Amanda Pittman and Katelin East
Decades of research demonstrate the transformative potential and the lasting legacies of a relationship-rich college experience. In Relationship-Rich Education, Felten and Lambert provide readers with practical advice on how they can develop and sustain powerful relationship-based learning in their own contexts. Join us for a conversation about how to create sustainable ways to engage students well.

Peter Felten will be joining us via Zoom for the last reading group session and in person for the Best Practices Conference in September.

Additional dates: Feb. 16, March 16 and April 13.

In a culture formed by urgency, distraction and productivity, the discipline of attention names a distinctly Christian way of being present to God, students and one's own limits. This session invites faculty to reflect on how attention is already being trained by institutional habits and culture—and how it might be reformed as a spiritual practice. Participants will engage in practices that frame teaching and study as sites of prayerful attentiveness rather than mere output.

Amy Boone and Laura Carroll

If you’ve been in the Adams Center in the past five years, chances are, you’ve not escaped without hearing the word "transparency"! What could be so important about this concept that it finds its way into so many pedagogical conversations?

Research indicates that creating transparent assignments “boosts students' success (and especially underserved students' success) significantly in three important areas: academic confidence, sense of belonging, and mastery of the skills employers value most when hiring.”  In the spirit of “small teaching,” join us to learn about how little shifts in transparency fosters an atmosphere of learning and belonging.

Every day, our newsfeeds are filled with reports of violence at the local, national, and global levels. Christians are called to be peacemakers who desire justice while also responding with mercy to those around us. What does Christian nonviolence look like in our context today? Come grab a cup of coffee or tea and join your colleagues as we wrestle with this timely question.

Amy Boone
Course evaluations, even those that provide constructive, helpful feedback, rarely benefit the students who took the class. This inability to close the loop can create apathy about filling out course evaluations. On the other hand, when a professor seeks specific feedback from students during the course of the semester, there are opportunities to converse further with the class, clarify a practice or procedure, or make a change in the class. Join us for a session that will explore a wide variety of ways to collect feedback mid-semester and how you might use the information you receive.

Larry Isenhower and Matt Maxwell 

Join us for a lunchtime discussion and an evening of hands-on viewing to explore the celestial landscape of our Texas night sky.

We’ll begin over lunch with an introduction to telescopes, how they work, why they are used in astronomy, and how digital cameras have opened the door to astrophotography for everyone. We’ll also preview the objects we plan to observe that night and talk about their significance in astronomy.

After sunset, we’ll meet at Sea Bee Park for a guided viewing session using telescopes provided by the physics department. You’ll have the chance to see Jupiter, Saturn, the Orion Nebula, and other standout features of the Texas sky. You’re welcome to bring your own telescope or camera if you’d like tips on using your equipment for astronomy.
Collegiality Session

Chicken Three Ways: A Chartwells Demonstration and Lunch
Chartwells Campus Dietitian Emily Bartley
Learn how one batch of chicken can become three quick, flavorful meals. This session will demonstrate simple sauces and seasoning combinations you can use all week long, along with practical tips for making meal prep easier and more efficient. The dishes prepared during the demonstration will be shared with participants and will serve as our lunch for the day!

In the current political and cultural moment, courses addressing diversity and social issues can feel especially fraught. This interdisciplinary faculty group will focus on strategies and resources for engaging students in thoughtful, respectful conversations. 

Our discussion aims to explore approaches that honor the complex positionality, backgrounds, lived experiences, and religious traditions of our students; remain attentive to Board guidance; and achieve disciplinary goals and learning outcomes.

Together, we will share ideas and practices related to:

• Fostering robust, respectful classroom discussions

• Incorporating current events into courses in meaningful ways that align with learning objectives

• Designing activities and assignments that effectively promote student self-reflection and critical thinking around social and diversity-related topics

Reading scripture in community seems to be something of a lost discipline. These sessions will provide an opportunity for faculty to simply read scripture aloud together. At the close of each session, we will share a few moments of reflection on what we have read and heard. The sessions will be held on the following Wednesdays:

• March 4

• March 25

• April 8

• April 22

Join us for fun and games with colleagues! Take a break from the usual routine and enjoy a relaxed meal and friendly competition with short and medium-length games.