_Chronological News FeedFaculty/Staff NewsInstitutional

Call for Mentor Teachers! Peer Instructional Design Program will return for 2021-22

Andrew Bruso

The Offices of the Provost, Graduate & Extended Learning, and Instructional Technology, together with the Faculty Senate Committee on Educational Technology, invite nominations and applications for our 2021-22 Mentor Teacher Program.   

More details about the program are posted below. Faculty who are interested are asked to please apply or forward your nomination to Shala Mills (millss@newpaltz.edu) by Friday, May 7.  Nominations and applications can be in the form of an email that briefly addresses the individual’s eligibility and merit based upon the stated selection criteria and offers examples of how the individual can serve the expected tasks.

Goal 

The goal of the Peer Instructional Design Mentor Teacher Program is to support the advancement of faculty expertise in the design, development, and delivery of online, hybrid, and blended courses. 

Recognition and Reward 

Mentors will receive a $1,500 stipend for both the Fall and Spring semesters (total of $3,000 for the year) and may request up to $250/semester (total of $500 for the year) in faculty development funding to be used to enhance the Mentor Teacher’s  instructional design knowledge, skills, and delivery in ways that can be of value to their program and to the institution (ex:  webinar registration, certification, software, or hardware related to teaching). 

Eligibility 

Mentors must be full-time faculty who have designed and delivered at least one online or hybrid course at SUNY New Paltz that meets the online best practices detailed in the OSCQR rubric and the accessibility standards detailed in the SUNY EIT Accessibility site. An individual may serve as a mentor multiple times.  

Selection 

Seven Mentors will be selected for the academic year.  Selection will be based on: 

  • Mastery of OSCQR online and hybrid best practices 
  • A clear understanding of and adherence to accessibility standards set forth in the SUNY EIT Accessibility site 
  • Commitment to high quality online/hybrid learning 
  • Interest in, willingness to, and ability to share online/hybrid knowledge and skills with others 
  • Diverse distribution of fellows across a breadth of disciplines, academic schools/colleges, course types, and campus needs. 

Expectations

Mentors will: 

  • Participate in a Mentor Teacher Training program prior to the start of the Fall semester.  This training program should take no more than 5-10 hours and will focus on ensuring continuity, consistency, and familiarity with best practices and resources.  
  • Meet monthly as a group with the instructional design team to share information, needs, challenges, and guide the progress of the pilot. 
  • Participate in an end of semester Closing the Loop session to help assess the pilot and guide the on-going program. 
  • Have access to shared Mentor Resources (best practices, tools, and resources for mentoring). 
  • Share one of their online/hybrid courses as a best practice model for faculty to review. 
  • Answer questions from peers within their understanding of the Instructional Design best practices resource materials. 
  • Help with OIT drop-in sessions 

Mentor Teacher tasks may vary by skill and need as determined by the Mentor Teachers and Instructional Designers with input from the Provost, Deans and AVP, but may include: 

  • Offering OIT web training presentations on relevant topics 
  • Developing OIT web training videos on relevant topics 
  • Working one-on-one with faculty or TAs needing assistance with online/hybrid course design/delivery.