Written by Dr. Krysten Pampel & Dr. Ashley Nicoloff
One of the top GCC values a faculty needs to be successful is being future-focused. When thinking of future-focused faculty some characteristics come to mind: (1) life-long learner, (2) the desire to stay relevant, and (3) willing to change things up in their teaching and mindset.
As defined by GCC, future-focused is enhancing innovative and forward-thinking perspectives and approaches to prepare students for evolving educational, workforce, and societal needs.
Faculty that attend to this GCC value might find themselves researching the changing trends in our student population. The GCC CTLE held a Summer Book Club where the book iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy–and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood–and What That Means for the Rest of Us by Dr. Jean M. Twenge (link to book) Faculty who employ this value might research their field or content to see the trends in the needs of business and careers associated to their field.
In order to shake up their teaching styles and meet the needs of our every changing student population, future-focused faculty might take the opportunity to participate in the Reimagine Project. The Reimagine Project takes faculty from every discipline (residential and adjunct) and leads them on an in-depth look at 5 different teaching strategies (problem-based, project-based, flipping the classroom, community-based, and learning communities).
Glendale Community College has multiple opportunities to help future-focused faculty grow and find success. Through those efforts, we as faculty can help our students gain a new future-focused view on their education and future careers. One of the opportunities is led by Dr. Gabriela Cojanu in the Business Information Technology Department. She has designed an Innovation Summit where students will learn about entrepreneurship, paths to innovation, and to share their ideas in a “Shark Tank” style competition for cash prizes! (link to flyer)