FacDev Events

The Office of the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs regularly offers opportunities for faculty and Academic Affairs staff to participate in professional development events. This page serves as a resource and reference for past, present, and future events of this ilk.

🗓️ To add all Faculty Development events to your Google Calendar, please click on this link️.

We last updated this page on December 20, 2024.

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Winter 2025 Events

Here are development events at Knox for the Winter 2025 term.

Brown Bag Tuesdays 🥪

When:  Tuesdays from January 14 until February 25 at 12-noon
Where: Evelyn Handler Forum (ALUM 300)

Have questions? Want to build connections? Bring your lunch and join us. While each week has a topic, the fundamental purpose is just to build fellowship and community. Here is the preliminary schedule of topics:

Chairs Workshops 🪑

These meetings are all TBA at the moment. Please check back for more information.

Friday at Four 🕓

When:  January 24, 4:00pm
Where: Trustees Room (ALUM 302)

Knox College celebrates its faculty through the Fridays at Four events. These are opportunities for our faculty to present their work (finished or in-progress) to other faculty. Food and wine are provided to encourage a lively exchange.

Our inaugural Winter Term Friday at Four is by Katie Stewart. She will be speaking to the effects of Russian nationalism and its effects on Russia's constituent republics. If you are interested, here is a link to her book, published by the University of Wisconsin Press:

Legitimating Nationalism: Political Identity in Russia's Ethnic Republics

The International Student Experience in the Classroom 🌏

When:  January 27, 4:00pm
Where: Trustees Room (ALUM 302)

Five international students will form a panel to discuss their classroom experiences at Knox. These five students will talk about what they enjoyed, what worked for them, and what difficulties they had. Come and enjoy the conversation. There will be a lot to take away from their experiences. This will be an opportunity to celebrate our teaching and to gain insight into improving it.

Program Review Kick-Off 🦶

When:  February 6, 4:00pm
Where: Trustees Room (ALUM 302)

This is the time/place for a general introductory meeting to launch the program review process (there will be food!). In this meeting, we will explain the entire review process, explain key updates to the process that differ from your previous program review, and as well as provide an opportunity for you to ask questions about the process.

The following department and programs will undergo formal Program Review in the 2025-26 academic year cycle:

• • American Studies
  • Anthropology-Sociology
  • Chemistry
  • Economics
  • Integrative Business and Management
  • Journalism
  • Music
  • Social Service

Friday at Four 🕓

When:  February 28, 4:00pm
Where: Trustees Room (ALUM 302)

Our next Friday at Four is by Ole Forsberg, of the Department of Mathematics. Here, Ole will discuss something very interesting. Unfortunately, he's not sure what it will be yet. Please wait and see!

Next Term 📅

Here are some events for you to look forward to in the Spring Term.

• Two more Fridays at Four. If you want to present, let me know! (facultydevelopment@knox.edu)
• More workshops on chairing a department or program — some with a focus on the new budgeting process.
• The theory of advising at Knox for new advisors and for those who want a refresher. In addition to this, there are the trainings for the Summer Advising Squad, who will ensure that our incoming students are properly enrolled for the Fall 2025 term.
• Finally, there is the spring celebration of Knox's “Abolition for All Time Humanities Lab.” This celebration will take the form of a conference showcasing all that the lab has accomplished over the past few years... with an eye toward the future of Abolition at Knox... and beyond. 
  ➡️ Here is the official Call for Proposals. The deadline to apply is January 10, 2025. Please see this webpage for more information about the application process.

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Fall 2024 Events

Here are development events at Knox for the Fall 2024 term.

Brown Bag Tuesdays  🥪

When:  Tuesdays from September 17 until November 12 at 12-noon
Where: Evelyn Handler Forum (ALUM 300)

Have questions? Want to build connections? Bring your lunch and join us. While each week has a topic, the fundamental purpose is just to build fellowship and community.

Here is the preliminary schedule of topics:

Chairs Workshops 🪑

Tailgating 🏈

When:  September 21, starting at 11:00am
Where: Parking let east of Knosher Bowl

Come join the staff and the faculty at our annual tailgating event. We have the meats. Please bring a side and something to drink. After the BBQ, we will head over to the Knosher Bowl to watch our beloved Knox College Prairie Fire rain destruction on the University of Chicago Maroons.

Friday at Four 🕓

When:  September 27, 4:00pm
Where: Trustees Room (ALUM 302)

Knox College celebrates its faculty through the Fridays at Four events. These are opportunities for our faculty to present their work (finished or in-progress) to other faculty. Food and wine are provided to encourage a lively exchange.

Our inaugural Friday at Four for the 2024-25 academic year is by Thomas Bell. He will be speaking to aspects of the Supreme Court we may not be aware of. The title is The Constitution of Conflict: How the Supreme Court Undermines the Separation of Powers. 

Friday at Four 🕓

When:  November 8, 4:00pm
Where: Trustees Room (ALUM 302)

Our second Friday at Four is by Duane Oldfield, also of the Department of Political Science and International Relations. Here, Duane will discuss his journey looking into the archives trying to decipher how Knox has handled free speech and academic freedom throughout the years.

December Workshop ☃️

When:  December 4 and 5; times to be decided later
Where: SMC A-201/202

Every year, we put together a two-day workshop in early December the purpose of this workshop is to build skills as an educator and to build conversations across campus. The first day will be titled Abolishing the Bookstore and will focus on Open Educational Resources (OERs) and how we can use them in the classroom to help our students. The second day will focus on smaller aspects of abolition and how it will affect the classroom and the academy, writ large. 

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Next Terms 📅

Here are some events for you to look forward to in the Winter and Spring Terms.

• Four Fridays at Four (two per term). If you want to present, let me know! (facultydevelopment@knox.edu)
• A party (and workshop) to start the next round of Department (and Program) Reviews!
• More workshops on chairing a department or program — some with a focus on the new budgeting process.
• Ongoing discussions of assessing classes, majors/minors, and departments.
• A spring celebration of Knox's “Abolition for All Time Humanities Lab.” This celebration will take the form of a conference showcasing all that the lab has accomplished over the past few years... with an eye toward the future of Abolition at Knox... and beyond. 
  ➡️ Here is the official Call for Proposals. The deadline to apply is January 10, 2025. Please see this webpage for more information about the application process.

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Summer 2024 Events

The Summer AI Reading Group 🤖

When:  Wednesdays from July 17 until August 13 at 2:00pm
Also:     Tuesdays, August 20 and August 27
Where: Abolition Lab in Seymour Library, Hybrid option available.

This reading group was put together by Hilary Lehmann to give us more insight into generative AI programs like ChatGPT, Ollama, Copilot, and their ilk. What do they mean? How can we use them? How can we explain their uses (and abuses) to our students as we prepare them for life-long learning?

For more information, please contact Hilary at hjlehmann@knox.edu.

Book Club: Little Fires Everywhere

When:   August 6, 2024 (Tuesday) 10:00am to 2:00pm.
Where: OM 100. Hybrid option available.

The FP Steering Committee selected Celeste Ng's timeless novel, Little Fires Everywhere as the common reading for our first-year students. To support those teaching FP (and those who enjoy reading), we are holding a discussion of the book and how it can be used to encourage our students to think more about American culture and what we experience.

🥪 Food form: https://forms.gle/dxkBvQtDooZNKKRn8
If you are attending in person, please complete the food form by July 28.

🗓️ Click here to add it to your calendar 

📂 Link to documents

Course Development Workshop

When:   August 8, 2024 (Thursday) 10:00am to 2:00pm.
Where: OM 100. Lunch included. In-person only.

Would you enjoy some concentrated time to plan a new course you’ve been thinking about, or work on a revision of an existing course? This workshop will lead you through a process of designing a course that will help you answer many questions. While this workshop is aimed toward returning faculty, I encourage new faculty in the area to attend. Among other things, it will be a good place to learn more about the inner workings of a small, residential, liberal arts institution like Knox College.

🥪 Food form: https://forms.gle/SxuHrbLvTLkqWcDD6
Please complete the food form by July 28.

🗓️ Click here to add it to your calendar

📂 Link to documents

Effective Assignment Design Workshop

When:   August 15, 2024 (Thursday) from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm.
Where: OM 100. Hybrid option available.

The research is in — students go more out of assignments when they know why they’re doing them and what you expect them to do. Come to this workshop with an assignment you plan to use in Fall term and we’ll make sure that it is ready for student eyes!

As for food, because of the timing, some light snacks and pop will be provided.

🗓️ Click here to add it to your calendar

Zoom Room

📂 Link to documents

FP Writing Workshop

【 This information significantly changed on 7/26/2024. 】

When:   August 16 (Friday) from 8:30 am to 3:00 pm.
Where: SMC A-201/202

While this writing workshop is targeted to the FP instructors, all faculty who teach writing (that would be all of us) are encouraged to join the workshop. 

Guest Presenter: Bruce Kovanen, Class of 2015

🗓️ Click here to add it to your calendar

Zoom Room Link

New Faculty Orientation

When:   August 28 and 29 from 8:30am to 4:00pm. 
Where: Wilson House (August 28); Seymour Library (August 29). Food Included.

This is it! This is Knox community's introduction to our newest members. In these two short days, the new faculty will learn what it means to be at a small, liberal arts college like Knox. Sessions include introductions to the administration, the faculty, the students, and those who directly support the students.

The incoming faculty will experience all about Knox that we can fit in 14 hours without causing (too much) pain. 😸

Note: All events are subject to change.
Please contact Ole (ojforsberg@knox.edu) or Kari (ksantos@knox.edu) for questions on these events.