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Academic Calendar 2025-2026
Upcoming Dates:
Aug 18: Fall Semester Sessions 1 and 3 Begin
Aug 24: Last day to register for Fall Session 1 and 3 Classes
Sept 1: Labor Day- Asynchronous Classes*
Sept 7: Last day to drop session 1 and 3 classes without a W
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Greetings CU Faculty!
It seems like just a few weeks ago we were celebrating our graduates. The mid-August start of classes seemed so distant as we moved into the summer. I hope these summer weeks continue to provide you with an opportunity to be out in the world enjoying all that the warmer weather brings.
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Last week here in Rhode Island, I noticed a shift in the weather that extended over several days. The sun was warm but with a gentle breeze. It felt like someone had squeezed all of the summer humidity out of the air. The morning air was crisp and cool, a sheer sign that we were all being called to activities associated with the launch of the fall semester. The Lifelong Learning team went from planning new initiatives and programs for the new academic year to being up to our eyeballs in activities related to bringing newly admitted and returning students into the fold and to assist new and continuing faculty as they put the finishing touches on their course syllabi and prepare their Moodle shells.
It is indeed that time, a time when the CU Community comes back together to learn, and grow, and be in each other’s world with purpose and determination. Let’s get to it in the only way we know how to do it - in the spirit of community.
--Sylvia C. Spears, Ph.D. (Pronouns- she/her/hers)
Provost & Vice President for Lifelong Learning
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Welcoming Abby Crew
The Lifelong Learning Team is excited to share that Abby Crew will be joining CU Core as Assistant Provost & Director of Curriculum Development. Abby brings more than 15 years of experience in higher education. She most recently served as Associate Dean of Planning, Assessment, Improvement, and Impact at Colorado Mountain College. There, she oversaw curriculum review processes with a focus on equity-centered metrics, community relevance, and the professional readiness of students. She also led efforts to design guided pathways for post-graduation success, cultivated institutional efforts to align curricular and co-curricular learning with inclusive, equity-focused outcomes. Abby has also served in a range of administrative, faculty and leadership roles including Discipline Coordinator for Social and Behavioral Sciences, Institutional Learning Outcomes Taskforce Facilitator and Co-lead, Equity Institute Co-lead, Cultural Competency and Committee Chair. Abby’s leadership style is characterized by deep collaboration, data-informed innovation, and an unwavering focus on equity.
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“My career has been embodied by bell hooks’ belief that “The classroom remains the most radical space of possibility in the academy.” It is for this reason that I am most drawn to the importance of this work within CU’s liberatory mission.” - Abby Crew
Abby earned her Ph.D. from the University of Iowa in Interdisciplinary Studies: Gender Studies, her master’s degree from New York University in Humanities and Social Thought, and her bachelor's degree from the University of New Hampshire in Women’s Studies.
Please join us in welcoming Abby to the CU Community.
| | | Pre-Semester Checklist for Session 1 & 3 Courses | | Dates & Deadlines for Fall Session 2 Instructional Faculty | | | Complete & Send Syllabus | September 25, 2025 | | Customize Moodle Course | October 6, 2025 | | Open Moodle Course to Students | October 13, 2025 | | First Day of Session 2 | October 20, 2025 | | | Highlighted Faculty Resources | | |
Check out the upcoming Faculty Support Drop-in Sessions on the FacultySupport@collegeunbound Calendar. Subscribe to the calendar here.
Sessions in August:
- August 14: Big 10 Support for Lab Faculty
- August 19 & 20 & 27: Moodle Support
- August 21: Lab Faculty Drop-in
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Visit www.collegeunbound.edu and click MyCU. You can also access MyCU from your CU Google Workspace Apps Menu.
Click Campus Cafe and log in with your CU email and password.
Click 'Roster' next to the class for which you want to see the roster.
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Moodle Quick Start Site: Guidance on essential Moodle features, including instructions for first time log-in.
What's New in Moodle: Guidance on new Moodle features and updates.
Intro to Moodle 4.5: Info on six new Moodle features.
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Lab Faculty Corner
We have our largest enrollment class yet with 174 new students and many of you will be having first semester students added to your current cohorts. Please check your rosters carefully in both MyCU AND Moodle!
Here is a quick checklist to ensure a smooth start to the Fall Semester:
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Project Push Week
Weeks 4 and 12 of each semester will be focused on supporting students in advancing their core projects. During these two weeks each semester, Lifelong Learning will offer an array of specialty workshops, project networking opportunities, and guest speakers that will bring insight and tools for advancing projects. In addition, Lab and instructional faculty will be encouraged to make connections between course content for the week and how that content might inform students’ projects. If you are interested in leading a one hour workshop on any of the topics below, or if you have a workshop idea you would like to lead inspired by student interests, please complete this form.
Tentative workshops include the following:
- generating project ideas
- presenting your project
- public speaking for exhibitions
- grantwriting
- creating a non-profit
- & more
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Faculty Support Updates
Transformational Teaching & Learning Competencies
Informed by equity-centered, trauma-informed, and relational approaches to teaching and learning, College Unbound has developed a set of core competencies for all faculty. Faculty will be introduced to these competencies as part of their acclimation to CU and be provided with opportunities to deepen their competency in each of the areas. Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with CU’s Transformational Teaching and Learning Competencies and incorporate each call to action in your role as CU Faculty.
Community of Practice Conveners
This Fall, we are also launching a new pilot peer support structure that provides Community of Practice Conveners for faculty who teach Core Courses and the World & Workplace Lab. These conveners are responsible for facilitating a Google Space, fostering collaboration across faculty, supporting and connecting with new faculty, facilitating informal check-ins, referring any significant questions or concerns that faculty may have to staff, and convening faculty gatherings throughout the semester. We are excited to share that we have a wonderful group of faculty who will be stepping into the role for this academic year. More information to come!
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Sincerely,
All of Us at College Unbound, including:
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