We’d like to thank everyone who attended and participated in the 2019 Pittsburgh Regional Faculty Symposium on March 11. The event attracted over 270 professionals from around the region – and internationally — and gathered together talents and expertise from across the entire spectrum of higher education. Special thanks to Dr. Sarah Rose Cavanagh for offering the keynote address, as well as 13 different Pitt faculty members who where involved in the planning or hosting of a conference session.

Earlier this term, Pitt celebrated the 50th anniversary of an event that would forever change the African-American student experience at the University of Pittsburgh. In our latest episode of TC60, we showcase “Say It Loud: The Black Action Society, The Computer Center Takeover, and Transformation at the University of Pittsburgh” event. The Teaching Center's Academic Digital Media team chronicled the event, which is the feature of this month's installment of TC60.

Now is the time to start planning for the spring term Teaching Survey period (April 1 – 21). You can begin preparing now by customizing your surveys or browsing resources on specific topics in the Office of Measurement and Evaluation of Teaching’s question library.

Faculty will receive an e-mail next week regarding more information about the spring term survey period and a link to instructions. In the meantime, think about budgeting class time for students to complete their surveys. Contact OMET for assistance.

To learn how faculty at Pitt are using Open Education Resources (OER), plan to attend the Faculty Perspectives - Open Education Resources Panel Discussion on March 4, 4-5:30 p.m. in the University Club Gold Room. Four Pitt faculty will describe their experiences with adapting, adopting, and/or creating OER for their courses.

Additionally, faculty that want to incorporate more OER into their courses can apply for OER funding through the Office of the Provost by March 20.

• Movements
• Global Gestures: Post-war Abstraction from the Lowenthal Collection
• Africans in India: From Slaves to Generals and Rulers

The Center for Diversity in the Curriculum has several diversity workshops you can take advantage of each month during spring term. Some even offer remote participation for attendees.

• Feb. 28: Understanding the Background and Academic Preparation of Students from Chinese Cultures
• March 7: Teaching Inclusively
• April 3: Not Speaking the Same Language? 4 Steps to Engaging Your International Students