By: Dr. Constance Knapp
Co-Director Pforzheimer Center

Partnerships for Collaboration at Pace

About forty faculty members attended the Fall Conference, sponsored by The Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology and the Pforzheimer Center for Faculty Development.  The focus of the day was on faculty members developing strategies for collaboration with students, other members of the Pace community and each other.

Associate Provost Beverly Kahn welcomed all of us to the conference.   Joan Mark, the Executive Director of Cooperative Education and Career Services and the Directors of the Westchester and New York offices, Jody Queen and Maxine Sugarman demonstrated the richness of the Cooperative Education and Career Services Web site.  Monica Gibek, a student, talked about how important her coop job had been in helping her to apply what she was learning in the classroom to “real life” situations.  We broke into small groups to discuss strategies for integrating the services provided by Coop and Career Services into our classes.

Over lunch a panel of four of the 2003-2004 winners of the Eugene M. Lang Student Faculty Research Fellowships discussed how they came to work together. Associate Dean Dennis Anderson discussed the project that he and Oleg Yunakov worked on.  Mr. Yunakov was with us virtually, via his web page, as he was presenting the results of his work at a conference.  Dr. Joseph Lee and Ms. Amy Lee recounted how their collaboration began when Ms. Lee had a project that she was very interested in researching-Korean War Brides in New York State-and Dr. Lee was a willing mentor. Ms. Ada Giyrezi  spoke about her work with layered solids and liquid crystals, and discussed the importance of being able to work closely with  Dr. Raifah Kabbani so that she could learn the techniques that she needs to know to go on to graduate study in  biochemistry.   Perhaps the highlight of this panel was Professor Joshua Schwartz and Mr. Kenneth Huth demonstrating the mating call of the tree frog that they are studying.   The panel was very inspiring.

We spent the afternoon learning why the National Study of Student Engagement (NSSE) is so important.  Barbara Pennipede, Assistant Vice-President from the Office of Planning, Assessment, Research and Academic Support, showed us a video about NSSE and talked about the context in which we can understand the results.  In small groups we worked with the Faculty Inventory, identifying strategies that will allow faculty and students to help support the kind of learning environment that allows students to become active collaborators in their education.

Beverly Kahn wrapped up the day, and we all enjoyed a wine and cheese reception.  Those of us in attendance felt that we had spent a worthwhile, and inspiring, day together.

Constance Knapp
Associate Professor of Information Systems
Co-Director, Pforzheimer Center for Faculty Development

"Monica Gibek, a student, talked about how important her coop job had been in helping her to apply what she was learning in the classroom to “real life” situations."

"In small groups we worked with the Faculty Inventory, identifying strategies that will allow faculty and students to help support the kind of learning environment that allows students to become active collaborators in their education."