League of Innovation in the Community College Conference

MC Well Represented at the 21st League of Innovation in the Community College Conference

The 21st League of Innovation in the Community College Conference took place from February 22-27 in New York City. Montgomery College was well represented, with several staff, faculty, and administrators presenting on critical issues in higher education. Below is a summary of those who presented, and their topics.

Dr. Caroline Mrozla-Toscano, Director of Professional Development at MC, presented on “Engaging Quiet Students: Including Silence in Active Learning.” Drawing from her own experience of being a child with selective mutism and being unable to speak in class, Dr. Mrozla-Toscano gave insights to the audience from the perspective of quiet students and discussed the importance of active listening, as well as active participation in class. She explained that introversion frequently tends to be pathologized in American culture, and that quiet students are sometimes viewed as “having a problem that needs fixing.” She mentioned the need to understand and respect quiet students for their strengths, as well as the need to structure the classroom so that all students have an equal chance to participate in class.

Dr. Clevette Ridguard, MC’s College Area Review Coordinator, presented on “Moving from Academic Program Review to Academic Program Viability.”  Dr. Ridguard outlined the components of the existing academic program review process at Montgomery College.   Primarily, the review includes data analysis, internal and external benchmarks, and curriculum mapping to inform student learning outcomes. These components aligned with the Academic Master Plan goals. The review results in implementable recommendations in a five-year review cycle. Audience members discussed the various review processes at their institutions. The session highlighted the development and implementation of the program viability review process, which examines three metrics: 1) quantitative, 2) qualitative, and 3) key questions that address program uniqueness to determine viability. An update on progress made since program viability implementation concluded the session.  Over the past two years, more than a dozen programs, including certificates have been deleted or modified.

 Dr. Elena Saenz, Associate Senior Vice President, Academic Affairs, Montgomery College, MD; Dr. Deborah Preston, Provost and Vice President, Academic Affairs, Raritan Valley Community College, NJ; and Dr. Monica Trent, Provost and Vice President, Academic and Student Affairs, Delaware County Community College, PA presented the session on “Moving Up: Leadership Transitions at the VP Level.” They mentioned that while much advice is available on presidential job searches and transitions, fewer resources are focused on leaders considering a vice presidency. In this session, three recently hired vice presidents discussed professional development, job searching, and transition strategies for chairs, deans, or directors who are ready to pursue new responsibilities.

Natasha Sacks, Lifelong Learning Institute Program Director, and Dr. Carol Moore, Part-time Faculty, presented on the topic of “Innovative Programming and Teaching Strategies for Students Aged 50+.” The 50+ student population is growing on college campuses, including Montgomery College, where a steady increase in these older students has been seen over last five years. Prompted by the rapidly changing employment skills requirements and by the desire to stay mentally active, students come to Montgomery College to seek credit degrees, professional national/global certifications, and enrichment courses. Dr. Moore and Ms. Sacks shared successful strategies utilized by Montgomery College in areas such as: co-listing courses between credit and non-credit, program designs as seen in Early Childhood and Alternative Certification for Effective Teachers Programs, and innovative course offerings in the Brain Fitness Program at the Lifelong Learning Institute.

Dr. Carolyn Schick, who directs the STEM Learning Assistant Program at MC, presented on “Promoting STEM Teaching and Student Success with a Learning Assistant Program.”  Dr. Schick described the MC program where Learning Assistants (LAs) are recruited to assist in STEM classrooms and laboratories throughout the college as embedded classroom support.  The LAs ‘try on teaching’ and work one-on-one with faculty mentors to enhance student engagement and improve student success.  Dr. Schick showed a video of LAs in action, discussed adapting the national LA model to the community college setting, shared the results and student perspectives of having LAs in the classroom, and engaged with the participants on various aspects of the program – funding, logistics, outcome measures, the faculty mentorship, with benefits to everyone including the students in the class, the LAs, their faculty mentors, the college community, and the field of STEM education.