March 2011 - Vol.2 No.3

Carolyn Rogers, Faculty Chair                                          Melissa McIntyre, Faculty Lead
            Phil Corkill, Core Faculty                                                     Doug DeWitt, Core Faculty                

                Ted Ray, Core Faculty                                                   Alma Rodriguez, Core Faculty          

LEA Specialization Meeting Minutes - March 8, 2011, 8:00 AM CT (or click here for the .pdf version)

Attended:

Phil Corkill, Jerry Horgen, Melissa McIntyre, Bill Wold, Steve Hinshaw, Ted Ray, Alma Rodriguez, Randall Sampson, Debbie Schreiner, Bob Pohl, Sue Slater, Skot Beazley, Irene Singletary, Laura Trujillo-Jenks, MaryAnn Nelson, Mary Rice-Crenshaw, Lee Monroe, Pat Guillory, Claire Lockman Boyce.

Organizational Updates

Dr. Corkill: In the past month, there have been three major organization issues:

Issue 1: CEO Kevin Gilligan announced quarterly earnings in February took a hit due to enrollment decline the economy, and other issues; for that reason, Capella elected to reduce staff in MN by 125 positions; 125 people were let go, no faculty, all admin support. This was a budget trimming initiative.

Issue 2: Currently Capella is seeking an associate dean. Dr. Jim Wold took a position at Capella in the training division, creating a vacancy. Let Phil, Carolyn, or Melissa know if interested in the position (is an on-site position). Interviews have been conducted, but we do not yet know the outcome of those interviews.

Issue 3: Larry Isaacs, President of Capella, elected to resign. He was  hired in November 2010. Dr. Deborah Bushway, Provost, has been elevated to interim President of Capella.  We have had four presidents of Capella U. during the last year. If our enrollment continues to decline (specifically new enrollments), or if it does not increase, this will result in fewer sections offered and fewer courses being taught by instructors. All are encouraged to continue to persist to keep learners and to focus on delivering a quality learning experience.

 

End of Quarter Points:
 

Last Day: The quarter ends on March 18, 2011. Learners usually have until 5pm on that day to submit their final projects. However, it is up to your discretion to allow additional time.

 

Grading Window: The grading window will open in March 16, 2011 and close on March 27, 2011. Please make sure that all grades are posted by that date (approved). If anyone has a problem posting grades, please seek assistance prior to the March 27, 2011.

 

F, WF, NS, and WNS: Please be sure to review the policy for grading especially as it relates to withdrawals (passive), not satisfactory and failures (F, WF, NS, and WNS). Make sure that you are posting grades correctly. Recall the following:

• F (Fail): A learner’s course work does not demonstrate mastery of the published competencies or does not meet course expectations as described in the course syllabus or course learning plan.
   

• NS (Not Satisfactory): A learner’s course work does not demonstrate mastery of the published competencies or does not meet course expectations as defined in the course syllabus or course learning plan. This grade is applied to those courses in which the learner has received approval to be graded on the S/NS scale.
   

• WF (Passive Withdrawal/ failure due to lack of participation): A learner has not actively participated in the course.
   

• WNS (Passive Withdrawal in an NS course): A learner has not actively participated in the course. This grade is applied to those courses in which the learner has received approval to be graded on the S/NS scale. Extended grading definitions can be found in the University Grading Policy on iGuide.

Incompletes: Students must submit an incomplete request form to be considered for an I in a course. So, if you have any learners that you feel may need to receive an incomplete, communicate with them to submit the form prior to the quarter ending. Once the form has been processed by the university, faculty will be contacted.

 

If a learner is granted an incomplete, he/she can only complete assignments that are missing. Discussion questions cannot be included in the tasks that learners are allowed to make up with an incomplete. If an incomplete is granted, learners should submit the missing work in the courseroom; please be sure to let learners know this. The current course(s) will be moved to their previous courses section on iguide after the course ends, so be sure to remind the learner of this. They will they will have to go to the area for their previous courses to gain access to the course after it ends. Finally, provide learners with a due date for turning in the remainder of the work and let them know when you will be completing the Grade Change form.

 

IRB Submissions: We haven’t gotten the specific dates for the last day of a guaranteed IRB review; however, we know that it will sometime soon. So, if you have any learners close to this phase, please have them submit their IRB packets soon. Otherwise, they will be placed on hold during the break. There are only five studies currently waiting for SOE review; their review deadlines range from March 14^th to March 21^st. All studies that have been submitted so far will be reviewed early (this week).

 

Scientific Merit Review (SMR): SMR will begin next quarter (Q2). All new mentees that start Q2 must utilize the SMR. Current mentees in the dissertation phase (already assigned to your mentoring courseroom this quarter) will not be required to use the SMR. However, you have the option of using it if you so desire.

 

Q2 Preview: The new quarter begins on April 11. We should have finalized numbers within the next 2-3 weeks. If courses for next quarter aren’t currently showing, then they will be visible by the end of March unless last minute changes are made to accommodate workload capacity.

 

Please keep in mind that the university is being very strict when it comes to workload capacity. No faculty can go over their assigned workload capacity. So, if it looks like there will be some overage for anyone, we will make changes to fix the.

 

The P-12 Quarterly Start meeting for all three specializations (SEL, C&I, and LEA) is scheduled for April 5, 2011 at 8:00 am. The call information is: Phone Number: 888-227-5650 Access Code: 28228#

 

Courses for Q2 need to be set up by 8:00 am Thursday, April 7, 2011. You will need to post both a faculty expectation message and a welcome in each course. Don’t forget that you are also encouraged to complete a Warm Welcome message for your course.

 

Colloquia/Commencement: The next colloquium will be held in Dallas, Texas from March 10-13. Melissa McIntyre and Doug DeWitt will be attending. Commence will be the same weekend in New Orleans. Carolyn Rogers will be giving the hooding address. Skot Beazley will also be attending to support his wife who will be graduating.

 

Mentoring Meeting:

The next mentoring meeting will be held on March 15, 2011 at 8pm CST. It will be facilitated by Ted Ray and Melissa McIntyre. Phone Number:  888-227-5650   Access Code: 29213#.

 

Proposal Template with SMR Embedded:

Thanks so much to Skot Beazley. He reviewed the revised template that he developed to incorporate the SMR information. Please review the documents to get a better understanding of the changes. In addition, please post the documents in your dissertation courseroom for learners.

Next LEA Faculty Meeting: 

The next LEA specialization meeting will be held on Tuesday, April 12, 2011 at 8:00 am CST.

 

Issues/Problems/Questions?

Email Melissa, Phil, Alma, Doug, or Ted

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 How to Check Your Advisee/Mentee Roster

Faculty may check their mentees and committee member assignments via i-Guide anytime. Please review the attached pdf file and follow the steps noted in the screenshots to view your roster.

 

http://a1149861.sites.myregisteredsite.com/FacultyCenterScreenShots.pdf

 

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 Great News from NCATE!!

This from Dr. Barbara Butts Williams, Dean, School of Education— 

Good News!   We received final word from NCATE about our request for them to reconsider their earlier recognition designation for three of our programs. The outcome has resulted in a correction from the ELCC SPA Review Chair.

 

We are very pleased and excited to share with you the following information about our P-12 School Administrator and Leadership Programs .

 

1.Education Administration EdS and PhD (Building) - Recognized 

2.Education Administration MS (Building) – Recognized

3. Leadership in Education Administration EdS and PhD – Recognized with Conditions

 

A special thank you to Dr. Rogers and her team for their excellent work on this submission.

 

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Quality Matters Courses

Quality Matters (QM) is a faculty-centered, peer review process that is designed to certify the quality of online and blended courses. QM is a leader in quality assurance for online education and has received national recognition for its peer-based approach and continuous improvement in online education and student learning. QM subscribers include community and technical colleges, colleges and universities, K-12 schools and systems, and other academic institutions.

 

The courses listed below will go through the Quality Matters process. However, these courses
already align with the QM standards, so they will move through the process with no problems.

The following courses will all be going through the Quality Matter’s process:

ED7852
ED7820
ED7543
ED7541

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Great Book Review, Dr. Horgen!

From: The School Administrator February 2011 Number 2, Vol. 68| Superintendent Side Ventures| 46

 

Book Review

Success in the Superintendency - Tips and Advice

by Kay T. Worner, Rowman & Littlefield Education, Lanham, Md., 2010, 145 pp. with index, $65 hardcover, $27.95 softcover

What’s not taught in graduate school is what this book is about. The superintendency is challenging, with so many difficult professional and personal situations arising every day. Knowing how to address the difficult situations can be most helpful to a superintendent.

The counsel given in Success in the Superintendency: Tips and Advice comes from veterans who have been either state or national superintendents of the year. The practical tips they share come from real-life situations involving superintendents of small and large school districts.

Author Kay Worner was a recent recipient of the Superintendent of the Year Award from the Minnesota Association of School Administrators. She is a professor of educational administration at St. Cloud State University.

Topics addressed include leading with integrity, thinking strategically, facilitating meaningful change and knowing when to move on. It’s one thing to be told that integrity is important, but the author gives specifics, stating, “Doing what’s right, not what’s popular, passing the credit and taking the blame, recognizing the importance of trust, talking about education, children, and human dignity, serving as a model for others through word, action and deed, etc.”

The ability to develop “what if” scenarios with your administrative team is critical to thinking strategically.

The subject of career transitioning is rarely addressed in educational leadership courses. Worner tackles it with real -scenarios.

In educational administration classes, the most valuable lessons are when professors invite school leaders who have been recognized as the best to address students.

Reviewed by Jerry Horgen, adjunct professor, Capella University, Minneapolis, Minn.
 

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Mentoring Meeting : Tuesday, March 15, 2011, 8:00 pm CST

LEA Faculty Meeting: Tuesday, April 12, 2011, 8:00 am CST

Residencies 2011:
Minneapolis, MN May 19-22, 2011
Atlanta, GA June 9-12, 2011
Anaheim, CA July 14-17, 2011
Dallas, TA August 4-7, 2011
Jacksonville, FL September 22-25, 2011
Arlington, VA October 27-30, 2011
Phoenix, AZ November 3-6, 2011
Orlando, FL December 27-30, 2011

Just for Fun :<)

Archives

Previous editions of the LEAnews are available by clicking the links below:

November 2010 - vol.1 No.1

December 2010 - Vol.1 No. 2

January 2011 - Vol.2 No. 1

February 2011 - Vol.2 No 2