assessment committee, a key role for our accreditation. What I learned this summer will better equip me to help our program succeed at our next reaffirmation by our accrediting organization. Everything I've learned at FRN has been directly applicable to my work at Stockton and benefits the students and institution. And – importantly – meeting colleagues from all over the world and living in New York for a week or month leaves me refreshed, invigorated and ready to jump into another year at Stockton!”

Reported by Mandee McCullough