UVM’s aspirational community values are reflected in Our Common Ground, defining a path to an equitable and inclusive campus. Yet our data shows we do not fully live up to this. The Howard Hughes Medical Institution (HHMI) Driving Change Program addresses our goal: To create an interculturally-skilled campus community that embraces Our Common Ground, including racial and ethnic inclusion and belonging, leading to parity in student success.
To meet this goal, UVM has been awarded a five-year HHMI grant to develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to:
- Identify and remove institutional policies that create roadblocks for students.
- Offer programs for all students to help them develop cultural competency, cultural humility, and intergroup dialogue skills – the skills they need to be a more inclusive social culture.
- Create the “Our Common Ground Leadership Development Program.”
- Provide professional development to support faculty and academic staff to create more welcoming and equitable learning and advising environments.
Read more about UVM’s Driving Change grant initiative, the Division of Intercultural Excellence.
This professional development happens at two levels: training for faculty fellows who will then facilitate the Communities of Practice (CoP). The HHMI leadership team, including the Provost, the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and Student Success, and the Vice Provost for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion selected four Faculty Fellows to lead CoPs based on their experience, passion, and commitment to inclusive and equity-minded teaching. These faculty will lead CoPs in AY 25-26.
Enrollment for each community is limited (10 -12 faculty per community) and is on a first-come, first-served basis. In the registration form, you will be asked to list your top three CoP choices, so please read all the descriptions that follow. Specific questions about a CoP should be addressed to its Faculty Fellow facilitator.
CoP in-person locations will be communicated to registrants at a later date.
Note: All communities of practice will provide lunch for participants and the time commitment is ~ 25 hours for the year. (This includes the 75 minute monthly meetings and preparation for each session.)
How to Enroll
Below are the descriptions for the AY 25 - 26 Communities of Practice. Enrollment in a community is on a first-come first serve basis.
2025-'26 Communities of Practice
Finding Joy in the Aha Moments
Facilitator: Tricia Brown, Senior Lecturer in Education
Mondays 2:30-3:45 PM
Fall 2025 dates - Sep 15, Oct 13, Nov 17, Dec 15
Spring 2026 dates: Feb 16, Mar 16. Apr 13, May 11
Shared CoP Gathering: Tue, 1/13, (Time and Location: TBD)
Some of the most rewarding moments of teaching can be seeing the light bulb go off for a student when they finally figure out something you’ve been trying to help them understand. Yet, teaching our students can sometimes feel like a one-way street. We carefully plan our lectures with all the right information, but it can be difficult to know if students are really getting it until we get the exam results. How can we cultivate a classroom where we can experience students’ learning, curiosity, and success in real time?
This community of practice will explore how we can create more opportunities in our STEM courses to experience the “aha” moments for our students. We will discuss ways we might share our enthusiasm for our disciplines by creating engaging and interactive activities that give us more insight about what students are learning. Our goal will be to find more satisfaction in our teaching while helping all students experience making sense of a new idea or concept. We will experiment with new strategies and share what we learn in a supportive, low-stakes environment.
Redefining Student Support: Building Meaningful Relationships in STEM Classes
Facilitator: Karsten Fatur, Lecturer, Plant Biology and Biological Sciences
Fall 2025 dates - Sep 23, Oct 21, Nov 11, Dec 2,
Spring 2026 dates - Jan 20, Feb 24, Mar 31, Apr 21
Meeting times: 11:45-1 pm
Location: Jeffords 326
Shared CoP Gathering: Tue, 1/13, (Time and Location: TBD)
This group is open to all faculty teaching undergraduate courses in STEM disciplines at UVM who are interested in exploring the role of student support and instructor-student relationships in learning. We will examine the ways in which offering additional support to students may impact both student and faculty experience, as well as what a meaningful and supportive relationship between an instructor and their students can look like, and what this can do for student success in STEM disciplines. Does providing extra support in the context of a meaningful mentoring relationship impede student development, or does it allow struggling students to thrive?
Through self-reflection, we will clarify our personal values, and work on ways to increase student learning and retention in STEM classes through the giving of support and formation of meaningful educational relationships.
As part of the group, we will be reading Felten and Lambert's Relationship-Rich Education. Members of the community of practice will receive a copy of the book.
Designing and teaching for every student to thrive in STEM courses
Facilitator: Laura Hill, PhD - Senior Lecturer, Plant Biology and Biological Sciences
Meeting times and location: Every second Thursday of the month, 1:15-2:30PM. (September 2025 – May 2026)
Shared CoP Gathering: Tuesday, 1/13, Time and Location: TBD
This community of practice is designed for UVM faculty teaching introductory courses in STEM, courses in the core STEM curricula, and first-year STEM seminars.
Are you curious about investigating your experiences as a STEM educator and the experiences of undergraduate students in your classroom? Are you interested in the research on how to effectively develop a course that acknowledges and addresses the diverse learning needs of all students? Do you seek opportunities to explore and foster support for student learning and enthusiasm for introductory STEM courses? Are you eager for opportunities for collaboration across STEM disciplines? Join our community and engage in conversations about inclusive teaching with other UVM faculty.
All participating faculty will choose a new or existing course to enhance student learning, and The Norton Guide to Equity-Minded Teaching (Artze-Vega et at., 2023) will guide our monthly meeting discussions and activities.
Fostering Ripples of Change: Supporting Transformative Thinking and Teaching Practices in the STEM disciplines at UVM
Facilitator: Shelly A. Rayback (she/her/her’s), Professor and Chair, Department of Geography and Geosciences
Fall 2025 Dates: Sep 24, Oct 22, Nov 19, Dec 3
Spring 2025 Dates: TBD
Meeting times: Wednesdays 12:00-1:15
Shared CoP Gathering: Tuesday, 1/13, Time and Location: TBD
UVM’s Common Ground principles are the foundation from which we work to build a enriching educational experience and through which all our students can seek and find academic and personal success. Critical to our students’ success in the STEM classroom are our faculty who commit to transformative teaching practices. As chairs and program directors who work at the unique intersection of faculty and administration, we hold both the bird’s eye and microscopic views of the challenges and opportunities for fostering this type of supportive teaching environment. This CoP asks:
- How can we, as chairs and directors, facilitate and advocate for greater emphasis on, and adoption of, transformative teaching in our communities?
- How can we help our colleagues, departments and colleges navigate the institutional structures and remove the barriers that impede lasting change?
This peer-facilitated community of practice is designed for chairs and directors of STEM departments and programs. We will meet four times per semester for one hour and 15 minutes over lunch. Short readings and seed questions will serve as a catalyst for thought and discussion in our CoP.