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Week of October 21-25

2024

Reminder: Faculty, staff participation in elections and political activity

Virginia Tech is supportive of all faculty and staff exercising their right to vote and participate in upcoming local, state, and federal elections. Employees are encouraged to work with their supervisor should their work hours need to be adjusted on Election Day (November 5) so they can vote.

While the university encourages civic engagement, all political activity should be kept separate from the workplace. A political opinion should not be shared as a Zoom background, email tag line, poster, or in other forms in the workplace.

Per the university’s Statement of Business Conduct Standards (Professional and Personal Integrity), “Employees must take care to ensure that their university-related activities are kept separate from political activities; it must be clear that they act as citizens in such activities, not as representatives of the university. Further, employees must not use university resources, including computer and network systems and university work time to promote political positions or political campaigns.”

For more information, read this campus notice or refer to the Statement of Business Conduct Standards and the Faculty Handbook (Section 2.25: Political Activity). For questions or concerns, email the HR Service Center or call 540-231-9331.

 

CETL: Resources, guidance for navigating difficult conversations in the classroom

Each semester, faculty and graduate teaching assistants (GTA) manage classroom debates and disruptions related to current events and intervene when a discussion on a complex topic goes awry. As the course instructor or GTA who sets the tone for classroom discussion, your disposition – the behavior you exhibit and the language you use – serves as a model for students.

The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL), in partnership with the Office of Inclusion and Diversity (OID), and Technology-Enhanced Learning and Online Strategies (TLOS), provides some strategies and resources for navigating challenging moments in the classroom so that student learning remains the focus.

  • Adopt a Disposition for Dialogue – Often, when students make a comment that we regard as problematic, what is needed from us is guidance so that we can engage students in thinking more carefully and critically about topics, and about their use of language.
  • Know When to Pause – Sometimes, despite our best efforts to be proactive and to model a disposition for dialogue, a disruption occurs and at times, a single voice dominates causing other students to disengage. Your leadership of the class can be undermined, making it impossible to continue.
  • Be Proactive – The best strategy is to be prepared and establish a classroom environment that fosters trust and common purpose among students.

For more information and additional details on these strategies and resources, visit the Navigating Difficult Conversations in the Classroom webpage or email CETL.

 

Academic Advising Initiatives: Faculty support for students via the Early Academic Referral System

Virginia Tech’s Early Academic Referral System (VT EARS) has been developed as a tool to assist faculty in proactively identifying and referring undergraduate students early in the semester who may be experiencing academic difficulty. Research shows that intervention within the first 6-8 weeks of the semester can make a difference.

VT EARS has a significant impact on student success because of its potential to:

  • Increase awareness of the academic support networks.
  • Reduce the number of undergraduate students on academic probation or academic suspension.
  • Reaffirm the institution’s commitment to at-risk students.
  • Increase engagement between faculty and undergraduate students.

Faculty and instructors are encouraged to become familiar with and utilize VT EARS. Submitting a referral can be done easily by entering Faculty Access through Hokie Spa. Faculty will simply choose the "Faculty Access" tab at the top of the page and click the blue link titled "Faculty and Advisor Student Menu” and locate the “Early Academic Referral System Menu."

For more information, visit the VT EARS webpage or email Academic Advising Initiatives in the Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs. NOTE: VT EARS is not intended for urgent, sensitive, time-critical referrals. If you have an emergency or require immediate assistance, please call 911 for the police.

 

Hokie Wellness: Faculty, staff encouraged to take part in employee wellness survey

Hokie Wellness, in partnership with the American College Health Association (ACHA), invites faculty and staff to participate in an employee wellness survey, October 21 – November 1. Last administered to Virginia Tech employees in 2019, the National Faculty and Staff Health Assessment survey will help the university to:

  • Evaluate current programming efforts
  • Identify the most common health and behavior risks affecting employees
  • Help design evidence-based health promotion programs
  • Allocate resources based upon defined needs

The survey will be sent from hokiewellness-survey@mail.hr.vt.edu to faculty and staff across all locations with a unique link that should not be forwarded to others. Participation is voluntary and survey responses are confidential. Virginia Tech will not receive survey response data connected to unique individual identifiers.

Employees are asked to complete the survey in one sitting which typically takes about 20-30 minutes. All employees who submit a survey will be automatically entered into a random drawing to win one of 100 prizes.

For more information, read this campus notice, visit the National Faculty Staff Health Assessment webpage, or email Hokie Wellness.

 

ICYMI: Revisions to ADA Title II now require accessibility conformance for all digital content

Critical revisions to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II now require accessibility conformance to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) for most digital content provided by Virginia Tech or through paid third-party resources by April 24, 2026. WCAG represents rules for creating accessible documents and webpages.

All Canvas content, webpages, apps, word-processing documents, PDFs, images, videos, spreadsheets, forms, and social media posts must be equally usable for everyone. Many documents actively used to support university operations and teaching and learning will need remediation.

The Office for Equity and Accessibility (OEA) and Technology-enhanced Learning and Online Strategies (TLOS) are leading this initiative to address the impact of new regulations which will impact all areas of the university.

OEA and TLOS encourage those who create or manage digital content to:

For more information, read this campus notice or visit the Virginia Tech Accessibility Portal for additional guidance and resources.

 

Additional Resources and Updates

Newsletter Spotlight: OIA Global Engagement and Virginia Tech Engaged

 

Please submit a Google form or email Provost Communications for comments or recommendations to improve the Weekly Communications Update or to share faculty, staff, and academic program personnel information.

Visit the provost’s website frequently for new and updated university information. All members of the campus community should also read their VT News daily email for further important updates, notices, and resources.