Stockton Faculty Members Continue Learning at NYU – News

Galloway, N.J. – Fifteen Stockton University faculty members immersed themselves in various professional
development opportunities offered through the Faculty Resource Network (FRN) program
at New York University (NYU) in June.

The faculty who attended the June 11-14 Summer Seminar represented every academic
school at Stockton. While the sessions and workshops varied in topic, all of them
had a common thread: Exploring new and innovative ways to create a learning environment
for both faculty and the students that they teach. Below is a recounting of some of
their experiences.

Addressing Student Engagement

Trina Gipson-Jones, Assistant Professor of Health Science & Christine Gayda-Chelder, Associate Professor of Psychology

This year was Gipson-Jones’ and Gayda’s first summer seminar. They both decided that
the summer was an excellent opportunity for them to continue learning from colleagues
and seminar instructors and make great connections.

From their session, they were able to explore how their colleagues have been stimulating
engagement on campus through different strategies, such as fostering a community in
the classroom and identifying barriers to learning at the start of the semester.

“I attended the ‘Evidence-Based Strategies to Increase Student Engagement’ seminar
because I wanted to expand the ways I engage the students in my classes and learn
more about building an inclusive classroom,” Gipson-Jones said. “I am working some
of the seminar’s key aspects into my course design (e.g., Blackboard content, syllabi
and course presentations).”

“I will be incorporating new and innovative group and individual assignments to generate
engagement,” Gayda said. “More choices will be offered to align with various student
learning styles. For example, create a video segment or write a paper.”

According to Gipson-Jones and Gayda, opportunities for professional development, like
the FRN’s summer and winter seminars, provide valuable avenues for faculty to collaborate
and learn from each other.

“Attending the FRN seminars allows you to explore different topics relevant to your
teaching, engage with colleagues from many different universities and colleges and
discover new ways to engage your students,” Gipson-Jones said.   

“This was an enlightening and invigorating experience,” Gayda said. “Meeting colleagues
who share my passion for teaching from around the globe was so uplifting and inspiring.
To continually excel as faculty, we must engage with others in higher education and
share new and innovative strategies that engage our students.”

Exploring Artificial Intelligence

Connie Tang, Professor of Psychology, Tara Crowell, Professor of Public Health & Mary
Lou Galantino, Distinguished Professor of Physical Therapy

Tang, who shared that she recently became an empty nester, decided to “jump at the
opportunity” to learn more about generative artificial intelligence’s (AI) impact
on higher education through the “Adapting to Tomorrow: Exploring Generative AI’s Impact
on Higher Education” seminar.

Tang believes the network’s supportive and comforting environment allows faculty to
continue learning best practices.

“I have created and modified course materials during the summer seminar using generative
AI and will be using these new course materials in my future teaching of the senior
seminar entitled ‘Psychology of Child Victims and Witnesses,’” Tang said. “These opportunities
really take you out of your routine, thus out of your familiar box and giving you
unique growth potential. The ability to exchange experiences and ideas with colleagues
in and out of Stockton University is truly refreshing, eye-opening and heart-warming.” 

Crowell plans to use what she’s learned from her seventh time at the FRN program in
the classroom, both in terms of crafting her course syllabi and assignments and teaching
students when and why to use AI. 

“I also plan to share what I learned with colleagues in both formal and informal settings,”
Crowell said. These opportunities are invaluable to your academic and professional
development and networking with peers at other institutions.”

In addition to revising her syllabus for a graduate course, Galantino plans to find
ways to involve AI in her clinical practice  to “ensure access to all.” She praised
NYU for offering “state-of-the-art experiences” for faculty members through opportunities
like the resource network.

“As a professor for several decades, it is important that I revise my course offerings
accordingly to enhance the delivery and learning styles of new generations of digital
natives,” Galantino said. “A focused week provides an intensive work timeframe to
accomplish goals, enhance syllabi and assignments for students and engage group dynamics.” 

Scenic view of New York.
Courtesy of Elizabeth Lacey.

Jimmy Hammill with his session partners.
Courtesy of Michael Rodriguez.

A presentation on the Harlem Renaissance and Transatlantic Modernism and a store’s
sandwich board saying “Happy Pride you beautiful angels!”
Courtesy of Nathan Long.

Group of faculty posing for a photo together.
Courtesy of Elizabeth Lacey.

A good luck spot and a presentation on gender roles.
Courtesy of Nathan Long.

Collage that includes a selfie, Connie Tang during a presentation and a photo of Tara
Crowell and Mary Lou Galantino.
Courtesy of Elizabeth Lacey, Connie Tang, and Mary Lou Galantino.

A big group selfie.
Courtesy of Mary Lou Galantino.

A full session/workshop.
Courtesy of Michael Rodriguez.

A faculty member next to honeycomb in the Museum of National History and a group selfie
of a faculty group attending a Broadway show.
Courtesy of Mary Lou Galantino.

A selfie of Christine Gayda-Chelder and Mary Lou Galantino.
Courtesy of Christine Gayda-Chelder and Mary Lou Galantino.

A group selfie that may have required a selfie stick.
Courtesy of Tara Crowell.

A scenic view of NY at night.
Courtesy of Nathan Long.

Photos submitted by faculty members. 

Creating Spaces for LGBTQ+ Students

Jimmy Hamill, Assistant Professor of Writing & First-Year Studies & Nathan Long, Professor
of Creative Writing

The “Moral Panics & LGBTQ+ Politics” session offered many lessons and resources for
both Hamill and Long.

For Hamill, the seminar presented an opportunity to connect with and gain a new community
of “scholars interested in similar areas of inquiry and re-experience the pleasure
of being a student learning with others.” The session offered many lessons and resources
that both coincided with the key parts of his research and will be utilized for his
upcoming fall course, “Queer Rhetorics.” But he considered the diversity of perspectives
to be the greatest take away from it.

“From anthropologists to psychologists to creative writers to librarians to medical
practitioners, I was able to see how the rhetoric of moral panic surrounding LGBTQ+
communities impacts each of us, especially those of us identifying as queer or trans,”
Hamill said. “We built a true community by the end of the week that will continue
to influence me personally and professionally.” 

According to Long, the session was “invaluable” in learning about and understanding
how irrational fear can be crafted to pass laws that harm marginalized communities,
citing trans people and immigrants as examples.

Long teaches two classes in the Women’s Gender & Sexuality Studies program – “Transgender
Literature” and “Queer Autobiographies” – and believes that the session has already
made an indelible impact on him. 

“I think it will be invaluable by helping students see the larger political agenda,
and the underlying mechanisms of anti-LGBT legislation. But I will also use this knowledge
as I read and analyze the news,” Long said. “I have already shared the ideas of this
course with a number of friends and relatives because it offers such an important
and insightful understanding of the fearmongering that is going on in the U.S. at
the moment.”

Inclusivity in Science & Cinema

Elizabeth Lacey, Associate Professor of Marine Science & Michael Rodriguez, Professor of Political Science

For Lacey, the inclusion of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) was a
“true sign” that she should finally attend.

During her session, “Including Inclusion in Science Curriculum,” Lacey was able to
discuss pedagogical concerns and strategize on solutions with fellow faculty from
other institutions, something that she considered “incredibly beneficial,” especially
when discussing the merit of team-based work and learning.  

“While (team-based work) has been shown to create a more inclusive and supportive
environment for students from a variety of backgrounds, any student (or faculty member)
is quick to also acknowledge the challenges of team-based work, such as inadequate
communication amongst members, lack of accountability, fair delegation, etc.,” Lacey
said.

“During the session, I shared the team contracts I created and planned to use in my
lab-based courses, which also easily transfer to any team-based assignments I do in
lecture. I was able to get immediate feedback from fellow participants about how they
could use these contracts in their own courses and institutions, plus improvements
to make the contracts even better.”

There are few bigger advocates for the seminars than Rodriguez. Since 2007, he has
attended over 20 summer and winter seminars. 

The “Feminism in Cinema” session inspired Rodriguez to consider adjusting the curriculum
for his course “Race & Politics.”

“(‘Race & Politics’) focuses on the 19th Amendment,” Rodriguez said. “The seminar
offered the possibility of replacing that module’s content theme with a focus on feminist
theory and film — particularly in relation to women of color.”

“I tell colleagues that the FRN has been a game changer for me. Everything has been
influenced/informed by my participation in the FRN program — publications, research
agenda, pedagogy, course design, and collaborations with professors from other institutions.” 

– Story by Loukaia Taylor