Active Learning Showcase in Introductory Statistics: Celebrating Collaboration and Innovation | | Presenters from the event in Seidler Hall 114, October 1, 2025. | | The Active Learning Showcase in Introductory Statistics, organized by Tanya Huffman, STA 2023 Coordinator in the Department of Mathematics, in collaboration with Dr. Heather Skaza-Acosta, Director of the Whitaker Institute for STEM Education, concluded successfully on October 1, 2025, in Seidler Hall 114. | | |
Presentations included:
Evolving Active Learning in STA 2023: From Peer Teaching to a Flipped Classroom, presented by Enas Awad, Mathematics
First Look at Statistics: Measuring Experimental Error in General Biology I, presented by Robert Humphries, Ph.D., Biological Sciences
Project-Based Learning in Introductory Statistics, presented by Nicholas Bianco, Mathematics
Student Presentations on Probability, presented by Rita Morgan, Mathematics
Discovering Knowledge Through Value: Humanizing Introductory Statistics to Foster Intellectual Curiosity, presented by Cijy Elizabeth Sunny, Ph.D., Mathematics & Computing and Software Engineering
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| "Faculty demonstrated how active learning fosters curiosity, critical thinking, and success in foundational courses." | | The event highlighted innovative strategies that make statistics more engaging through peer teaching, flipped classrooms, and project-based learning. It exemplified academic excellence through interdisciplinary collaboration and a shared commitment to student-centered teaching. Faculty demonstrated how active learning fosters curiosity, critical thinking, and success in foundational courses. | | 2025 Graduate and Professional Schools Fair a Success | | |
FGCU’s first Graduate and Professional Schools Fair in eight years was a success, with 297 students in attendance. The fair was held on October 28, 2025 and was designed to showcase the value of graduate education and inspire students.
All of FGCU’s academic units were represented and appreciated the opportunities to discuss their graduate programs with students. Seventeen institutions, including out-of-state schools such as Boston University and American University, participated in the fair.
Internal support groups such as the Center for Academic Achievement (CAA), Office of Scholarly Innovation and Student Research (SISR), Physical Therapy (PT) Library Resources, Graduate Admissions, Service-Learning & Civic Engagement, Office of Competitive Fellowships, and Career Development Services, engaged with students in discovering professional and graduate opportunities.
The fair supports and aligns with University Strategic Plan Goal 1, “Innovate in Academic Excellence,” and Metric 1: Percent of Bachelor's Graduates Enrolled or Employed ($40,000+) of the FGCU Student Success Plan.
| |  | Below, left to right, Fair organizers Shannon Acosta, Mary Larkin, Jessica Rhea, Dr. Dawn Kirby, and Jazzmine Santiago. | Above, left to right, members of the Department of Justice Studies: Dr. Roshni Ladny, Dr. Lucy Papp, and Dr. Heather Walsh-Haney. | Stay tuned for more information on next year’s fair. Contact Director of Graduate Programs Shannon Acosta (sacosta@fgcu.edu) to learn how to participate and promote the event among your students. | |
Canvas Quicktip Episode 6: Blueprints | |
Blueprints allow faculty to design a single, well-structured course template and sync it across all sections effortlessly. This saves time by eliminating repetitive setup tasks and ensuring consistency in content, assignments, and grading standards. With one blueprint, updates are applied everywhere, helping instructors maintain quality and focus on teaching rather than administrative work.
Complete the Canvas Blueprint Request for a Canvas Blueprint today!
Please reach out to your instructional designer with any questions.
| Looking for a Canvas QuickTip? Bookmark Digital Learning's Canvas QuickTip Archive and access expert guidance whenever you need a refresh to use Canvas more efficiently and effectively. CLICK to browse the Archive. | New Syllabus Management System & Training Opportunities | |
Dear Faculty/Adjuncts,
To ensure efficient compliance with new regulations, Florida Gulf Coast University has adopted Simple Syllabus as our new syllabus management system. This change will streamline syllabus collection and ensure compliance with updated Board of Governors (BOG) Regulation 8.003, which will require:
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All syllabi to be published 45 days prior to the first day of class (effective Fall 2026).
- Inclusion of specific items in the public-facing syllabus.
- Faculty attestation that course materials meet all policies.
What does this mean for you?
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We are launching a soft rollout of Simple Syllabus in Spring 2026. Faculty may choose to adopt now or continue with current practices–but we are strongly encouraging everyone to begin using the new system.
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Full implementation begins Summer 2026, with the 45-day requirement enforced in Fall 2026.
Required elements in the public syllabus include:
- Course identifiers (prefix, number, CRN, title)
- Instructor information (name, rank, office, phone, office hours)
- Required textbooks (auto-populated from Barnes & Noble)
- Recommended materials, topics covered, grading scale (faculty input)
- Official course description and approved learning outcomes (will be prepopulated)
Faculty can add additional details and update syllabi anytime using version control features in Simple Syllabus.
Training Opportunities
To help you prepare, PIP will host 30 training sessions (in-person and via Teams) from now through December 19, 2025 and January 5–6, .
Register through EagleLink: https://getinvolved.fgcu.edu/organization/pip.
Thank you for your commitment to this important initiative. If you have questions, please reach out to Merri Incitti at ext. 7048 or mincitti@fgcu.edu.
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Reminder! FGCU faculty, staff and students are encouraged to submit nominations for the Advising, Librarianship, Scholarship, Service and Teaching Excellence Awards. All nomination forms must be received by 5 p.m. November 21.
Click here to read the entire message and access other recent communications from EVP and Provost Thorne.
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JOIN US! Provost's Seminar Series | Friday, December 5, 2025
Location: Seidler Hall, Room 114
Click the Eagle Link for additional details
| The series kicks off with Dr. Michael Osterholm, Director Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy Research and Innovation Office, University of Minnesota, discussing pandemic preparedness. | | Check out past editions of the Academic Affairs newsletter: Academic Affairs Events | | Have you seen a faculty member or academic team exhibiting academic excellence and going the extra mile for student success? Email us: academicaffairs@fgcu.edu. | | |
2025 FGCU/UAC Annual Pottery Sale
Friday, December 5, 2025
Join us at FGCU Arts Complex
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FGCU College of Education
Final Defense Announcements
December 1 and 4, 2025
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The FGCU College of Education invites the Eagle community to the oral dissertation defenses by Doctor of Education candidates Jennifer Mary Fulwider and Marianela Rivera Perez.
Please email Dr. Tunde Szecsi at tszecsi@fgcu.edu to request a Zoom link.
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FGCU School of Resort & Hospitality
LAST DAY to Order Your Holiday Favorites & Support Student Success
This Thanksgiving, enjoy hand crafted desserts made with premium ingredients by FGCU's School of Resort & Hospitality’s faculty, staff, and students.
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The featured desserts are:
- Classic Pumpkin Pie
- Dutch Apple Pie
- Brown Butter Maple Chess Pie
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Decadent GF Chocolate Torte.
All desserts are available as whole pies, with select flavors also offered by the slice. 100% of all proceeds go directly toward student professional development experiences, helping bridge classroom learning with real-world application such as working high-profile events like the Super Bowl to representing FGCU at conventions and international festivals.
Each purchase helps our Eagles gain hands-on experience while you enjoy more time with family and friends.
Order your pies today!
Place your order here or scan the QR code.
Thanksgiving Pie Order Pick-Up Times:
Monday, November 24, 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at Sugden Hall Atrium
Tuesday, November 25, 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at Sugden Hall Atrium
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Career Advancement Assistance Program
The Office of Academic Affairs is pleased to announce the Career Advancement Assistance Program. The purpose of the Career Advancement Assistance Program is to provide time for faculty members to engage meaningfully in activities that yield outputs and impacts enhancing FGCU’s scholarly impact and timely promotion of faculty members.
- Faculty categories included in this initiative are those on the professor and instructor tracks. The Career Advancement Assistance Program partially relieves teaching obligations to provide time for scholarly, research, or career development endeavors. During the Career Advancement Assistance Program, faculty teaching load and/or other assignments will be reduced, and no overload teaching will be permitted.
- The number of awards is contingent on the availability of funding through the Provost’s office.
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The deadline for the Summer 2026 Career Advancement semester is Monday, November 17, 2025. Summer semester is now available for 12-month AND 9-month faculty. Please see the guidelines for details. For 9-month faculty, if selected, they will receive 25% of their base salary as additional summer pay. No summer teaching will be allowed for those in the program during the summer career advancement semester.
Access the application cover page and detailed information about the program here:
Please submit your application in its entirety to Julie Leyden (jleyden@fgcu.edu).
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Office of Research & Sponsored Programs (ORSP) | |
Call for Nominations: Hanover Grant Academy (January–October 2026)
The Office of Research & Sponsored Programs (ORSP) is soliciting nominations for the Hanover Grant Academy, a 9-month intensive program running from January through October. Up to eight faculty will be selected to participate in a comprehensive proposal development process aimed at securing extramural funding.
The Academy includes:
- Approximately four in-person group sessions
- One-on-one meetings with Hanover experts
- Grantsmanship training
- Proposal review and critique
- Guidance on project development and alignment with funding opportunities
- Support for proposal revision
Eligibility & Expectations:
- A key selection criterion is the intent to submit a proposal for extramural funding.
- Selected faculty are expected to submit a proposal by the end of the Academy.
- Faculty may apply for an additional round of intensive proposal development assistance provided an application for extramural funding was submitted during prior participation.
Application Deadline: Friday, December 19, 2025, by 5:00 PM
Please submit the application (below) as a single PDF to Dr. Rosemary Higgins at rhiggins@fgcu.edu. For questions, contact Dr. Higgins directly.
Faculty Name:
Rank:
College or School:
Title of research proposal:
Target agency (with URL):
Secondary target agencies (with URLs):
Approximate budget (total direct costs):
History of prior extramural application(s) for proposal:
If reviews/critiques are available, please include them with the application package
Brief justification for nomination for grant academy:
Attachments:
Current CV:
Support letter from Chair or Dean
Other Supporting materials
Other questions:
What do you feel are your strongest grant seeking skills?
What grant seeking skills would you like to develop or grow?
What are your top 3 goals for participating in the Academy?
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PAST ANNOUNCEMENTS
Missed an announcement? We've got you covered.
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Faculty: motivate your students to present their research at FGCU's Fall 2025 Accounting Interdisciplinary Student Conference on November 18 & 20. Students from ALL disciplines are welcome to submit papers. | Registration link or scan QR. Contact: bcarden@fgcu.edu
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The Lucas Center Symposium on Teaching & Learning A Celebration of Passionate Teaching. Tuesday, February 17 & Wednesday, February 18, 2026
Click here for more information.
| | Digital Learning Online Workshop: Integrating GEN AI In Your Course. This asynchronous, self-paced workshop in Canvas introduces faculty to the foundational principles and practical applications of Generative AI in teaching. Although a course date is listed, this workshop features rolling enrollment and can be started at any time. Please disregard the listed date when registering. Register here or contact kiconroy@fgcu.edu. | |
FGCU's Office of the Ombuds is here to assist faculty, staff, and students! Employees who may be experiencing a university-related concern or conflict are encouraged to reach out to the Ombuds Office as an informal and confidential resource | Visit the Ombuds’ webpage for more information. | | |
TODAY! November 17, 2025
Global Engagement Office
28th Annual International Reception
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Arthrex Expo at FGCU - Nov. 18, 2025 | |
The Arthrex team will be at the FGCU campus for the Arthrex Expo on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., in the Cohen Student Union.
This collaborative event is a wonderful opportunity for students of all majors, alumni, faculty, and staff to connect with the Arthrex team and learn more about our partnership, as well as career and internship opportunities.
Event Details
Date: Tuesday, November 18
Time: 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Location: FGCU Cohen Student Union
Learn more and register: www.fgcu.edu/arthrexexpo
| | University Library Events | November 19, 2025 | |
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ANNUAL PERSONAL SHRED DAY
Wednesday, November 19
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Time
11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
Place
Inner Loop of Parking Lot #5
Do not miss this opportunity to shred your personal paper documents safely and securely for FREE. All paper documents will be shred on site.
If you have any questions please contact Records Management at 239-590-1426.
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Whitaker Institute for STEM Education
November 20, 2025
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Community Engagement Showcase
December 4, 2025
11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Cohen Student Union Ballroom
Recognizing the silos that exist on campus, this initiative invites offices, departments, and registered student organizations (RSOs) to share how they engage with the Southwest Florida community to drive student success and academic excellence.
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This event will enable FGCU students and employees to discover efforts happening across the university and connect with others. Please JOIN US!
Click for more details.
| | OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUR STUDENTS | | |
Wednesday, November 19, 2025
8:00 AM - 3:00 PM | Cohen Student Union Ballroom
OPEN TO ALL STUDENTS
FREE clothing and opportunities to meet with campus partners!
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