Transition at the Faculty Center for Professional Development and an Invitation to Faculty Advisory Board

We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation to Professor William Bernhardt, Department of English. Professor Bernhardt will be stepping down from his position as inaugural Director of the Faculty Center for Professional Development, which opened in September 2011. Professor Bernhardt played a major role in the Center’s organizational formation and initial staffing, and was integral to the process of constructing and finishing out the Center’s comfortable and attractive facilities in the Library (Building 1L), Room 203. An avid adopter and lead user of technology in pedagogy, Bill oversaw the Center’s programming; faculty development and training for Blackboard, Digitation, and other platforms; and chaired the Center’s Faculty Advisory Board. The CUNY Hybrid Initiative and the College’s foray into the use of ePortfolios in curriculum evolved under his leadership. The Center became active in the Association for Authentic, Experiential, and Evidence-Based Learning (AAEEBL) and had its work featured at several conferences. Bill also oversaw the faculty travel grant initiative and has served for many years as the College’s dedicated representative on the CUNY Committee on Academic Technology (CAT). We gratefully acknowledge the many contributions of Professor Bernhardt, Founding Director of the Faculty Center for Professional Development, and wish him well in his future endeavors.

Michael Anderson, Director of Assessment, who served for the past year as co-coordinator with Bill, will remain as administrative coordinator through this semester.

In order to plan for the Center’s future operations, we invite both full- and part-time faculty to become part of a faculty advisory board to discuss possible programs and structures. Please let me know if you would like to be part of this project by Tuesday, Mar. 8. The committee will meet a couple of times during this semester to  discuss ideas and make recommendations for the future of the Center. We also welcome input from all faculty about desirable programs and offerings.