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Week of January 23-27

2023

Faculty Affairs: Application deadline for Pre-Tenure Pandemic Course Relief Program

Applications for the Pre-Tenure Pandemic Course Relief Program for academic year 2023-24 are due to department heads, chairs, and school directors no later than next Tuesday, January 31.

The Pre-Tenure Pandemic Course Relief Program is intended to help mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on faculty advancement. It provides a one-course buyout in one semester for pre-tenure tenure-track faculty negatively impacted by the pandemic.

The Provost’s Office will provide up to $5,000 in matching funds to the faculty member’s college or department for a one-course buyout to be used prior to their mandatory promotion and tenure year. The goal is to allow additional time for faculty to focus on their research programs as they prepare for promotion and tenure.

Participants must be pre-tenure tenure track faculty members who started at Virginia Tech prior to AY2022-23. This application cycle is limited to only those who can use it to buy out of teaching in fall of 2023 or spring of 2024. Priority will be given to those faculty who demonstrate substantial pandemic impacts on their ability to conduct research, scholarly, creative, or outreach activities in preparation for promotion and tenure (P&T).

For more information and a link to the application form, please visit the Pre-Tenure Pandemic Course Relief Program webpage. Questions may be emailed to Faculty Affairs.

CETL and Global Education Office: Faculty development opportunity at the Steger Center

The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL), in partnership with the Global Education Office and the Steger Center for International Scholarship, is offering a cohort-based workshop for early and midcareer faculty members across the university to learn more about planning, recruiting for, and leading a short-term or semester-long study abroad experience.

Beginning with a series of preparatory sessions in Blacksburg during the spring semester, the training culminates in a weeklong workshop at the Steger Center in Riva San Vitale, Switzerland in July 2023. With an emphasis in engaging local communities and opportunities abroad, this workshop will offer strategies and best practices for faculty members planning a course at the Steger Center or at a partner site.

By the end of this faculty development workshop, participants will:

  • Implement the theory and practice of experiential and intercultural learning pedagogy into their own study abroad programs 
  • Demonstrate an understanding and the ability to implement best practices and ethical considerations in short-term and semester-long study abroad programming 
  • Identify the building blocks and resources to develop effective, ethical, and transformative, academically focused study abroad programs, or curricula focused on global and intercultural learning 
  • Analyze the common challenges in global experiential learning programs, and anticipate solutions 
  • Engage in activities to help learners reflect and debrief on their experiences and imagine how you would design and lead these reflections as a program leader 
  • Critically reflect on their own intercultural and intrapersonal growth and transformation by means of structured reflection 
  • Articulate an understanding of the impact of global phenomena at a micro-level through engagements with local communities in the Ticino region of Switzerland 
  • Discuss the lessons that home curricula can include from the education systems, languages, histories, and cultures of Switzerland and the broader European landscape

Applications are due by February 15. For more information including application and costs, please visit the Faculty Development Program at the Steger Center website.

Division of IT: New process for expedited acquisition of qualifying software to continue

The pilot for Low-Risk, Low-Cost Software Procurement has been extended to February 15 while final reviews of the process are completed, and the process is made permanent.

Beginning in August 2022, IT Procurement and Licensing Solutions introduced a pilot program to allow departments to follow an expedited process for purchasing qualifying low-risk software, software subscriptions, and IT services. This new process, which is part of the larger IT Transformation, seeks to balance the needs of employees to obtain needed software with the university’s responsibility to weigh the potential risk exposure when these tools are used in the university environment.

To be eligible, requested software must meet low-risk, low-cost criteria and be approved by a department head. For software products where those requirements are met, departments can acquire the software using their normal departmental purchasing delegation processes without further review by IT or University Legal Counsel.

Procurement of free software can also be facilitated under this pilot, if it meets the criteria which include the following stipulations:

  • Software must only involve low-risk data 
  • Software must not be integrated with any enterprise-level application (e.g., Canvas, Banner, Microstrategy, Login) 
  • Total cost must not exceed $10,000 per year or for one-time purchase 
  • Software must be sourced from trusted vendors 
  • Software must be for use within one administrative area or research project

Software purchases that fall outside of these requirements are still subject to the standard software license agreement review. Users and their departments should review Virginia Tech’s departmental software list and software license database and select pre-approved software options to meet their needs when possible.

A 30-minute training module for the Low-Risk Low-Cost Software acquisition process is now available on demand through the PageUp LMS. For more information on this pilot or if you have feedback or questions, please read this campus notice or email the Low-Risk Software Program team.

TLOS: Applications now open for Accessibility Professional Certification Grant Program

Technology-enhanced Learning and Online Strategies’ (TLOS) Accessible Technologies group is now accepting applications for the Accessibility Professional Certification Grant Program. Grant recipients gain the opportunity to develop expertise and earn the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP) Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC) certification.

Faculty, staff, and graduate students who want to gain cross-disciplinary knowledge of disabilities, accessibility, universal design, and the associated standards should apply for this grant. Past participants report that the program has provided them with the skills to produce high-quality work that meets the needs of a broad range of people with disabilities.

CPACC is IAAP's foundational certification, representing broad, cross-disciplinary conceptual knowledge. Grant recipients receive membership in IAAP, exam prep training, and a waiver of exam fees. Training covers disabilities and assistive technologies; accessibility and universal design; and laws, standards, and organizational management.

The deadline for applications is Monday, February 6 at 5:00 p.m. Cohort members will meet weekly via Zoom to review materials, ask questions, and see assistive technology demonstrations.

For more information about the Accessibility Professional Certification Grant Program and to submit applications, please read this campus notice or visit the Accessibility Professional Certification Grant Application webpage.

ICYMI: Mandatory training for faculty leading students, study abroad programs

Virginia Tech Policy 1070: Global Travel Policy requires that employees leading credit-bearing or co-curricular student groups abroad complete training with the Global Education Office (GEO) prior to departure. GEO, housed in Outreach and International Affairs, offers several training opportunities throughout the academic year to support faculty members, administrators and staff in their efforts to lead study abroad programs.

Faculty and staff will need training every two years in order to lead students abroad. To meet this requirement, faculty leaders will first attend the New Program Leader Training and then every two years after attend Program Leader Community Update.

New Program Leader Training (March 28, 8:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m.) is designed to provide the tools and resources needed by those leading and supporting programs abroad. The course focuses on health, safety, and risk management, including best practices for leading students abroad and complying with university policies and procedures. The session will be capped with a catered lunch during an open Q&A session.

Program Leader Community Update (previously Returning Faculty-Leader Training) is for those who have previously attended the New Program Leader Training. This is a concentrated session that updates faculty training compliance. GEO is offering several sessions this semester:

  • Wednesday, March 29 – 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. (Virtual) 
  • Wednesday, March 29 – 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. (GEO Conference Room, 526 Prices Fork Road, Blacksburg) 
  • Thursday, March 30 – 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. (GEO Conference Room, 526 Prices Fork Road, Blacksburg) 
  • Thursday, March 30 – 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. (Virtual)

Employees must register online for their preferred training session by March 14 for spring sessions.

For more information and to register, please read this campus notice or visit the Global Education Office website.

Additional Resources and Updates

If you have comments or recommendations for how we can improve the Weekly Communications Update or suggestions for specific information and topics that should be shared with faculty, staff, and academic program personnel, please provide them through this Google form or email Provost Communications.

Please visit VT Ready and the Provost’s website frequently for new and updated university information. All members of the campus community should also read their VTx Daily email for further important updates, notices, and resources.