Course Design Cohorts

If you need a special accommodation to fully participate in a Center event or service, please contact the Center at ProDev@ilstu.edu.

Course Design for Early Career Faculty

Course Design Cohort Application Form – Fill out form

Note: Applications will be accepted until Friday, April 24. They will be reviewed and priority will be given to Early Career tenure-track faculty. NTTs and staff with teaching responsibility will be admitted as space allows. Participants will be notified of acceptance into the cohort by Tuesday, April 28.

Course Design for Early Career Faculty is a course design cohort intended specifically for early career faculty. This three-week program is a deep dive into developing effective learning outcomes, robust assessments aligned to those learning outcomes, and engaging learning activities that will help prepare your students for success. By the end of the program, you will have a full course plan that you can take directly into the classroom for the fall semester.

Throughout the program, you will learn to integrate the Framework for Inclusive Teaching Excellence in your course design and teaching to support equity, diversity, inclusion, and access. This experience will kick off with a full-day in-person orientation session on May 13, followed by two additional full-day in-person sessions on Wednesday, May 20 and May 27. In addition, three half-day in-person sessions will be held on Friday, May 15, May 22, and May 29 to check in, share ongoing work, and plan the steps for work submission. Asynchronous work time will be ongoing throughout the program, culminating in a showcase presentation on May 31. A $750 stipend is available to eligible participants who complete the program.

Course Design for Early Career Faculty is a course design cohort specifically intended for early career faculty. However, any non-student instructional employee interested in designing a course they have not taught before (or haven’t offered in over three years) and plan to teach in the 2026–27 academic year is invited to register.

Stipend: $750

Learn more about the stipend policy and eligibility.

Eligible Participants: Tenure-Track Faculty, Non-Tenure Track Faculty and Course Instructors

Outcomes

Design effective learning outcomes, syllabi, and learning activities
Align assignments and assessment instruments
Develop good teaching practices informed by research-based pedagogical inquiry
Integrate the Framework for Inclusive Teaching Excellence into your course design and teaching

Event Information

Synchronous Meeting Dates:
Wednesday, May 13
Friday, May 15
Wednesday, May 20
Wednesday, May 27
Friday, May 29

Times:
Wednesdays, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Friday, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Location:
WIH 314

Asynchronous Work Window:
Monday, May 11 through Sunday, May 31

Facilitators:
David Giovagnoli, Center for Integrated Professional Development
Emily Jones, Center for Integrated Professional Development

Design a Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Study

This week-long workshop series introduces participants to the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL), a form of inquiry based on investigating and improving teaching and/or learning.

Through a mix of interactive discussions, case studies, and guided work sessions, participants will explore key SoTL concepts, including research design, ethical considerations, and methods for gathering and analyzing data on student learning. Throughout the week, the facilitator will provide individualized feedback to help participants refine their SoTL questions and align them with effective methodologies. By the final session, participants will have developed a SoTL project plan tailored to their disciplinary and institutional context. Participants will receive a $500 stipend for completing the workshop and for submitting all required artifacts.

All participants will be provided a copy of SoTL in Action for use in and beyond the workshop.

Stipend: $500

Learn more about the stipend policy and eligibility.

Eligible Participants: Tenure-Track Faculty, Non-Tenure Track Faculty and Course Instructors

Outcomes

Describe the characteristics of the scholarship of teaching and learning
Create a plan for a SoTL project ready for the 2025-26 academic year
Learn about opportunities to share SoTL beyond Illinois State University
Learn about campus supports for SoTL at Illinois State University

Event Information

Synchronous Meeting Dates:
Monday, May 18,
Tuesday, May 19
Thursday, May 21

Times:
10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Location:
Zoom

Asynchronous Work Window:
Wednesday, May 20

Facilitator:
Jennifer Friberg-Fort, Cross Endowed Chair in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, Communication Sciences and Disorders

(Re)Design Your Online Course for Accessibility and Alignment

With new federal accessibility requirements taking effect in just a few weeks, it’s time to get your course ready. Whether you’re creating a new course or updating an existing one, this evidence-based program will help you meet accessibility and alignment standards to support equitable learning for all students.

(Re)Design Your Online Course for Accessibility and Alignment is a fully online, asynchronous program that includes hands-on exercises and a focus on practical skills. It is designed in a series of modules and requires about 30 dedicated hours to successfully complete. The program may be taken by any Illinois State instructor assigned to teach a distance education course, i.e., a course that uses technology to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor for at least 75% of the course duration. Participants will be expected to create a Learning Outcomes worksheet, Module Map, and Improvement Plans for Accessibility.

Stipend: $750

Learn more about the stipend policy and eligibility.

Eligible Participants: Tenure-Track Faculty, Non-Tenure Track Faculty and Course Instructors, Staff (AP and Civil Service)

Outcomes

Apply research-based best practices in online course design
Create measurable, specific, and aligned learning outcomes to guide the design of your course
Develop foundational materials to guide the alignment of critical components in your course
Design course content so it reflects a commitment to accessibility and usability for all learners

Event Information

Asynchronous Work Window:
May 18 through June 10

Location:
Online

Facilitator:
Linda Summers, Center for Integrated Professional Development

Reinvent Your Course for Student Success

Explore evidence-based strategies and best practices for designing courses that enhance student engagement, learning, and success. Whether you are developing a new course or refining an existing one, this course design cohort will provide you with the tools and frameworks needed to create a supportive classroom environment, design inclusive courses, and promote academic achievement for today’s students. We will also discuss diverse student needs, barriers to success, and equitable assessment and feedback strategies. At the end of the sessions, you will have created a draft of the syllabus of your redesigned course, a course outline, and an assessment plan.

Stipend: $750

Learn more about the stipend policy and eligibility.

Eligible Participants: Tenure-Track Faculty, Non-Tenure Track Faculty and Course Instructors, Staff (AP and Civil Service)

Outcomes

Develop your own course goals, activities, and assessment plans pertaining to a course you are teaching and share these with fellow participants
Identify opportunities to integrate diverse course content, learning activities, and assessment into their courses
Articulate strategies to create an inclusive classroom climate
Facilitate discussion and group activities that challenge students’ assumptions

Event Information

Synchronous Meeting Dates:
Tuesday, May 19
Thursday, May 21
Tuesday, May 26
Thursday, May 28

Time: 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Location:
Online

Asynchronous Work Window:
May 19 through June 4

Facilitator:
Tina Williams, Department of Management
Mayuko Nakamura, Center for Integrated Professional Development

Framework for Inclusive Teaching Excellence (FITE)

The Framework for Inclusive Teaching Excellence (FITE) guides CIPD’s approach to advancing inclusive teaching at Illinois State University. Designed to support instructors at all career stages, the FITE promotes growth in six dimensions: Science of Learning, Impact of Course Design, Evidence-based Pedagogy, Classroom Climate and Culture, Feedback and Assessment Loop, and Data-Informed Reflection. CIPD has built a robust suite of programming and services around this framework, offering a dynamic lineup of events and learning opportunities to meet the evolving needs of educators across the university.

Explore FITE