Professional education faculty members are expected to engage in service activities to the university, unit, and broader community that are consistent with the mission of Bellarmine University, and the mission and vision of the unit. The Faculty Evaluation Guidelines for Service support the unit's conceptual framework and are found in the Full-time Faculty Handbook, p. 92-94. Faculty are expected to serve on unit committees and at least one university committee, as well as participate in community and professional service endeavors that strengthen personal skills while facilitating achievement of P-12 students (Exhibit 5.3.e.1).
Collaborating with faculty in other units and P-12 schools to improve teaching and candidate learning is modeled in the activities of the professional education faculty, including consulting with department chairs in Arts & Sciences about the new secondary education major, and inviting teachers and administrators from local school districts to co-conduct candidate interviews for admission to the Teacher Education Program. Additionally, the Advisory Committee on Education (ACE), composed of stakeholders from P-12 education, meets with the unit twice a year as a professional learning community to provide feedback on program design, curriculum, and analysis of data and program improvement (Exhibit 5.3.e.2). The professional education faculty demonstrate a strong commitment to collaboration with P-12 schools through school partnerships, including a multi-year partnership with Breckinridge-Franklin Elementary Communication Magnet School and a planned Literacy Academy beginning fall, 2012, in two local districts to improve P-12 student achievement and support teachers in the delivery of effective literacy instruction. Other noteworthy partnerships are with Doss High School, Western High School, and Southern High School Intervention Projects with Jefferson County Public Schools involving candidates' direct involvement with P-12 students. The unit collaborates with the Archdiocesan schools as well; for example, education faculty will conduct professional development workshops at Nativity Academy at St. Boniface in 2012. A summary of collaborative activities in P-12 schools and with the professional community is provided in Exhibit 5.3.e.3.
Faculty are actively involved in professional associations and providing education-related services at the local, state, national, and international levels. Professional education faculty members have accepted and fulfilled leadership roles/responsibilities in professional organizations as well as reviewing manuscripts for professional journals. The International Reading Association (IRA) journal, The Reading Teacher, was housed at the unit from 2008-2011 with Dr. Robert Cooter (unit head) as one of the editors. (See curriculum vitae, Exhibit 5.3.a.3)
The unit employs a systematic evaluation system that includes regular and comprehensive reviews of faculty performance in the areas of teaching, scholarship, and service with the purpose of improving faculty performance. Professional education faculty are supported in an on-going evaluation process through the University's tenure and promotion system as described in Chapter 7 of the university's 2011 Faculty Handbook (Exhibit 5.3.f.1) and in the unit's annual faculty evaluation process for teaching, scholarship, service, and dispositions. (See Full-time Faculty Handbook, Exhibit 5.3.f.2, pp. 74-95). Professional education faculty begin the unit evaluation system by setting annual goals at the beginning of each academic year as a framework to guide the self-assessment process. In keeping with the unit's conceptual framework of "Reflective Learner," faculty self-reflect and write an assessment of their performance in early spring of each academic year, which is then incorporated into the unit's annual evaluation by the chairs and dean(s). Unit annual evaluations are maintained in the office of the dean as well as in the office of Academic Affairs. A summary of professional education faculty ratings by the unit head for academic years 2009, 2010, and 2011 is found in Exhibit 5.3.f.3. The ratings are used by the president for the Presidential Faculty Merit Award.
Exhibits
5.3.e.1 Summary of Faculty Service Activities
5.3.e.2 Advisory Committee Education Minutes
5.3.e.3 Professional Faculty P-12 Activities
5.3.a.3 Curriculum Vitae
5.3.f.1 University Faculty Handbook
5.3.f.2 AFTSE 11-12 Full-Time Faculty Handbook
5.3.f.3 Ratings of Faculty Annual Performance by Unit Head 2009-2011