The Faculty Training and Development
Laboratory
http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ait/ftdl/index.html
"Nick Irons single-handedly transformed the academic
computing program into a dynamic and successful component of the College's
Faculty Development effort and reshaped the Faculty Training and Development
Lab into a model service center." Howard Spivak, Director for Library Systems
& Academic Information Technologies
This hive of activity is another reflection of the growing
faculty interest in the academic applications of technology. Here, instructors
can make use of high-end equipment and software too costly to place in
every faculty office, secure one-on-one training, and solve a variety of
technological problems. The addition of Web design specialist Gilbert Midonnet
in the summer, 1998, enhanced the level of assistance the AIT staff can
provide.
The Faculty Workshop Series
http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/ait/ftdl/workshops/index.html
Nicholas Irons and his staff delivered an ambitious series of faculty workshops. Over the four years we have presented these workshops, the faculty's skill base has grown, causing us to expand the program to include new classes in Web page creation, Web site management, and multimedia development (including packages like PhotoShop and Director). We have received a strong and favorable response to the first-ever "master class" series, taught by Lori Scarlatos. Each semester's schedule is available from the AIT Web site, and slots fill quickly.
AIT staff have learned that, when it comes to faculty
development, one size definitely does not fit all. To accommodate
the faculty's varied preferences and working styles, in the coming year
we will introduce a menu of new services designed to make it easy and appealing
for faculty to put up Web pages that support their teaching; the message
will be, "Have it your way."
The two multimedia classrooms next door to the Faculty Lab were heavily booked, with 12 different classes meeting regularly in these rooms, and another 10 meeting there one or two times a week. This level of usage suggests that our faculty are making good use of computers and multimedia for teaching. The AIT staff do the set-ups for each class, troubleshooting equipment and software and assisting the instructors as they require.
The Digital Shakespeare Conference
Martin Elsky (English) arranged this April teleconference among the University of Pennsylvania, the CUNY Graduate Center, and Brooklyn College. His talents, along with the support of Seleena Threet (Computer Center) and Nicholas Irons (AIT), made this event with its three locations, audiences, and presenters a great success. This was the College's first official teleconference.
The Faculty Guide
to Computing
http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/bc/pubs/facguide
This joint effort of AIT and Information Technology and Services (ITS: administrative computing) was released in the spring 1998. It explains the services provided by both academic and administrative computing and assists faculty in solving technology-related problems.