California University of Pennsylvania

Faculty Professional Development Committee

"Fostering Community through Discovery"

Communities form when people share a sense of common identity. Dixcovery occurs when people open themselves to experiences outside their current realm of knowing. This year, the Faculty Professional Development Committee (FPDC), it subcommittees, and the Center will continue to foster faculty development by awarding grants, sponsoring workshops, and providing programming events throughout the academic year. In addition the FPDC will be making a special effort to foster the formation of new and exciting communities that bring together faculty from diverse backgrounds who might just discover that they share a common identity. Please join us and your fellow faculty members as we embark on this year's journey toward "Fostering Community through Discovery." 

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Faculty Professional Development Committee

The Faculty Professional Development Committee (FPDC) serves as a major conduit for faculty professional development and as the recommending body to the president of the University or his/her designee for activities pertaining to faculty professional development.

 
Faculty Center is located in Azorsky 134

 

Philosophy

Faculty development is a process whereby faculty members seek to:

• improve teaching and learning
• add to their discipline's body of knowledge
• enhance the quality of life through community outreach
• integrate the three developmental activities

Faculty development at California University of Pennsylvania may be thought of as individual professional growth that is consistent with personal goals, departmental goals,university missions, and the State System's 2000 document 'Imperatives Affirmed.'

It is the mission of the FPDC  to support, by whatever means possible and prudent, and as available resources allow, any faculty member's need for professional growth consistent with the above definition.

 

Mission and Objectives

The mission of the FPDC is to promote and support teaching, scholarship, service,appropriate use of technology, and the University's core values of civility, responsibility, and integrity.

The objectives of the program are to:

• define, promote, and encourage scholarly activity at California University of Pennsylvania
• identify means of recognizing and rewarding scholarly accomplishments of faculty
• define the university's role in supporting scholarly activity
• clearly define the policies and procedures governing the university's commitments to the scholarly endeavors of the faculty
• oversee, coordinate, manage, and assess the Faculty Professional Development Center, the committee and its sub-committees and various FPDC functions under its charge
• plan for the future and amend the by-laws as needed

 

Scholarship Defined

Scholarship can be broadly defined 'in ways that enrich, rather than restrict, the equality of campus life' (Boyer; 1990, p. 1). Boyer (1990) felt that scholarship should match the 'full range' of creative activities performed by faculty within a variety of academic disciplines.  Accordingly, he defined scholarship in terms off our 'separate yet overlapping functions' :discovery, integration, application and teaching (p. 16).

Boyer defined the scholarship of discovery as traditional research where knowledge is sought for its own sake or for practical purposes through systematic modes of inquiry designed to identify problems, state hypotheses, collect data, test hypotheses, and develop conclusions concerning the solution of problems. He defined thescholarship of integrationas any effort designed to bring meaning to isolated facts, especially when new perspectives or connections are made across disciplines. This form of scholarship is closely related to the scholarship of discovery and typically occurs at the boundaries where fields of knowledge converge.

Boyer also indicated, that individuals engaged in the scholarship of integrationfit their research 'or the research of others into larger intellectual patterns to provide a larger, more comprehensive understanding' (p. 19). Boyer defined the scholarship of applicationas the performance of service-related activities requiring specialized knowledge from one's discipline of expertise. Finally, he defined the scholarship of teachingas creative activities' which stimulate active, not passive, learning and encourage students to be critical, creative thinkers, with the capacity to go on learning after their college days are over' (p. 24).

Since Boyer's publication, Scholarship Reconsidered(1990), the university has added yet another dimension to scholarship: technology. As the dawn of the new millennium approached,the university community is inundated with newer, faster, and more technology than at any other time in history. In order for faculty to meet the needs of students and prepare them for the new millennium, it is imperative that the definition of scholarship also encompass the knowledge and judicious use of technology. This scholarship of technology is not necessarily a new and separatescholarship, but gives faculty another resource with which to pursue scholarship in the areas that Boyer defines as discovery, application, and teaching. This form of scholarship is most closely aligned with Boyer'sdefinition of scholarship of integration.

 

Faculty Professional Development Organizational Structure

The FPDC oversees the program through activities developed and supported by the Faculty Center  and various FPD subcommittees. All FPDC activities follow established policies and procedures approved by the committee, the Provost, the President, and the Council of Trustees of the University.

 Contact Information

Address:  California University of Pennsylvania           
250 University Avenue
Azorsky 134
California, PA 15419-1394

Phone:  724-938-4505  |  Fax:  724-938-4370  |  E-mail:  fpdc@cup.edu

FPDC Co-Chairs: Kurt Kearcher and Lisa Solomon-Driscoll

Center Coordinator : Pratul Pathak 

 Assistant:  Patricia McClain   

 

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