About Rebecca Davis

Rebecca Frost Davis Director of Instructional and Emerging Technology Rebecca Frost Davis joined St. Edward’s in July 2013 as Director of Instructional and Emerging Technology, where she provides leadership in the development of institutional vision with respect to the use of technology in pursuit of the university’s educational mission and collaborates with offices across campus to create and execute strategies to realize that vision. Instructional Technology helps faculty transform and adapt new digital methods in teaching and research to advance the essential learning outcomes of liberal education. Previously, Dr. Davis served as program officer for the humanities at the National Institute for Technology in Liberal Education (NITLE), where she also served as associate director of programs. Prior to her tenure at NITLE, she was the assistant director for instructional technology at the Associated Colleges of the South Technology Center and an assistant professor of classical studies at Rhodes College, Denison University, and Sewanee: The University of the South. She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in classical studies from the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.A. (summa cum laude) in classical studies and Russian from Vanderbilt University. Dr. Davis is also a fellow with the National Institute for Technology in Liberal Education (NITLE). As a NITLE Fellow, Dr. Davis will develop a literature review relevant to intercampus teaching, which will cover contextual issues such as team-teaching, teaching through videoconferencing, and collaboration; a survey of intercampus teaching at NITLE member institutions; and several case studies of intercampus teaching at liberal arts colleges, including interviews with faculty, students, support staff, and administrators. This work will be summarized in a final report or white paper to be published by NITLE. At Rebecca Frost Davis: Liberal Education in a Networked World, (http://rebeccafrostdavis.wordpress.com/) Dr. Davis blogs about the changes wrought by new digital methods on scholarship, networking, and communication and how they are impacting the classroom. In her research, she explores the motivations and mechanisms for creating, integrating, and sustaining digital humanities within and across the undergraduate curriculum.

General Education Course Proposal Process and More

Want to be part of our new general education curriculum?  Visit the General Education Course Proposal Process page on this website to find out more or select from the list below to visit individual sections of that page.

Course Development Guidelines Supported by Academic Council for General Education Framework Components

During the Fall of 2016 over 80 faculty and key staff worked in Requirement Development Committees (RDCs) to propose Student Learning Outcomes and other requirements for each of the components of the new general education curriculum.  GERC then gathered two main forms of feedback on these requirements.  Each dean provided feedback, questions, and concerns relevant to particular departments and schools.  Additionally, all faculty and key staff received individual feedback surveys.  GERC shared feedback from the SEU community with the appropriate RDC groups and, when appropriate, asked for revisions.

The revised SLOs and other requirements for all curriculum elements except Mission Markers and Interdisciplinary Concentrations were supported by Academic Council as guidelines for course development in April of 2017.  Feedback has been collected for the Mission Markers and Interdisciplinary Concentrations, the appropriate RDC committees have reviewed it and responded, and the guidelines for course development for these curriculum elements will be reviewed by Academic Council in the early fall of 2017.

Community Feedback on Draft SLOs & Requirements for Mission Markers & Interdisciplinary Concentrations

In April 2017 GERC surveyed all faculty and key staff on draft student learning outcomes (SLOs) and other requirements for the Mission Markers & Interdisciplinary Concentrations portions of the new general education curriculum.  The survey results can be found  here:  MM.IC.Survey-results-19h1ip4 (Please note that this report includes even numbered questions, Q10 – Q16, because the odd numbered questions were actually just descriptions of each curriculum element.)

St. Edward’s University is in its third year of a four-year general education curriculum revision.  In April 2016 we passed a general education curriculum framework.  In the Fall of 2016 over 80 faculty and key staff worked in Requirement Development Committees to draft the student learning outcomes (SLOs) and other requirements of each element of the curriculum.  In addition to direct SEU community feedback via survey, GERC also gathered input from deans representing the views of their respective schools.  The proposed SLOs and other requirements will be revised according to all of this feedback, then will be brought to Curriculum Committee and Academic Council.

Draft SLOs & Requirements for Mission Markers & Interdisciplinary Concentrations

During the Fall of 2016 over 80 faculty and key staff worked in Requirement Development Committees (RDCs) to propose Student Learning Outcomes and other requirements for each of the elements of the new general education curriculum.  GERC is currently in the process of seeking feedback on a second set of curriculum elements that needed more development.  They are the following:

  • Mission Markers (formerly Integrations), which include
    • Writing-Rich Courses
    • Experiential Learning for Social Justice
    • Social Identities
  • Interdisciplinary Concentrations (formerly Pathways)

GERC will follow the same process used to seek feedback and input on the other curriculum elements.  Schools will have the opportunity to weigh in with questions and concerns.  Additionally, all faculty and key staff will receive individual feedback surveys.  GERC will share feedback from the SEU community with the appropriate RDC groups and, when appropriate, ask for revisions.  The revised SLOs and other requirements will then go to Curriculum Committee and Academic Council in early Fall 2017.

DRAFTS of the requirements for each curriculum element are available here: DRAFT Mission Markers and Interdisciplinary Concentrations

Community Feedback on Draft SLOs & Requirements for Curriculum Elements

In February 2017 GERC surveyed all faculty and key staff on draft student learning outcomes (SLOs) and other requirements for the Foundations, Content and Contexts, and Culminating Experience portions of the new general education curriculum.  The survey results can be found  here: requirements.survey.results.Report-1ynzxya.

St. Edward’s University is in its third year of a four-year general education curriculum revision.  In April 2016 we passed a general education curriculum framework.  In the Fall of 2016 over 80 faculty and key staff worked in Requirement Development Committees to draft the student learning outcomes (SLOs) and other requirements of each element of the curriculum.  In addition to direct SEU community feedback via survey, GERC also gathered input from deans representing the views of their respective schools.  The proposed SLOs and other requirements will be revised according to all of this feedback, then will be brought to Curriculum Committee and Academic Council.

2017-2018 Innovation Fellowships to Support General Education Revision

light bulb turned onThe Office of Academic Affairs, the Center for Teaching Excellence, the Munday Library, and the Office of Instructional Technology of St. Edward’s University invite proposals from faculty for the 2017-18 Innovation Fellowship to be submitted by March 10, 2017. These fellowships will support faculty who need time, resources, and expertise to include pedagogical experimentation in their courses by providing a $1200 stipend, the opportunity to participate in the Summer 2017 Innovation Institute, May 15-26, 2017, and the opportunity to be part of a community of faculty fellows focused on pedagogical innovation. Continue reading

ePortfolios?

GERC in partnership with the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) Development Committee is seeking input on the idea of ePortfolios for use in both general education and for the QEP.  Since the term ePortfolio is already in use on campus in a variety of ways, this blog post provides information on how the ePortfolio might be used for general education and the QEP and points to further resources.  GERC and QEP representatives are also visiting school meetings and slides from those presentations are available in box: https://stedwards.box.com/s/rxe7dh7emw909nmvz6h9kxbwnl4xshsz Continue reading

What’s Next for Requirement Development?

In Fall 2016 committees with multi-school representation (generally 3-6 members) convened to develop each of the components of the general education curriculum.  For more about that process, see this blog post, Development of Curriculum Framework Elements, and see our People page for a list of committee members.  Over 80 faculty members participated in process.  The committees drafted student learning outcomes (SLOs) and other course requirements.  Most groups have finished, but a few are still working.  So, what will happen next with the proposals crafted by these groups?  Here is a tentative timeline for approving that work.

End of January Requirement SLOs on GERC web site
February Dean input (school feedback)
February Survey of faculty (individual feedback)
March SLOs revised according to community feedback (if needed)
When changes are complete (late March/April): Proposed SLOs go to Curriculum Committee and then Academic Council
2017-2018 Academic School year Sections staffed, faculty development, course development, Banner, Degree Works, assessment plans, plans for transfer students,…

 

New Member of the General Education Revision Committee (GERC)

One new member has been named to the general education revision committee (GERC) for Spring 2017:
  • Bill Nichols (Associate Professor of Global Studies)
Bill served on Curriculum Models group that helped develop our general education framework and chaired the Global Perspectives Requirement Development Group.  In addition two former members have now returned:  Lynn Rudloff (Humanities) has rejoined GERC now that her sabbatical is over, and Michael Saclolo (Natural Sciences) has returned after teaching in Angers, France for the Fall 2016 semester.  For more information on who serves on various groups developing our general education curriculum, see our People page.

Development of Curriculum Framework Elements

Now that our new general education framework has been approved, our next task is the define what elements of that framework mean in terms of student learning outcomes and other requirements.  In Fall 2016 committees of content experts will be convened to define each element in more detail.  GERC has established criteria, i.e., needed expertise, for the members of each committee and asked the deans of each school to nominate appropriate faculty.  Once the membership of these Requirement Development Committees has been ratified by GERC and the council of deans, each group will be charged with establishing student learning outcomes and any other features that should be required for the curriculum component.  The deadline for development is the end of the Fall 2016 semester.  The elements of the curriculum to be developed are:

Skills and Competencies

  1. Quantitative Reasoning
  2. Modern Languages
  3. Oral Communication
  4. Writing I and II and writing-rich flag

Content and Context

  1. Science
  2. Reexamining America
  3. Global Perspectives
  4. Exploring Expressive Works 
  5. Creativity and Making
  6. Ethics: 
  7. Theology and Religion

Other Components

  • Pathways

Integrations

  • Writing-rich courses (to be developed in conjunction with writing skills and competencies)
  • Experiential Learning for Social Justice
  • Social Identities
  • Culminating Experience