Effective Teaching Practices Program | Peer Facilitators 2021-22
Cal Poly is a participant in a California State University system grant program in collaboration with the National Association of System Heads (NASH) and the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE). The grant is providing multiple CSU campuses with a year-long, research-based faculty development programming in support of effective instruction. At Cal Poly, the $100,000 grant supports 90 faculty in three cohorts to participate in a year-long curriculum of effective teaching principles and practices for the 2020-21 academic year.
Cohort Facilitators
This group of facilitators bring solid teaching experienced, enhanced by participation in numerous professional development activities to enhance their teaching effectiveness (including, but not limited to, CTLT programs).
In addition, all have successfully completed an intensive workshop on inclusive teaching offered through the CTLT. It's currently called TIDE ("Teaching Inclusion, Diversity and Equity"), and the experience provided a deep dive into important models and issues that helped them deepen their understanding of DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) in higher education as well as in their teaching practices. This means they can provide support, resources, ideas and feedback that can help make every course redesign project stronger and more inclusive and equitable for diverse learners. Thus every course redesign project will be contributing to Cal Poly's high-priority DEI goals.
Below are brief profiles of the ETP facilitators for each cohort.
Early Career Cohort Facilitators
Dr. Stefanee Maurice
Assistant professor
Kinesiology
Stefanee holds a Ph.D. in Sport & Exercise Psychology as well as a Certificate in University Teaching and has six years full-time university teaching experience. She received the Roger Moss Teaching Award at CSUN while a graduate student. At Cal Poly, she received the Terrance Harris Mentorship Award (nominations come from a student who is a Poly Rep) and has been recognized as a Mustang Mentor three times by Cal Poly student-athletes.
Stefanee's teaching-themed professional development activities and accomplishments include: Getting a Good Launch for New(er) Faculty Learning Community, Teaching Inclusion & Diversity Everywhere (TIDE), Introduction on Online Teaching and Learning (IOTL), Flip Your Course, Creating Accessible Course Materials, Video Grading with Screencast O-Matic, Supporting At-Risk Students, Affordable Learning Solutions, Yes, you Canva!, Correcting Automatic YouTube Captions, Lecturer Community of Practice, Quality Online Learning Template (QOLT) Springboard, Equity Minded Practices for remote teaching, TLDC101x: Teaching & Learning in the Diverse Classroom (certificate program through Cornell University). She also co-facilitated a CTLT book circle ("Creating Wicked Students").
A favorite teaching-related quote: "No matter what your ability is, effort is what ignites that ability and turns it into accomplishment." - Carol S. Dweck
Dr. Natasha Neumann
Assistant professor
Education leadership and Administration
Natasha holds an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership from the Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California. She has been teaching in higher education for five years and joined Cal Poly’s School of Education in 2019 where she is a co-coordinator and faculty member of the Educational Leadership and Administration Program (ELAP). Prior to higher education, Natasha served as a K-12 bilingual educator, district level administrator, and elementary school principal in the Los Angeles area for 20 years. Natasha has experience designing courses and teaching in all types of modalities including hybrid, online, and F2F. Her research areas are Leadership: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Dual Language Immersion Programs: Leadership and Policy.
Since joining Cal Poly, Natasha has participated in several CTLT professional development activities including the Rigorous and Equitable Cohort of the ACUE Effective Teaching Practices Program, Introduction to Online Teaching and Learning, Creating Accessible Course Materials, and participant of the Ally pilot program on Canvas. Outside of the CTLT, Natasha has obtained the Teaching Online Certificate from Quality Matters. Natasha also completed certification in Women’s Leadership Development from Oxford’s Saïd School of Business. Most recently, she completed training on Coaching for Equity based on Elena Aguilar’s latest book.
A quote Natasha shares with her students as they discuss pedagogy versus andragogy and prepare to coach teachers and lead schools is, “Students do not have achievement gaps we have to fill. They have gifts we need to leverage.” – Dr. José Medina
Learner-Centered Teaching Cohort Facilitators
Dr. Megan Lambertz-Berndt
Assistant professor
Communication Studies
Megan is an assistant professor in the Communication Studies Department. She has a Ph.D. In Communication Studies (Focus on Organizational & Intercultural Communication) from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She has 9 years experience teaching at 4 different universities in all types of modalities: hybrid, F2F, and online.
Her teaching-themed professional development activities and accomplishments include: the CTLT's IDEA workshop, mentoring the CTLT's TIDE program participants, participant in the CLA's Teach-in and on session leader since 2016, the Courageous Conversations about Race conference (effective teaching practices), Racial Consciousness workshop facilitator on campus, CLA online instructional coach, Title IX refresher training participant, Accessibility in the Classroom workshop participant (CTLT), Creating Accessible Course Materials workshop (CTLT), Introduction to Online Teaching and Learning workshop (CTLT), UndocuAlly workshop participant.
Her favorite teaching-related book is "Courageous Conversations about Race" by Glenn Singleton and Curtis Linton.
Dr. Emily Ryalls
Assistant professor
communication studies
Emily earned a PhD in Communication Studies from the University of South Florida. While her home department is ISLA, she also teaches courses in critical/cultural studies and feminist media studies for WGQS and COMS. She has over twenty years of teaching experience in lower and upper division classes, across GE and department major and minor classes, and in all types of modalities.
Most recently, she became the founder and co-editor of Feminist Pedagogy, an interdisciplinary journal dedicated to publishing original scholarship on higher education teaching strategies and approaches from an intersectional feminist perspective.
Through the CTLT, Emily has completed the Quality Online Teaching Academy, as well as the following workshops: TIDE (Teaching Inclusion, Diversity and Equity), Inclusive Course Design, Creating Accessible Canvas Content, and Flipping Your Classroom. Additionally, she has participated in several Teach-Ins and Teach-Ons, presented a pedagogical workshop at TIDE, participated in pedagogy panels at conferences, and published in Communication Teacher.
Her favorite book related to teaching is The Meaningful Writing Project, which she read during a CTLT Book Circle in 2017.
