Friday Memo: April 13, 2018

Education Faculty Meeting
We had an abbreviated faculty meeting on Tuesday, April 10 with a full agenda. We talked about the new appointments in the Education division with my new role as Associate Vice President of Graduate Affairs & Dean of Education, Dr. Tammy Cox as Associate Dean of Education for Teacher Education & Student Affairs, and Dr. Alicia Noddings as Associate Dean of Education for Accreditation, Assessment, & Data. We discussed revamping our student interview process, the MEES assessment tool, and the CAEP visit.

Don't miss our next and last division meeting for this school year which is on Tuesday, April 24 at 10:15 a.m. in the Field Conference Room. This will be our last professional development session in the Effective Teaching & Learning Practices series with EdPlus and it is titled "Students Learning to Learn." Assessment capable learners feel deeply accountable for their own progress and become motivated, effective, self-regulating learners. Empowering self-motivated learners often requires a change in practice for the teacher. In this session, we will raise awareness of explicit strategies to develop assessment capable learners in every classroom.

Troy/Wentzville RLC Spring Faculty Meeting
I attended the spring faculty meeting at Troy/Wentzville RLC on Tuesday, April 10. It was a great evening spent with the awesome faculty that help our students at that campus. James Bertels, one of the adjuncts, played the guitar and everyone sang along. Watch the video below.


Congratulations
Jim Chellew, Arnold RLC Coordinator and Assistant Professor will now add Fox School District Board member to his resume. Jim retired from Fox in 2005 after 31 years of service including teacher, principal, assistant superintendent and then superintendent. He also graduated from Fox Senior High School. Jim is very student-centered and will be a true asset as a board member.

Dr. Lacey's Farewell Chapel & Reception
As you know, Dr. Lacey is retiring at the end of this year and has already stepped down from his role as President and is now the Chancellor. He spoke at chapel on Thursday, April 12 and there was a reception held for him at the SRC building that afternoon. We wish him well in his future endeavors.
Here is a video of him at chapel. His wife, daughter, son, Brenda Bradford, and Joy Powell sang with him.

Retirement Reception
A retirement reception will be held on Friday, April 20 at 3:00 p.m. in the Perk for the following people: Jim Beeman, Paula Bennett, Sara Edmundson, Nancy Funke, Peggy McCraith, Larry Richardson, Carolyn Scott, and Dr. Clark Triplett. You are welcome to come and wish them well as they enter the next chapter of their lives.

2018 Commissioning Service
Plans for our second annual Commissioning Service are well underway. You should have received an email inviting you. If you are planning on attending, please email Nancy Sickler at nancy.sickler@mobap.edu to let her know. Full time faculty are required to attend and adjuncts are welcome. It is a special evening to honor our students and it would mean a lot to them to have you there. The event will be held on Sunday, April 29 at 7 p.m. in the Performance Hall. Hope to see you there!

Staffing Announcement
Ellen John has a new title, Coordinator for Teacher Education and Field Experiences. Ellen will be handling all Field 1 & 2 placements in addition to her existing duties of organizing teacher education interviews and division syllabi. In addition to supporting Kathleen Wendt, Ellen will now support Susan Hladky. We are grateful for Ellen's sunny disposition, work ethic, and her willingness to serve the students, faculty, and staff of the Education division.


Career Opportunity
We are in the process of accepting applications for an Assistant/Associate Professor of Education - K-12 Special Education. Tonia Crane will not be returning next year. For more information on the position, click HERE. If you know of anyone that would qualify and be interested, please have them apply. If they have questions, they are welcome to contact me.

Upcoming Meetings
April 20: Retirement Reception at 3:00 p.m. at the Perk
April 24: Education Division Faculty Meeting at 10:15 a.m. in FLD 115
April 29: Commissioning Service at 7:00 p.m. in the Performance Hall

Closing Thoughts
Most of you are thinking about the upcoming lazy days of summer, but we still have this final stretch to go and you may be wondering how you are going to get it all finished. I am often considering ways in which I can be more efficient and get more work done. Here are a few pointers I gathered from Dan Rockwell, self-proclaimed Leadership Freak. In his blog yesterday, Dan  suggested three ways to get more done:

1. Improve proficiency. Shorten the time it takes to do your work through mastery, systems, or software. Proficiency enables you to do in hours what took days in the past.
2. Eliminate less meaningful work. Stop doing things that matter less so you can focus on things matter more. Pour something out of your cup.
3. Give work away. Get someone else to do some of your work. Take something out of your cup and give it to a competent other.

Perhaps these nuggets of truth will help you as you strive to be efficient.

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