Sample Mini-grant proposals from spring 2016

Name: Dan Jenkins Department/Program Affiliation: Leadership & Organizational Studies Course Number and Title (if the activity is course-based): N/A; This will be part of a group of independent studies and will include no more than seven students. Date/timeline of activity:

January – April, 2016

Actual Collegiate Leadership Competition will take place in Cleveland, OH, April 9 & 10, 2016. Other Learning Site (if not course based):

USM Portland and LAC campuses will host practice sessions. Course Affiliation: ___Core Requirement: Please Specify: ___Major Requirement

__X_Other: Please Specify: Students completing the Independent Study can use these credits towards the elective requirements of the LOS minor and major. 1. Description of how funds will be used to support design/implementation of a high impact practice. A formal budget is not required, but please provide as much detail as possible regarding how funds will be used to support the high impact practice.

Funds will be used towards travel from Portland, Maine, to Cleveland, OH, April 9-10, 2016. Funds will also be used towards lodging for students. 2. Description of how the learning experience will enhance student learning and engagement. Please provide as much detail as possible.

Students will engage in the second annual Collegiate Leadership Competition (CLC). Designed by Dr. Scott Allen and Dr. Arthur Schwartz, two professors of leadership from Ohio, the purpose of the CLC is to create a leadership “practice field,” one that is analogous to the practice fields in sports or the rehearsal rooms in the performing arts. The CLC is designed to address a gnawing gap in the field of leader development: the lack of a robust “practice field” where student leaders can apply what they’re learning in a context that challenges and stretches them to the boundaries of their knowledge, skills, and abilities. The five core objectives of the CLC are: 1) Offer participating students an experience that will forever shape their lives and leadership practice 2) Measure and assess whether creating a leadership practice field and competition increases the cognitive, affective and behavioral complexity of the student participants 3) Contribute new knowledge to the field of leadership education and learning 4) Create and disseminate new experiential opportunities that increase the

knowledge, skills and abilities of student leaders 5) Inspire and invite student groups from across the globe to participate in CLC Some of the benefits for student participants include:

Intrinsic: § Learning to work with different personality types toward a common goal § Better understanding personal strengths and weaknesses § A powerful team experience § Opportunity to practice the key components of leadership § Opportunity to represent the university § Build relationships with judges, professors, and students from other schools

Extrinsic: § Resume builder § Opportunity to travel § Connect to professors and staff in an authentic way You may access a copy of the CLC Playbook here. Students will spend no more than 70 hours practicing and preparing for the CLC in April. Several other leadership programs are represented, including student teams from Wright State University, John Carroll University, The University of Akron, Widener University, Walsh University, and Cleveland State University. One of our master’s student in the Leadership Studies program will also assist coaching the USM team.

IVAN MOST EGN

Name: Ivan G Most, Sc.D., P.E. Department/Program Affiliation: Engineering Course Number and Title (if the activity is course-based): EGN 304 Engineering Economics Date/timeline of activity: Spring semester 2016 Other Learning Site (if not course based): This activity will take place on campus Course Affiliation: ___Core Requirement: Please Specify: __X_Major Requirement ___Other: Please Specify:

Service Learning Experience for Students taking EGN304 Engineering Economics

Engineering Economics is an upper class course offered by the engineering department at USM. This course provides the students background in the management and financing of projects. Funds are requested to support a “meet and greet” session that is part of the service learning aspect of the course.

1. Description of how funds will be used to support design/implementation of a high impact

practice. A formal budget is not required, but please provide as much detail as possible regarding how funds will be used to support the high impact practice.

During the third class meeting which will be February 5, 2016 the students and community sponsors will meet in an afternoon seminar as part of the class session. The community sponsors (currently Windham, Gorham, and Cape Elizabeth) will present projects planned in their school districts. After these presentations a meet and greet will follow where students and community sponsors will get to know each other and student teams can plan their first meetings with the community sponsor. At the end of the semester another session will be held where students will present their study results to their community sponsors and the class. Funds are requested to support refreshments at these seminars. This is the second year we are doing this class as a service learning experience. The results from last year were quite good and resulted in two new school districts agreeing to provide projects. This is quite an indication of community support since the facility directors provide mentoring to our students as well as a real world experience. In addition we are discussing with Gorham the possibility of their high school students meeting with our students to learn more about engineering at USM.

2. Description of how the learning experience will enhance student learning and engagement. Please provide as much detail as possible.

This class will introduce students to consulting engineering. An important aspect of this side of the engineering profession is the development and implementation of projects. Students will learn the importance of good communication in a business setting, how to agree upon a work plan, and how to deal with client questions and concerns. They will actual use a partnership agreement which is structured like a consulting contract. Many of our students will take an exam after graduation to become professional engineers. The subject of this class is an important part of that exam. They will then be in a position to apply to a consulting engineering firm for employment. This exercise will give them experience in how to approach this aspect of the profession. This class is offered yearly and the enrollment is approximately 45 students. We anticipate staffing 8 projects this term. Submit application as Word document to susan.mcwilliams@maine.edu. Proposals will be reviewed on the basis of the following criteria:

high impact practice

sustainability of the activity, especially beyond one-time funding

More information on high impact educational practices can be found at https://www.aacu.org/leap/hips Proposals will be reviewed by members of the Title III management team, a group of faculty and staff which oversees USM’s Title III grant, including High Impact Practices. This information and a list of past proposals, recipients and projects are available at: http://usm.maine.edu/titleiii/high-impact-educational-practices

MARY ANNE PEABODY SBS

Title III HIP mini-grant proposal Name: Tara Coste and Mary Anne Peabody

Department/Program Affiliation: Leadership & Organizational Studies

Course Number and Title: LOS 470/HON470/SBS470/LOS670 Leadership Study Abroad, South

Africa

Date/timeline of activity: Spring semester 2016, followed by a two week trip to South Africa

scheduled for June 26-July 9, 2016.

Course Affiliation: Elective

1. Description of how funds will be used to support design/implementation of a high impact

practice. The Montagu Project is part of the LOS Leadership Study Abroad travel program that incorporates

the high impact practices of global-diversity learning, collaborative assignments and projects,

learning communities, and service-learning/community engaged learning across two semesters. The

uniqueness of the program stems from a long-term commitment between nine partner agencies to

work with the people in the Montagu region of South Africa, approximately two hours outside of

Cape Town. Foundational to the African exploration will be service learning with a focus on youth

leadership development led by program facilitators from RedZebra. The RedZebra foundation

delivers empowerment trainings so youth can make informed decisions that positively impact them

personally and their communities. USM students will participate in the leadership training that

combines the creative arts through the use of the 5 D’s: drumming, dance, drama, digital technology,

and dialogues. Title III funds will support first semester collaborative learning focusing on cultural

discovery, team relationship-building, problem-solving, and logistical preparation. Specifically,

students will be involved in a team building assignment focused on learning about their team

member’s strengths and working together for a common goal.

Students will initially work in small groups to research which rhythmic musical instruments are

currently needed by the Montagu Project and to figure out the most cost effective way to get the

instruments to the project, working within the budget parameters of $500.00. Students will explore

group process dynamics, inclusionary practices, decision-making, and respectful dialogue leading to

consensus. This is an intentional assignment designed to mirror the skills needed as a group during

the two weeks in South Africa.

2. Description of how the learning experience will enhance student learning and engagement.

By their very nature, study abroad courses are transformational learning opportunities. Leadership

Study Abroad examines the socio-cultural, historical, and philosophical aspects of leadership from a

global perspective. Students experience a heightened view towards themselves, their country, and

other nations. In anticipation of these experiences, intentional assignments to build honest

communication and trust is vital. We believe the Title III funding will provide a safe and purposeful

activity in the early forming stages of the group process. Like many study abroad courses, the actual

trip offers important experiences that call for deep reflection. The RedZebra methodology utilizes

this knowledge, seizing the opportunity to reflect on personal, societal, and cultural perspectives as a

foundational component of the training methodology.

A proven methodology of red and white stripes is woven throughout the experience to enhance

student engagement. The red stripes involve the creative expression: the thunder of the drums, power

of unified voices, and strength of aligned movement through dance. The white stripes include

facilitated dialogue: silence, introspection, active listening and purposeful dialogue. USM students

will participate alongside the young African youth and bear witness to the creation of a safe

environment facilitated by the trainers. This safe environment is critical for all involved to develop

trust, open up to each other, and make personal and emotional connections with the issues discussed.

In Leadership Study Abroad, students will learn the fundamental principle of “inclusivity”, which

includes respect for diversity and abilities, and working towards a community free of discrimination

based on gender, race, class, ability, sexual orientation, religion, age, or other areas of injustice.

Lastly, belonging, contribution, and growth are outcomes of the course design, which coalesce into

deeper student engagement. Making, sharing, and giving rhythmic musical instruments helps launch

and sustain the music program in Montagu for many years, and it is also an embedded metaphoric

representation. Making meaning, sharing our stories, and giving of ourselves creates a rhythmic

intersectionality that helps launch and sustain global leadership skills that will last USM students for

a lifetime. LIBBY BISCHOF HTY Name: Libby Bischof Department/Program Affiliation: Associate Professor of History; Chair, Department of History and Political Science Course Number and Title (if the activity is course-­­based): HTY 400: History Senior Seminar—Visualizing History (Tuesdays, 7-­­9:30pm, Gorham Campus) Date/timeline of activity: April 2016 (or when the snow is melted in Boston) Other Learning Site (if not course based): The City of Boston/Museum of Fine Arts Boston/Boston Common Course Affiliation: X_Core Requirement: Please Specify: X_Major Requirement Other: Please Specify: This is a Capstone course, and is required of all HTY majors. 1. Description of how funds will be used to support design/implementation of a high impact practice. A formal budget is not required, but please provide as much detail as possible regarding how funds will be used to support the high impact practice. With the understanding that the maximum Spring 2016 individual grant amount is $500, I am requesting $573.00 (I can find a way to make up the difference) to support a class field trip to Boston, Massachusetts in April. We (14 enrolled students and myself) will travel (round trip) from Portland to Boston on the Concord Coach Lines on a Saturday or Sunday morning (TBD by class scheduling preferences). We will then take the “T” to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, where we will spend the morning and early afternoon at the Museum, specifically to view images and objects in the New

American wing, as well as the Megacities Asia exhibition (opening 4/3). We will then take the T to Boston Common to view the Augustus St. Gaudens memorial to the 54th Massachusetts Civil War Regiment (featured in the film Glory, which we will have already viewed in class), and then walk the ½ mile back to South State for a late-­­afternoon/early-­­evening bus back to Portland. Please see distribution of requested funds below. Students will be responsible for bringing money for lunch. Fund Distribution: 15 same-day round trip tickets from Portland>Boston on Concord Coach (discounted same day and student rate)= 15x$34 = $510.00 15 Round trip “T” fares (to get from South Station to MFA on Green Line)= 15x4.20=$63.00 Admission to Museum of Fine Arts Boston=15x$0 (All Maine students get in free with ID, thanks to the generosity of the Lunder Family—spread the word if you didn’t already know). 2. Description of how the learning experience will enhance student learning and engagement. Please provide as much detail as possible. I have designed this new Senior Seminar for History majors working under the premise that historians are increasingly using visual evidence to make new arguments about past events. Consequently, “Visualizing History” will emphasize visual history techniques and employ critiques of photographs, films, paintings, drawings, maps, and data visualizations throughout the semester. Students will conduct research using visual primary sources and will be encouraged to also present the results of the research using visual methods (including Thinking Matters). The course itself draws upon three specific High Impact Educational Practices (HIEP): it is a writing intensive course; students will conduct serious undergraduate research; and, it is a capstone course. The field trip to Boston, with time spent at the Museum of Fine Arts and at the 54th Massachusetts Memorial on Boston Common, however, draws upon the HIEP I most believe in—active, engaged, hands-­­on experiential learning using cities as classrooms. Visits to local sites of cultural and historical import allow students to directly engage with important primary source materials—both in terms of the built environment, and, in the case of this trip, the types of visual sources (photographs, posters, paintings, monuments, etc.) that we will have spent the semester studying. Such field trips improve retention of key concepts, encourage exploration, and, as an added benefit, allow the class to bond outside of the classroom.1 I want the students in this course to have direct access to the rich cultural resources of New England, and to introduce them to a world-­­class museum (the class will also spend time at the Portland Museum of Art, but no funds are needed to that end). Museums are sites where the past is consistently “visualized,” and it is important for my students to envision the past in a variety of environments—inside and outside the classroom. After our time at the museum, since we will already be in Boston and a short “T” ride away, we will travel to the Boston Common to view the famous memorial sculpture to the 54th Massachusetts Civil War regiment, the first regiment of black troops to fight in the war. This visit will be the culmination of a class unit on comparative visualizations of an individual event—in this case, an opportunity to see how a sculptor and a filmmaker both visualized the history of the regiment. I could, of course, just show an image of the monument in class, but, having visited the monument on numerous occasions, the opportunity to experience the moving memorial in person should not be missed. In short, the trip to Boston will be a culminating experience for a group of students at the end of their USM careers—an appropriate way to encourage

life-­­long learning by continuing to do and view history in museums and public spaces— long after graduation. The impact of such a field trip resonates long after a course is over. 1 I have published on the importance of such field trips and assignments. See, most recently, my piece “The Lens of the Local: Teaching an Appreciation of the Past through the Exploration of Local Sites, Landmarks, and Hidden Histories,” in The History Teacher, volume 48, no.3 (May 2015). ASSUNTA KENT THE

Name: Assunta Kent Department/Program Affiliation: Theatre, Honors, WGS Course Number and Title (if the activity is course-based): THE 150, and some 101 students Date/timeline of activity: One professional show (and talk-back) during Spring term Other Learning Site (if not course based): Portland Stage or the Good Theatre Course Affiliation: _x__Core Requirement: Please Specify: Cultural Interpretation __x_Major Requirement _x__Other: Please Specify: Theatre Minor 1. Description of how funds will be used to support design/implementation of a high impact practice. A formal budget is not required, but please provide as much detail as possible regarding how funds will be used to support the high impact practice. Tickets and parking costs to take students to a Portland Stage Company professional production this spring. From years of past experience, offering credit for attendance and write-ups on their own is not enough to get more than one or two students to a professional show. The cost is high, the experience and space is unfamiliar, and there is little substantive discussion generated in class because so few have experienced the show and dramaturgical materials. 2. Description of how the learning experience will enhance student learning and engagement. Please provide as much detail as possible.

I would like to be able to take students to see a professional production this spring. THE 150 Text Analysis Students from many majors: Criminology, Biology, Psychology and Computer Science as well as Theatre will be working on all aspects of analysis and production of a script for the term. Usually none of them have been able to attend professional theatre in Portland because the cost is prohibitive. Portland Stage also provides extensive dramaturgy (production research shared with the public in a booklet, online and in their lobby) which students of this class must also learn to provide for their chosen script. Many have never heard the word “dramaturgy,” let alone attempted to produce it before this course. Dramaturgy in turn completes the cycle of taking research beyond the theatre production team directly out to community members. Subsequently, THE 150 students will perform their own dramaturgical research write-ups and share with the whole class. Students in THE 101 Intro to Theatre will also be doing a lower-level of dramaturgy and studying all elements of theatre. For these students, the high quality of acting, directing, design and house management will be the focus. In their dramaturgy books, Portland Stage highlights an area of “backstage” expertise for each show, with interviews of practitioners who produced the show students will see. Short term impact: For majors and minors: to see areas of study demonstrated at a professional in their own community. For all students: to see the realization of theatrical analysis and planning, and to see that indeed the detailed work required of them in class is expected for every show in the professional world and not just “academic busywork.” Long-term impact: For all students: to learn how research is realized in the arts and for theatre students: to open the door for internships at Portland Stage and other such professional companies. DAN PANICI COM-MES Daniel A. Panici

Department of Communication and Media Studies CMS 303: Media Effects Project Timeline: Semester long Major Requirement ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I had three chairs in my house; one for solitude,

two for friendship, three for society”

-Henry David Thoreau

In Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age, media scholar Sherry

Turkle continues her decades long critique of human relationships in the digital age.

Although we experience our everyday digital lives as if we are constantly

communicating, Turkle argues that our reliance upon digital communication

technologies and social media has reduced our notion of conversation to mere

connection. If we are connected, goes conventional wisdom, we are communicating.

However, our flight from conversation undermines our sense of self, our relationships,

and our notions creativity and productivity. In this book, Turkle suggests that

reclaiming face-to-face conversation can help us regain our sense of individuality,

strengthen our relationships, and move us toward a healthy community.

Project 303.1 Description

Project 303.1 is a book club activity that will serve as a common intellectual

experience, learning community and collaborative assignment for students enrolled in

CMS 303: Media Effects.

Goal: To integrate a semester long collaborative, community

building assignment focusing on reclaiming

conversation

• Day 1: Distribute copies of Reclaiming Conversation: The

Power of Talk in the Digital Age

• Weeks 1 -5: Students will read The Case for Conversation

(The Empathy Diaries and The Flight from Conversation) and

One Chair (Solitude and Self-Reflection) and complete an

out-of-class assignment centered on their experience of

solitude.

• Weeks 6-10: Students will read Two Chairs (Family,

Friendship and Romance) complete an out-of-class

assignment and turn that assignment in during

a lunch with one peer from class (I am thinking of

having students pair up in class and have a conversation)

• Weeks 11-15: Students will read Three Chairs (Education

and work) will complete an out-of-class assignment and have

a community picnic with their classmates

• Finals week: Students will turn in a reflection piece on (1)

The Path Forward (The Public Square and The Nick of Time)

and A Forth Chair? (The End of Forgetting), and (2) their

experience in Project 303.1

Note: This will be a low-risk assignment in the sense that if a student completes all

three mini-assignments they will receive an A; two of the three a B, and one of the

three a C.

Preliminary Budget:

25 copies of Reclaiming Conversation ($18 each) $450

Coffee and pastries for Week 10 $125

Picnic during Week 15 $125

$700

ANNA REIN ENG

USM Title III Mini-grant Application Spring 2016

Name:Anna Rein

Department/Program Affiliation:Department of English (Lecturer III in

Italian)

Course Number and Title: Beginning Italian 102 (70160)

Date/timeline of activity:Paciarino Restaurant, 5pm- 8pm February 22,

2016

__x_ Major Requirement

1. Description of how funds will be used to support

design/implementation of a high impact practice.

Funds will support active, community-based, experiential collaborative

learning for students in Italian 102, as they engage in a cultural

presentation and creation of Mediterranean dishes at a local restaurant

in Portland (470 Fore street, Portland).

$ 300 – honorarium for the restaurant owner and cost of the

ingredients. The honorarium includes 3 hours of presentation to speak

about the characteristics of the Mediterranean diet (ingredients and

food preparation), history of pasta, demonstration of hand making pasta

(at least three different types).

$ 200 – food tasting ($20 per students approximately)

Total funds $500

2. Description of how the learning experience will enhance student

learning and engagement.

The cultural demonstration at the Paciarino restaurant will enhance the

students to learn about Italian food tradition from local community

members, who are also Italian native speakers. During the three-hour

activities, the students will learn about typical Mediterranean food,

eating habits and meals, typical menu, and the history of pasta. To

follow, the owner of the restaurant will demonstrate how to make

pasta and along with it each student will prepare his/her own pasta. To

finish, the pasta will be cooked and prepared with different types of

condiments and, finally, tasted. This event will compliment the in-class

activities on ordering at a restaurant and talking about meals and

typical food and drinks. The active participation of the students in the

pasta making demonstration will create a unique hands-on experience

and will foster interaction and collaboration among students and

between the students and members of a local business. The students

will also be exposed to the Italian language through native Italian

speakers.

Respectfully submitted,

Anna Rein