Faculty Extension & Outreach

The faculty of the Department of Adult & Higher Education engage in the following extension and outreach activities:

Akroyd

My involvement in the NSF project and the On-line graduate certificate in community college teaching has been focused on the professional development of community college faculty. I was involved in designing the curriculum and marketing the program to community college faculty in North Carolina. I have visited community colleges in North Carolina and spoken to faculty groups and administrators regarding the graduate certificate (and our department degree offerings). Past project evaluations found that faculty participants in the graduate certificate have gained valuable knowledge related to instruction of adults and the use of technology in teaching and they were able to apply that information in their classrooms. Several of the graduate certificate recipients’ have continued on with degrees in our department.

Bartlett

• Department Chairs Institute
• The 360 Leader:  Communication Skills And Relationship Building
• Managing Conflict:  Conflict, Solutions, and Exploring Self
• Participated In The Community College Presidents Conference, Summer 2007

Bowles

• The most exemplary example of my extension and engagement hinges on my collaborative work with Dr. Christine Grant in Engineering on the “ADVANCE-ENG Girls to Women 2007, An Innovative Engineering Faculty-Student Mentoring Summit for Underrepresented Minority (URM) Girls and their Mothers.” For this project I served as a senior researcher, internal evaluator, and outreach coordinator responsible for recruitment from Durham and Wake county schools, local after school programs, community/civic groups, and churches.  Below is an excerpt from our Office of Extension, Engagement, and Economic Development Final Report:   The original scope of the ADVANC-ENG, Girls to Women Summit included 40-50 underrepresented minority (URM) girls and their mothers (or other adult female advocates) to attend a day of engineering career exploration.  It was an opportunity to meet real women of color who were engineering professors; real women who at one time were girls making a critical move towards an engineering career.  The day was intended as a deviation from everyday existence, enabling the girls to take the time to envision themselves in the future, just like the faculty present, and for daughters and mothers to connect or re-connect to forge an alliance to sustain them through the challenges they will face as women in engineering.  The prevailing Summit goal was to attract girls at a critical stage in the K-12 pipeline to engineering careers.  The profession could benefit from the addition of them in the future and the girls could also benefit from the varied opportunities the profession holds.
• The response to the call for applications was far greater than anticipated.  Well over 125 applications were received from middle school girls in North Carolina (primarily the Raleigh-Durham area).  In an attempt to include and impact as many girls as possible, the scope was adjusted and additional funding was obtained to accommodate 70 girls and their mothers/advocates. 
• Dr. Tuere Bowles, co-PI, and her volunteer team of URM undergraduate and graduate students from the Departments of Adult and Higher Education and Psychology (Dr. Pamela Martin’s AAFC Research Lab members) engaged in a mixed-methods evaluation to assess the event.  The methods included participant observations, qualitative interviews, and surveys.  In addition, the girls participated upon arrival in a Draw an Engineer project, which entailed drawing their perception of what an engineer looks like.  On the morning following the event, the girls were again asked to draw their perception, with the idea that they could draw themselves or perhaps someone who they met at the summit – a large change from their original drawings.  A content analysis of these drawings as well as a compilation of the complete survey results are slated for future evaluation.  Preliminary findings reveal that well over 100 North Carolina citizens, the target population, received a day of exposure that will likely spur them in a necessary educational direction to pursue a career in engineering.  The resulting improvement in the quality of life will impact all North Carolinians.

Bracken

• Charrette Team Member representing NC State University at a national think tank on community engaged scholarship, 2008 (ongoing)
• Community College Faculty Development:  through NSF grant with Dr. Akroyd, campus visits, interviews, credit certificate in adult education; through ‘brown bag’ lunches at community colleges for Q&A sessions on adult learning; through conducting seminars for CC continuing education professionals on adult learners in postsecondary institutions
• Participation as faculty fellow in national conference and phone conferences on diversity issues in teaching and learning for STEM faculty
• Outgoing Chair, University Standing Committee on Outreach, Engagement, Extension and Economic Development (NC State University)
• Action Research Project team member on study of nonprofit board of director communication and leadership
• Participant, Collaborative for Research on Engagement – This serves as a resource and site for collaboration for researchers who study public or civic engagement, it is sponsored by Dr. Jaeger and Dr. Thornton

Bryant

Ongoing development of partnerships and collaborations between faculty in AHE and researchers at RTI International – including potential internship opportunities for doctoral students.

Gonzalez-Sullivan

• National Initiative for Leadership and Institutional Effectiveness (NILIE). Serve as Executive Director and oversee all operations, including providing consulting services to two colleges that preferred to have a NILIE staff member present assessment results. 
• NCSU/AHE Department Chairs Institute in cooperation with the North Carolina Community College System.  One workshop was offered in fall 2007 at James Sprunt Community College with 17 participants.  Another workshop will be offered in March 2008.
• Executive Leadership Program.  This new program was designed to build the skills of NC community college deans and vice presidents seeking to enhance their performance in the current position.  The first seminar was offered in March 2007 Durham Technical Community College with 23 participants.  These participants continued their training online over the summer.  Two thirds completed the program and received certificates, quite an accomplishment for very busy executive administrators.  Another cycle will begin in April 2008.
• National Community College Hispanic Council Leadership Fellows Program, co-sponsored by NCSU/AHE. In 2007, we trained 10 Hispanic community college administrators from five states who aspire to the presidency.  Since the program resumed in 2003 under NCSU’s sponsorship, one Fellow has been named to a Presidency, three have held interim presidencies and there have been 26 other promotions.
• Liaison to the North Carolina community colleges.  In 2007, I attended meetings of the presidents association and served on the advisory board Global Education Consortium, a group that has absorbed the former Hispanic/Latino Initiative.  For the second year, I also served on the committee to select the President of the Year for 2007.  I am currently serving on the NCCCS Critical Issues Team as a member of the committee to identify professional development opportunities.  Finally, I initiated a project to provide additional training to community college liaisons and others involved in the Early College mandate (Learn and Earn).
• Emotional Intelligence Counseling.  As a certified counselor for the Bar-On EQ-1 emotional intelligence assessment instrument, I provided individual counseling sessions of approximately one hour each to more than 20 individuals who took the assessment as part of their professional development training.
• Magna Publications Advisory Board for the Community College Leadership Series.  I serve on this board which provides guidance to Magna Publications as they develop a series of online seminars on topics of interest to community college faculty and staff.

Hatcher

Hugh Shelton Leadership – Coordinated research symposium with NC A&T Leadership Program – Reviewed all research proposals for the 2007 Leadership Forum.

Jaeger

• This past spring I concluded my work with the UNC General Administration and representatives from eight Institutional Research Offices and/or Provosts’ Offices throughout the UNC system. The goal of this AIR funded project was to look at the role of part-time faculty in issues of student retention. Each institution in the study received an executive summary addressing the entire project as well as detailed information about their own institution. (55 hours)
• I have continued my involvement with the California Community College Collaborative at the University of California, Riverside (C4 at UCR). This is a relatively new policy center established jointly by the University of California’s Office of the President and the Chancellor’s Office of the California Community Colleges. C4’s policy research and professional development agenda will help prepare faculty and administrators to be leaders in transforming their own institutions and higher education in California and around the country. C4 is sponsoring my grant from AIR (see B.1 Funded Awards for which I serve as PI). This research will provide valuable data to the California Community College system, and will also serve as a springboard for discussions in other community college systems across the US and in other countries. (30 hours)
• Last January, I was invited to present to the NC State MBA Program about my research in emotional intelligence. I collaborated with a current doctoral student on this project. (8 hours)
• Jaeger, A. J., & Collins, M. (2007, January). Building a case for emotional intelligence theory. Invited presentation for the NC State MBA Program, Raleigh, NC.
• This past summer, Dr. Thornton and I obtained NSSE data from the University of Virginia and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill regarding student civic engagement. We are working with these institutions to address findings from Dr. Thornton’s dissertation. (20 hours)
• I am currently working with Dr. Bracken and several others on a large NSF grant that is discussed in the previous section. This grant includes scholars from other institutions as well as NC State administrators include: Drs. Jim Zuiches, Becky Rufty, and Patti Clayton. (15 hours)
• The most significant effort relating to extension and engagement is the Collaborative for Research on Engagement. During this past semester, Dr. Thornton and I met with dozens of individuals at NC State and UNC to discuss research on engagement as well as engaged research. We have developed a website that will highlight work of those in the Department and colleagues at other institutions who want to be affiliated with the Collaborative. We plan to set-up a meeting with AHE colleagues in January to share the website and how it can be used to support their work. These discussions helped us further relationships with scholars outside of the NC State as well. We currently have seven higher education scholars who conduct the vast amount of research in this area coming together to present a session next fall at ASHE and begin conversations about additional collaborative work this spring. The group will be convening for the first time in February, 2008. (200 hours)

Kasworm

Evaluator For Wake Tech CC, FIPSE Grant – “Associates Plus Program ( Years – 2004-2007)

Storberg-Walker

Storberg-Walker, J. (2007). Community and Capital: Tools for Individual and Organizational Success.  Triangle Organization Development Network.  Raleigh, NC: August, 2007.

Pro-Bono Consulting:

• Family Violence Prevention Fund (June 2007). The Family Violence Prevention Fund is a non-profit organization dedicated to ending family violence and is located in San Francisco.  Provided human resource development and organization development expertise for new educational initiative for boys.
• Channel One, Inc. (July-September, 2007). Chanel One is a food bank distributor in the southern Minnesota area.  Provided human resource development and executive search expertise for new executive director.  Developed recruitment strategies, interview protocols, and review procedures.

Wiessner

• Appreciative Inquiry for the Church Board of the First Reformed Church of Cary, NC, January 13, 2007
• Continue to work with the Center for International Understanding NC in the World, Partner Schools Program
• EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative, serve as resource person to ELI Vice-President, Diana Oblinger, Focus Session Coordinator, Julie Little, and Program Coordinator, Jarret Cummings, consulting on program/event design. (Scenario Building, Collaboration, Storytelling)
• National Community College Hispanic Council, Leadership Fellows Program, Raleigh, NC and Phoenix, AZ – June 2007 and September 2007
• Innovated Learning Circles for new knowledge creation for the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative Annual Event, Atlanta, GA, January 2007, based on a model I created for the International Conference on Transformative Learning. The Learning Circles were so successful that they will now be an annual feature of the event. In the circles leaders in the field share their next research project and interact with participants around the "next big thing" they plan to pursue and seek feedback from session participants. This group exploration also allows you to think about implications for application on campus.
• Of the conference innovations ELI cites on their conference website, two are related to my work with ELI: Learning Circles and Learning Forms. ELI includes electronic learning forms, as well as paper reflection forms, as part of the learning design for their events, as initiated by the New Learning Project for them.
• Diana Oblinger reported that my work with ELI had reached the highest levels of EDUCAUSE by mid-year 2007 and had migrated throughout the organization.
• Reformed Church in America – involved in various projects for adult teaching and learning effectiveness.
• Continue to work with the Hispanic Fellows program of the National Community College Hispanic Council.

 

DEPARTMENTAL ADDRESS &
CONTACT INFO

Dept. of Adult & Higher Ed

Poe 300, Box 7801

North Carolina State University

Raleigh, N.C. 27695-7801

919.515.6241