• ART 105: Exploring Art and Visual Culture (2022 Outstanding eCourse)
• Building a Sustainable Distance Education Quality Assurance Ecosystem 
• Cowboys and Space Cadets Can be Friends: Creating a Partnership with Your SME
• E-Faculty Coaching at TCC Connect Campus (2022 Outstanding eLearning Support for Faculty or Students)
• Pursuing Excellence in Retaining and Leading E-Learning Faculty
• Staying the Course: Best Practices to Promote Academic Integrity
• Using SoftChalk for Anatomy and Physiology

Papers

• The Creation of a "Healthy" Course

Abstracts

Keywords: OER, authentic assessment, interactivity, online course design, accessibility

Building a Sustainable Distance Education Quality Assurance Ecosystem 
Ninghua Han, Director of Distance Education Quality Assurance; Angelo Caverte, Instructional Designer; Michelle Escudier, Instructional Designer (Austin Community College, Austin, TX)
Key issues that arise in building and maintaining a sustainable Distance Education (DE) department are providing quality assurance on courses, faculty support, and student support. These issues pose challenging obstacles that hinder faculty from performing at their best which is due to a number of factors such as students experiencing difficulties in learning their course materials. The purpose of this presentation is to provide a key insight on what the DE department in Austin Community College (ACC) did in order to build an ecosystem to ensure addressing these issues with limited staff and still keep the quality assurance processes sustainable. The DE department formulated cyclical processes to provide quality course development process and professional development for faculty that supported both synchronous and asynchronous delivery modes, as well as a rigorous student support system. This process included periodic reviews put in place to help with course quality assurance. Monthly scheduled professional development workshops included instructor-led and expert-led workshops to support faculty in their online teaching. A rigorous student support system helped direct students to the help they needed was put in place to alleviate confusion on the student end.

This endeavor yielded significant positive feedback from administration, faculty, and students. Meeting organizational expectations and goals, achieving accreditation standards, keeping faculty engaged and supported, and increasing student success rate and retention are a few of the successes that the DE department at ACC achieved through the strategies that it has implemented. Austin Community College’s Distance Education department, through its carefully designed processes, have achieved a cyclical sustainable quality assurance ecosystem with minimal intervention from instructional designers and other staff which, in turn, has helped create an efficient team that works to provide quality products and services to administrators, faculty, and most of all, students.
Keywords: Sustainable, quality assurance, distance education, Austin Community College, design process, faculty support

E-Faculty Coaching at TCC Conect Campus 
Kristen Kelton Kirkpatrick, PhD, Director of Academic Affairs, Operations; Daniel Baham, M.Ed., E-Faculty Coach (Tarrant County College Connect Campus, Fort Worth, TX)
The E-Faculty Coaching Team/ Program at TCC Connect Campus was honored to receive the 2022 ITC Award for Excellence in eLearning, Outstanding Support for Faculty or Students. E-Faculty coaches view active online courses, collect data, and collaborate directly with instructors to identify strengths and areas for growth based on Quality Matters standards for communication, interaction, support, and accessibility. Instructors participating in E-Faculty coaching in Spring 2022 demonstrated a 7.4% average increase in student success and a 2.65% average increase in student retention rates per online section. 85% of observed sections included clear instructions and communication elements to start the course; 96% included learning activities for building community. After accepting the award in Las Vegas, Daniel Baham, a full time E-Faculty coach, shared the evolvement of the program since its inception in 2018. Specific philosophy, implementation, and success highlights were presented.
Keywords: coaching, faculty support, quality assurance

Pursuing Excellence in Retaining and Leading E-Learning Faculty
Chad B. McKenzie, Associate Professor, Information Technology Division; Brittany Hochstaetter, Professor, Liberal Arts Division (Wake Technical Community College, Raleigh, NC)
While scholarly research has been conducted to determine factors influencing the retention of e-learning faculty, few studies have investigated the attraction and retention of e-learning faculty for community college instruction in the complex post-pandemic climate. The retention of long-standing and highly qualified faculty members is a concern for more than just deans and department heads. It is a dilemma affecting every aspect of the academic workplace. In their Survey of College and University Chief Academic Officers in 2022, Inside Higher Ed reported that 79% of provosts observed faculty members leaving at somewhat or significantly higher rates than in the past. This presentation highlighted testimony from two, award-winning faculty members from divergent disciplines regarding motivating strategies administrators might employ to boost morale and long-term dedication in faculty. Wake Technical Community College has seen success creating its own Wake Tech Great Teachers’ Retreat in the tradition of the National Great Teachers Movement. Each department nominates one instructor annually to participate in the retreat which takes place over the course of three days. The event is reported by many to be an unmatched collegial experience. This interdisciplinary strategy to nurture faculty could be replicated elsewhere. On a smaller scale, leaders who wish to support their employees may feel powerless to influence broad financial factors. While retention is frequently linked to raises, when considering the values-driven nature of community college faculty, it is often preferences, flexibility, and encouragement that become the day-to-day currency of sustainable morale. Qualitative research and expert opinions were summarized into three characteristics of educational environments associated with innovation and support: (1) safety/trust, (2) recognition, and (3) growth. Faculty members who feel safe to achieve in atmospheres of authentic recognition are more likely to fully invest in their departments through collaboration and informal mentorship.
Keywords: e-learning; faculty retention; excellence; safety; recognition; National Great Teachers Movement

Staying the Course: Best Practices to Promote Academic Integrity
Melanie R. B. Morris, Professor, Business Law (Raritan Valley Community College, Branchburg, NJ)
The issue of academic dishonesty is not new, but emerging trends in cheating powered by advances in technology have shown a spotlight on its prevalence in the classroom. Fortunately, educators have the power to mitigate dishonest behaviors and cultivate an environment that prioritizes genuine student learning and fosters a culture of integrity. While concerns about cheating have increased, educators struggle to identify dishonest academic work during evaluation. In fact, research suggests that only a small percentage of cheating incidents are detected. Shedding light on this challenge, educators will be asked to distinguish between an authentic student submission, and three dishonest ones within this presentation – a difficult task.

Rather than relying on reactive measures like detection, proactive approaches embedded in teaching practices and institutional values offer a more effective solution to combat academic dishonesty. This presentation equips educators with practical strategies and instructional decisions to minimize opportunities for students to submit dishonest work. Participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of prevalent cheating methods, including emerging trends influenced by the pandemic. Using a practical checklist to identify potential avenues for cheating in their courses, educators will delve into techniques for designing online tests, discussions, and assignments that encourage academic honesty and engagement. Clear and explicit communication of academic expectations and standards will be emphasized as a key component in fostering integrity. By the end of the session, participants will possess a toolkit of instructional best practices to reduce opportunities for academic dishonesty. By emphasizing the importance of proactive prevention through reflective practice and pedagogy rather than reactive responses, this presentation aims to equip educators with practical methods to foster a culture of honesty and integrity in academic settings.

Checklist: tinyurl.com/2p8mtwx8
Keywords: checklist, best practices, academic integrity, academic dishonesty, cheating, educators

Using SoftChalk for Anatomy and Physiology
Heather T. Eddy, Instructor of Biology/General Biology Program Coordinator; Angela Riddle, Instructor of Psychology/Social Sciences Program Coordinator (York Technical College, Rock Hill, SC)
Community colleges train most of the nation’s healthcare workers. There is expected to be growth in the job market for these workers over the next 10 years. Anatomy and Physiology is the first subject matter course that students must complete to move into their healthcare programs of study. However, first-time students taking Anatomy and Physiology expect an 80% attrition rate in the course. As national attrition rates are just at 50%, their expectations are partially founded upon the reality of the course being challenging. Not enough students are able to complete the foundational course, leading to a nationwide shortage of healthcare employees. While higher success rates in the course will ultimately lead to increased numbers matriculating from healthcare degree programs, the solutions for increasing success have been tenuous. A Study Skills Lab has been implemented on this campus, introducing students to concepts with which they may not be familiar or well-versed, such as time and stress management, note-taking, test-taking skills, and learning theories. Active study methods improve learning. The creation of SoftChalk eLearnings for the more difficult topics in the course has given students the opportunity to read and hear about what they are learning in a more casual and relatable “voice”. The eLearnings have quiz questions and activities that allow students to check and reinforce their knowledge. Since the implementation of these, success rates have increased by ten percent, and withdrawal rates have decreased by nearly the same margin. Both have stabilized, however, leading to examining the next steps for continued increases in student success in the course.

Eddy, H. & Riddle, A. (2023). Using SoftChalk to increase success rates in Anatomy and Physiology. Departments of Science and Psychology, York Technical College, Rock Hill, SC.
Keywords: checklist, best practices, academic integrity, academic dishonesty, cheating, educators

Papers

The Creation of a "Healthy" Course
Cynthia Krutsinger, Dean of Online Learning (Pikes Peak State College, Colorado Springs, CO)
This presentation was focused on introducing the Colorado Online@ model, introducing the Colorado Online@ recommended tools and bet practices in course design to create a “healthy” course, and sharing a course design review implementation model which could be adapted for individual institutional use. This session introduced how Pikes Peak State College is tackling course review of online course shells over the next 3 – 5 years, using tools such as the newly created Healthy Course Checklist incorporating Quality Matters standards, newly created QM+ standards that include diversity, equity, and inclusion, accessibility, learner-centered design, and principles of UDL. The focus is on course design, not instruction, as part of the implementation of Colorado Online@, a new consortium model for online course delivery. PPSC is creating a clear, dynamic plan for implementation of online course review incorporating the tools and processes suggested as well as other tools/processes of our choice utilizing the expertise of our own faculty, learning designers, and others with the intent of creating well-designed course shells and sections that will benefit learners for years to come. Instructional design is a strength, but assistance from a learning designer is not a requirement at Pikes Peak State College. To move PPSC forward in distance education, we need to establish best practices that become the culture. Regular review of course design ensures a healthy course!
Keywords: Quality Assurance, Course Design, Course Review, Quality Matters, Healthy Course Checklist