New Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence Partnership

ASU hosted the first CTLE seminar at the LeGrand Center.Representatives of the four entities signed an official Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the partnership program during a virtual ceremony on June 11. Signatories for the agreement were:

• Angie Wright, interim president, ASU
• Dr. Cheryl Sparks, president, Howard College
• Dr. Carl Dethloff, superintendent, SAISD
• Col. Thomas Coakley, commander, 17^th Training Group

Per the agreement, the partners will rotate hosting seminars, forums, symposia and other events on their respective campuses aimed at helping the faculty at each institution fine-tune their teaching skills to improve the quality of teaching and learning for faculty, staff and students. The events will be led by faculty volunteers, and there is no charge for faculty to attend.

ASU’s efforts toward the CTLE partnership were spearheaded by Dr. Jesse Taylor, director of the Faculty Learning Commons; Dr. Brook Dickison, assistant professor of curriculum and instruction; Susan Williams, director of affiliated military and veteran services; and Dr. Javier Flores, vice president for student affairs and enrollment management.

Dr. Javier Flores“The Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence MOU exemplifies the dedication to excellence in education in the San Angelo community,” Flores said. “The MOU seeks to foster collaboration and a sense of community around the common goals of learning and enhancing the development of our teaching professionals. This MOU lets the world know that San Angelo is a leader in lifelong learning!” 

Early this year, ASU hosted the CTLE program’s first two-day seminar on “Student Engagement” at the LeGrand Alumni and Visitors Center. It was attended by 34 select faculty from across the community. Another forum planned for April at Howard College had to be canceled due to COVID-19 concerns.

Eventually, the partners hope to generate enough interest and resources to establish a permanent facility to house a Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence. In the meantime, they plan to host educational events for faculty at their respective campuses on a regularly scheduled basis.