A weekly newsletter to build community through updates, opportunities, and celebrations | |
January 16, 2025 | Volume 11 | Issue 18 | |
Spotlight on Aaliyah Parker | |
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By Aaliyah Parker - Assessment and Transition Coordinator (Davidson Campus)
- Hometown: Ahoskie, NC
- Education: Winston-Salem State University (Bachelor's degree in Psychology), East Carolina University (Master's degree in Education with Certificates in Student Affairs and Community College Instruction), Roanoke-Chowan Community College (Associate's of Arts)
- Years at Davidson-Davie: 7 months
- Family: A significant other, a two-year old named Ceddric, bonus son (15 years old), and nephew (18 years old).
- Hobbies: Binge-watching Netflix series, family time, playing with my toddler.
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Travel: My favorite place to travel is Miami, Florida. I would love to visit Jamaica!
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Podcasts & Books: 90's R&B is an all time favorite! I am into educational and motivational podcasts.
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Food: My number one favorite food is an oxtail meal with cabbage and rice and peas. Number two would be Cuban food, which is one of the reasons I love Florida. They have an amazing Cuban restaurant call Maruchi's in Hialeah. At home, I make a really good baked chicken and gravy meal!
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Shows: Currently, I am watching Gossip Girl. I would give it a 7/10. But my comfort shows are Scandal (10/10) -- I watched the whole series four times, NCIS (10/10) -- I'm in the process of watching this one for the third time, and there's many more. But I love anything fiction with witches and vampires like The Vampire Diaries, Charmed, etc. I also enjoy the Netflix love shows like Love is Blind, Married at First Sight, Love Island, etc.
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What feels like home? I am from Ahoskie, NC; however, Winston-Salem is home to me. It is where my adult life began, where my family started, and 13 years later, I am still here, happy, and thriving!
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Zombie Apocalypse: If the world entered into a zombie apocalypse, I would channel my inner The Walking Dead and survive!
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Professional Learning Events
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Two AI Professional Learning Opportunities | |
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By Gloria Johnson
Coming Soon to Your Inbox - The 2025 Summer Institute Application
The application for the 2025 Summer Institute will be opened and sent to faculty via email on January 21, 2025. This year’s Summer Institute theme is Artificial Intelligence in Teaching and Learning. The institute will run for four days from July 28 through July 31, 2025 and be followed by a Faculty Learning Community during Fall 2025.
If you’ve never attended a summer institute, you should apply. Here are some of the reasons last year’s participants stated for recommending the summer institute to their colleagues:
- I gained useful information and got time to work on an issue that I've been wanting to investigate but never had time to tackle during the school year.
- I like the collaboration with the other instructors. The SI allows me to meet faculty that I otherwise might never have the opportunity to work with.
- It's a fun, collaborative way to improve our own classes, learn from others and network.
- It is a good professional development with support throughout the semester to apply what we learn.
- My brain always hurts at the end in the very best of ways.
COMET 2025: The AI Frontier
Cleveland Community College is hosting a one-day conference on AI on Mar 14, 2025 (Pi Day!). You can check out the COMET conference website for further details. There are still some professional learning funds available which could support this opportunity. Fill out the application for professional learning funds today if you’re interested. The next review date for professional learning funds applications will be January 30th.
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Explore the Power of Surface Tablets – A Handy Tool for Faculty and Staff | |
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By Emily Gettings Towne
Looking for a device that’s more portable than your laptop, but still packed with useful features? Whether you need something lightweight for on-the-go or a tool with a touchscreen for drawing and taking notes, the Teaching & Learning Department has the perfect solution: Surface Tablets!
These devices work as both a laptop and a tablet, offering the best of both worlds. With a stylus pen, detachable keyboard, and touch screen, they’re ideal for a range of tasks.
Why Should You Try a Surface Tablet?
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Conferences & Workshops: The compact design makes it easy to bring along to professional events, and you can take handwritten notes using the Microsoft Journal app.
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Virtual Sessions & Videos: Need to take notes while watching virtual content? The Surface Tablet handles all your Google Workspace needs.
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Whiteboard for Instruction: Share your screen and use the tablet’s stylus to write, making it a valuable tool for tutoring and virtual instruction.
In addition to these features, the Surface Tablets have both front and rear-facing cameras, making them perfect for video meetings on Zoom and Google Meet.
Ready to make the most of this versatile tool? Reserve a tablet by filling out the Creation Studio Equipment Form.
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International Intrigue
The Myth and Magic of Ireland
By Aaron Prillaman
I’m sure you have seen the announcements that we will be traveling to Ireland this coming Fall Break: October 9-18, 2025. Ireland has a lot to offer, with its beautiful scenery, ancient sites, and beautiful accents, but what many students often talk about when they return is their newfound love of Irish mythology. In reading student journals, this is something that is brought up again and again. The mysterious sidhe (pronounced shee) or fairly folk who reside in a wondrous land that exists parallel to our own have many mysterious tales about their mischief and magic.
Tales from the Book of Invasions, the mythical telling of the first people to arrive in Ireland are as captivating as they are fanciful. The exciting legends of warrior-hero Fionn mac Cumhaill regarding how he ate the salmon of knowledge and gained unexpected but insurmountable knowledge. All of these wonderful myths, and many others, have always been an exciting sideshow to the other amazing things that we have studied in past trips. Seeing the beautiful landscapes that these myths were born out of in person only make them seem more real.
This year we are offering a special trip in which the focus will be on the wondrous myth and magic of Ireland. Led by the very knowledgeable, yet mesmerizing director of the Institute of Study Abroad Ireland, Dr. Niamh Hamill, this trip will be an unforgettable journey through the land and mythology of the wondrous Emerald Isle. We hope you will join us and spread the word.
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Do You Have a Story to Share? | |
We want to promote faculty and staff stories! Please contact Amy Holmes (amy_holmes@davidsondavie.edu) with ideas or referrals for stories. | |
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