New IT support procedure

From this point on, all IT requests should go through IT Help, rather than contacting Todd directly. From the dean:

Starting August 1, the College of Arts and Science IT staff (CASIT; your primary rep is Todd Henson) will provide their support services in a new partnership with University IT Services. They have worked together on developing a shared support model that integrates their activities in a collaborative fashion, streamlining your support experience through a single interface, shared practices, and defined response times. The new support model was piloted by several departments last spring and is now being expanded to all departments in the College. Here are some key benefits of the new model:

  1. Single point of contact for all technology support
  2. Faster response to phone calls with immediate efforts to resolve the issue
  3. Emergency calls may be passed directly to CASIT
  4. Allowing you to track and interact with the status of your ticket
  5. Eliminate confusion as to whom you should contact for a particular problem.

From now on, please do not phone, text or email your CASIT rep directly to initiate service. Beginning August 1st, we are asking that you direct your IT-related issues through the IT Services Support Desk by:
Phone:   513-529-7900
Email:  [email protected]
Online:   miamioh.edu/it

If the Support Desk is unable to resolve the problem while you are on the phone, they will either transfer your call directly to a CASIT Team member or create a ticket and assign it to CASIT.

NSF Major Research Instrumentation

Faculty interested in this grant mechanism should let OARS know of your interest, since the number of institutional proposals is limited. From OARS:

The National Science Foundation’s Major Research Instrumentation Program (MRI) assists in the acquisition or development of major research instrumentation.

NSF is currently revising guidelines for this program, which may affect the number of proposals Miami University can submit. Historically, however, we have been allowed to submit up to 3 MRI proposals (at least 1 of which must be for instrument development and no more than 2 for instrument acquisition) on which we are either the lead or a partner institution. To facilitate the selection of our submissions to NSF, we have set a deadline of Monday, October 2, 2017 to receive preliminary MRI proposals for internal review. You are required to provide a preliminary proposal regardless of whether you were selected as an institutional submission in previous years.

To be considered as an institutional submission, please email a preliminary proposal to
Anne Schauer, including a cover page giving title, PIs and departments, amount, and list of instrumentation.  The Project Description should address both the scientific merit and broader impacts (3 pgs.). You should describe the proposed major research instrumentation, the type of research or research training to be conducted, the activities and projects that would result from this instrumentation, and how students will be involved and how their education will be enhanced through this instrumentation.

Direct any questions to Anne Schauer.

Celebrate the new (academic) year!

Recall Elise and Josh are hosting a potluck to start the new year on August 20. From Elise:

We have a lot to celebrate! An impending solar eclipse, a beautiful summer, a wonderful department, and most importantly: Vrinda Kalia officially joining our faculty on the tenure track!

With this in mind, Josh and I would like to invite you to our house, specifically:

What? An end-of-summer potluck celebrating Vrinda Kalia and other happy things
When? Sunday August 20, 12-4pm
Who? Psychology department faculty, staff, students, and significant others/families
Parking? Our driveway, North Patterson, or East Withrow (no parking on Shadowy Hills please)
RSVP? email ([email protected]) or call/text Elise (see her email)
What to Bring? A drink or dish to share

Direct any questions to Elise and Josh of course, and see you there!

Support the neuroscience curriculum! #MoveInMiami

Sheep brain dissections in PSY251 teach students the basics of neuroanatomy and help conceptualize the 3-dimensional structure of the brain. This experience creates a strong foundation for all upper-level neuroscience courses.

The second of our #MoveInMiami projects is to support the undergraduate neuroscience curriculum; the related page can be found here, and states:

Neuroscience is one of the most demanding fields in medicine and research, and is also incredibly popular among Miami undergraduates. Enrollment in the neuroscience co-major has steadily increased since its inception.

The behavioral neuroscience fund will expand experiential learning experiences across the neuroscience curriculum in the Psychology Department, including 200, 300, and 400 level courses.

Stay tuned for more about how you can help with this effort as well as the graduate student travel fund, our other #MoveInMiami project. This project was previously announced in this post describing the campaign.

Seeking CPI associates for fall

Do you have RAs, advisees, or other notable undergraduates that would work well as CPI associates? Contact Christina Fitzpatrick; she writes:

The Center for Psychological Inquiry (CPI) is looking to recruit talented students to become CPI associates. CPI associates sign up for 1 credit hour of independent study and assist other students with homework and general questions. If you have any current or previous students that you think will be interested in this opportunity please email Christina Fitzpatrick.

Graduate seminar on diversity in STEM

In the fall, Joyce Fernandes (BIO) will be offering a graduate seminar on “Broadening participation in STEM–what it means, and why it matters in higher education.” Beyond the inherent benefits in bringing more diverse perspectives to bear on a problem, Joyce writes:

Funding agencies want scientists and educators to demonstrate their approaches to include diverse groups of students and other participants with an immediate goal of inclusion, and an ultimate goal of a diversified workforce. What can you do as a scientist and/educator to contribute to this ongoing effort of broadening participation in STEM, in your current practices or in the near future?  [Participants will] read literature, engage in mini-projects (boots on the ground), and reach a more “energetically favorable” place than where we started, both collectively and individually.

My overall goal for this seminar is to provide a space and the experience for graduate students to explore the scope of Broadening Participation in STEM by reading and discussing literature on this topic. How do these ideas impact your own roles as scientists and educators? What can you bring to the table based on your own experiences?  We will also interact with [undergraduate] students who are enrolled in programs which have goals of broadening participation.

Mid-course evaluations

The Senate CTE committee has published a white paper endorsing the use of mid-course evaluations. This has also been emphasized during P&T and other reviews in terms of “multiple measures.” Perhaps we can discuss whether and how to work towards a process where faculty are more systematically reviewed internally and through SGIDs, etc. The link provides information in the sidebar on processes, examples, and more. From CTE:

Midcourse evaluation is another powerful assessment tool for faculty at Miami. In 2017, the Center for Teaching Excellence Senate Committee  detailed recommendations for the use of midcourse evaluation processes at Miami University. In addition to the endorsement of midcourse evaluations, the paper also contains suggested readings and example tools.

Who are your accomplished alums?

CAS is maintaining a list of your most interesting undergrad and grad alumni, for featuring alumni profiles in newsletters, websites, and other communications. The department can also make use of these to benefit programming ranging from events, to class visits, to hosting during conferences.

Think about some of the “success stories” among your academic lineage, as well as undergraduate RAs and other close advisees, who may be in industry, government, or NGOs. CAS asks you to reach out to them and have them complete the information here so CAS can edit them into narrative alumni profiles. The new format can be previewed here.

Department flyer

Each year, Jason Barone (CAS communications) produces flyers for each department. These are targeted at prospective and incoming students, and used by CAS advising for students indicating an interest in changing/adding majors. Vaishali worked with Jason to update the flyer, which can be found here. Feel free to use as you see fit.