ITLE faculty forum, grand opening announced

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Senior Vice President Provost Marlene Strathe has announced a special faculty forum and open house on Sept. 22 to celebrate the grand opening of OSU’s Institute for Teaching and Learning Excellence. 

ITLE was formed by merging Educational Television Services, the Faculty Support Center and Audio-Visual Services. It provides various services to OSU faculty, including pedagogical and technical assistance for early career and experienced faculty members. 

Dr. Strathe said the faculty forum will begin at 9 a.m. in the Wes Watkins Center Auditorium and will feature two presentations on subjects of great interest to OSU. The open house is scheduled from 1:30-4 p.m. at the Telecommunications Center. The forum’s opening session, from 9-10:15 a.m., will focus on copyright law and intellectual property rights. Ken Salomon, a member of the Communications Practices Group of the Washington, D.C., law firm of Dow, Lohnes & Albertson PLLC, will present. 

Salomon was one of the principal negotiators for the higher education community in developing statutory language adopted by Congress in the Technology, Education and Copyright Enhancement. Salomon works closely with national higher education organizations, such as the American Council on Education, the American Association of Community Colleges, the Association of American Universities, the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges and EDUCAUSE, particularly on legal, regulatory and policy issues involved in telecommunications, distance learning, copyright and computers. 

Scott Fern from the OSU Legal Counsel’s office will join Salomon to address how Oklahoma law and OSU policies relate to this critical subject. At 10:30 a.m., Alan Cheville and Chuck Bunting, both of the OSU School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, will discuss an NSF-funded program titled “Engineering Students for the 21st Century.” 

This program focuses on 10 electrical engineering courses, with the goal of transitioning from knowledge-based to development-based programs. Students often learn behaviors that let them succeed in class, but these behaviors are not always needed to succeed in their careers. This process seeks to increase the knowledge content of a program without increasing the time to graduation. It also aims to engage current and future faculty in integrating scholarship into teaching. 

There is no charge for either session, but seating is limited. No response is necessary to tour the ITLE facilities. Drop by the Telecommunications Center between 1:30 and 4 p.m. for a close look at ITLE's services.

"I am very pleased that OSU has established the Institute for Teaching and Learning Excellence,” Strathe said. “This Institute reflects the commitment of OSU to making our university a community of lifelong learners. The professional development opportunities afforded to faculty through the ITLE are very important in building strong teaching-learning environments that will benefit our students as well as every member of the OSU family.”