March 2018 Announcements

• Have you completed the COACHE survey? In late February, all faculty received an invitation to participate in the triennial COACHE Survey of Faculty Job Satisfaction. If you have not yet completed the survey, please take the time to respond to it as soon as possible. The web-based instrument is designed to be completed by most faculty within 25 minutes. Your unique link to access the survey was included in the email invitation and reminder(s) you were sent from COACHE. To request a copy of your link please email coachefaculty@srbi.com. The survey will close on April 9, 2018. Please note that the COACHE survey is different from the UNC System Office’s Employee Engagement Survey, deployed earlier this semester.  
  
  Since 2011, NC State has used COACHE results to help identify and improve aspects of faculty life where NC State underperforms relative to similar institutions. COACHE results are also a vital part of NC State’s strategic plan and indicate whether our efforts to support teaching, research, interdisciplinarity, and diversity are resulting in greater faculty satisfaction in these areas. If you have any questions about the survey and the use of its results at NC State, please contact Katharine Stewart, Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, at kestewa4@ncsu.edu.
• Upcoming leadership review: The Provost is responsible for reviewing the administrative performance of deans and vice provosts at least every five years. A review has been scheduled this semester for Senior Vice Provost Duane Larick and the Academic Strategy and Resource Management unit. As part of the review, the campus community is invited to attend an overview presentation of the unit’s goals and accomplishments by Dr. Larick on Wednesday, March 21, from 9 a.m.-10 a.m. in Talley Student Union, Currituck-Hatteras Ballroom. The review process also includes surveys of specific populations (e.g., senior leadership, advisory committee members, unit employees) who interact regularly with Dr. Larick. If you are invited to participate in a survey, your thoughtful and timely response helps to ensure that the leadership review is as accurate and comprehensive as possible.
• North Carolina Science Olympiad seeks volunteers for the 2018 state tournament, to be held on campus Friday, April 20 and Saturday, April 21. Full-day and half-day assignments are available. Regional directors will contact volunteers approximately one month before the tournament. For more information and to sign up to volunteer, visit http://bit.ly/2EDHhmU. Please contact Kim Gervase at kdgervas@ncsu.edu with any questions.
• New academic department head: Carolyn Mattingly is now the interim head of the Department of Biological Sciences in the College of Sciences.
• The College of Sciences will hold its annual State of the Sciences: Live! at the Library on Friday, April 13 from 6 p.m.-9 p.m. at the Hunt Library. The annual family-friendly event will feature activities for science lovers of all ages, including hands-on demos, kid-friendly presentations, and tours of the library’s technology capabilities, along with food, wine and NC State beer. Register now to secure your spot at this free event.
• The International Festival at NC State will take place on Friday, March 23 from 1 p.m.-4 p.m. on Stafford Commons at Talley Student Union. The event is an exciting afternoon celebrating the diverse cultures and identities of the NC State community. Booths will have educational information, pictures, activities, and food to help introduce attendees to that specific country, culture, or region. A performance showcase runs on the main stage throughout the event with performances representing a variety of cultures and traditions.
• The Graduate School recently launched Slate, a new application system and a customer relationship management platform that will dramatically improve the ease of applying to the school. Slate also provides tools that will help individual graduate programs recruit students. Through collaboration with the Enrollment Management and Services Division, undergraduate admissions and non-degree studies will join the Graduate School in using Slate in the future. The Graduate School has opened Slate for accepting graduate applications for spring 2019 admissions. Contact Annabelle Fernandez, Graduate School Program Manager for Enrollment Management, at arfernan@ncsu.edu to learn more about developing email campaigns to reach prospective graduate students.
• Tickets for 2018 Art 2 Wear, taking place Friday, April 20, are now available. Art2Wear is celebrating its 18th year as a student-organized runway show that presents fashion, costume, and wearable sculpture created by students of the College of Design at NC State University. This annual event, organized and hosted by the College of Design’s Art + Design department, displays juried examples of student work each Spring through runway and exhibition.Art 2 Wear will take place in the Talley Student Union Ballroom. A student designer exhibition and trunk show starts at 6:30 p.m., with seating for the runway show starting a 7 p.m. and the show kicking off at 7:30 p.m. This year’s theme is Caesura [The Art of Interuption].
• The Cooperating Raleigh Colleges (CRC) Staff Workshop Series annual conference (July 19) has opened its Call for Proposals. This training is geared towards staff at CRC institutions who consider themselves early in their higher education career and would like to grow their skills and knowledge relative to their work at the college or university at which they are employed. Last year more than 100 staff members from all of the CRC institutions came together for this professional development opportunity. Staff are encouraged to apply for this unique opportunity to present on subject matter in which they have expertise. The deadline to submit session proposals online is April 15.
• The spring General Faculty Meeting will take place Tuesday, March 20 from 3 p.m.-5 p.m. in Talley Student Union, Room 4140. The Faculty Senate, the Executive Committee, and the Academic Policy Committee are pleased to announce that this meeting’s topic is: Academic Integrity in a Technology-Rich Environment.
  
  Panel members will discuss what constitutes academic integrity violations in our “technology-rich environment,” and present ideas for uncovering as well as preventing such behavior. Faculty are encouraged to attend this meeting and participate in a dialogue with each other, Chancellor Woodson, Provost Arden and other senior administrative leaders of the university.
• NC State’s Staff Women’s Network will be collecting professional clothing for the university’s Wolfpack Styled Professional Clothing Closet March 19-30. Sponsored by the Career Development Center, the Wolfpack Styled Clothing Closet ensures that under-resourced students at NC State are dressed for success. Clothing donations from NC State faculty and staff and the Raleigh community are provided free of charge to students for interviews, career fairs, internships, or other career development activities. The students get to keep the clothes, so there is a constant need to restock the closet.Please donate new or gently used clothing appropriate for interviews and the workplace. There is a need for diverse sizes, styles, colors etc. for men’s and women’s clothing. This includes shoes, jewelry, scarves and belts. Any and all donations are accepted and greatly appreciated. Please contact the person at your preferred drop-off location to let them know what day/time you are coming by to ensure someone is there to meet you.There will be three drop-off locations on campus:
  • McKimmon Center, 1101 Gorman Street (corner of Western Blvd and Gorman St); contact: Janice Sitzes, 515.8189, jdsitzes@ncsu.edu
  • Park Alumni Center, 2450 Alumni Drive (Centennial Campus); contact: Anna Velleggia, 515.0520, agvelleg@ncsu.edu
  • Research Building III (Centennial Campus); contact: Tamara Nagelberg, 515.8584, tamara_nagelberg@ncsu.edu 
    
• The Office of Faculty Development announces two upcoming events:
• The Course Design Institute will take place Monday, May 14 and Tuesday, May 15 from 9 a.m.-4:45 p.m. in Clark Hall, Room 405. Participants will be able to:
  • Apply a research-based model of course design to develop or enhance a course;
  • Reflect on expectations and assumptions about students and how they learn;
  • Write or revise course learning objectives to ensure clarity and relevance;
  • Promote active learning and student engagement by developing course activities appropriate for learners;
  • Develop clear methods to assess and give feedback on student learning; and
  • Ensure overall alignment between course learning objectives, activities, and assessment methods.

NC State faculty from across the university are invited to participate. All faculty members interested in redesigning or designing new courses will be considered; however, if needed, priority will be given to those planning to teach in the Summer and Fall Term of 2018.

Apply now at go.ncsu.edu/course-design-institute. Applications deadline is Wednesday, April 11. Acceptance decisions will be sent by April 18.

• The Graduate School and OFD will offer a Communications Workshop for faculty, postdocs, and graduate students on Friday, April 6 from 9 a.m.-noon. This interactive workshop will include activities to help:
  • Clarify expectations and goals related to research projects and timelines;
  • Identify how roles, responsibilities, and communication needs evolve over time;
  • Recognize distinct challenges faced by faculty/postdocs/grad students and how to navigate them to achieve common goals; and
  • Develop a shared vision and draft a plan for effective communication.

OFD encourages teams of faculty and postdocs or graduate students to attend together; however, registration is open to all.