Recursos para nuestros maestros
As part of its Continuity Plan, WLS has formed Innovative Learning & Teaching Teams so that small groups of teachers can pool expertise and experience to make our transition to online instruction as consistent and clear as possible. While these ILT teams develop online strategies and attend trainings, they are drawing from an international community of teacher-scholars with online support materials (compiled here).
Assigned WLS Instructional Designer George Handley, george.handley01@utrgv.edu, (956) 665-7248
Backup Instructional Designer & Contact Veronica Rodriguez, (956) 882-6786
Available via phone, email, and, if needed, they can remotely connect via Zoom/Bomgar
Employees will work from home and on campus:
To further reduce our on-campus population, we will continue to safely and gradually return our entire workforce back to campus. As we announced this summer, division leads and supervisors will work together to best determine when and how you return to campus.
As with our students, the university will also ensure that your on-campus experience is safe. We will closely follow CDC guidelines to modify facilities and office spaces and have already done so for several departments that returned to campus this summer. We ask that you also adhere — and hold others accountable — to university health and safety protocols.
In addition, we understand that many of you may need to continue working from home based on a variety of factors, including health conditions and child care, and supervisors will continue to be prudent to your situation. Please work directly with your supervisor regarding your unique circumstance or contact the Office of Human Resources at hr@utrgv.edu.
Before you access any campus/off-campus facility:
We want you here, but only if you’re truly well. Before each time you plan to access campus or any facility to teach, work, or utilize services, make sure you ask yourself the COVID-19 Daily Self-Screening Questions:
- Have you been in close contact (within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period)?
- Do you have a measured temperature greater than 100.0°F, or feelings of fever or chills?
- Do you have a new or worsening cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, sore throat, muscle pain or body aches, nausea, vomiting, headache, loss of taste or smell, or diarrhea?
If you answer “Yes” to any of these questions:
- Communicate with your instructor/supervisor (If you are a student employee please communicate with both your instructor and supervisor.)
- Fill out the Preliminary COVID-19 Screening Form. You will receive an immediate email response from the COVID-19 team.
- The COVID-19 Response Team is responsible for identifying and contacting others who may have been at risk.
- Students or employees may not return to UTRGV premises until they are released by a member of the COVID-19 response team.
If you develop symptoms or start to feel unwell while on campus, follow the same process:
- Leave campus/work immediately.
- Contact your instructor/supervisor so arrangements can be made with you to complete your academic requirements/work assignments.
- Fill out the Preliminary COVID-19 Screening Form.
- Wait for instructions from the COVID-19 Response Team.
Screening and Testing for COVID-19:
If you become symptomatic or know that you’ve been exposed to someone who has tested positive, you must do the following:
- DO NOT call Employee Health for an appointment
- Notify your supervisor
- Complete the Preliminary COVID-19 Screening Form
- DO NOT access any UTRGV campus/off-campus facilities
- Work with your supervisor to develop a remote work arrangement or leave management plan
Your completed Preliminary COVID-19 Screening Form will be sent to and reviewed by a member of the COVID-19 Response Team.
Based on the results, you will be contacted to determine the appropriate plan of action and told to either quarantine, isolate, get tested, or return to work.
Employees may not return to work until they are released by a member of the COVID-19 Response Team.
For additional information and FAQs related to employee, visit Screening and Testing for COVID-19.
Wear A Face Covering:
If you are healthy enough to physically access campus or facilities, face coverings are required in all of the following areas:
- hallways
- public spaces
- research labs
- teaching/computer labs
- libraries
- classrooms
- University automobiles with at least one passenger
- stairwells
- elevators
- common areas
- office spaces (when social distancing of 6 feet IS NOT possible)
All face coverings must cover both your mouth and nose and are also required in outdoor settings if safe social distancing is not possible.
Don’t have a Face Covering? Contact your supervisor, department chair, or dean's office to request a mask.
If you see someone failing to practice proper hygiene and/or not complying with UTRGV’s face covering policy, please follow these guidelines and tell them to do so or call the Toll Free Compliance Hotline: (877) 882-3999
Practice Social Distancing:
Whether you are walking across your department’s building or the parking lot, be sure to keep space between yourself and the people around you. Wearing a face covering while maintaining a physical distance of at least 6 feet will help keep you - and others - safe and healthy this semester.
When you get to your classroom or office, make sure to:
- Wear a face covering at all times (unless you’re in a personal office space)
- Clean your hands by washing them with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, or by using hand sanitizer (at least 60% alcohol) for 20 seconds
- Maintain a physical distance of at least 6 feet from others
- Use the provided disinfectant in the office building to clean your personal space and devices before and after use
Classroom Expectations:
We realize your concerns regarding the safety of classrooms and all shared materials and equipment during the pandemic and we are taking steps to mitigate risks of potential exposure. Please know that all classrooms undergo enhanced cleaning during evening hours, each day. In addition, disinfectant wipes will be available for each academic space to clean your personal area.
Office Expectations:
We are making critical adjustments to communal office spaces driven by the health and wellbeing of every faculty member. Desks in shared spaces will be modified to maintain a safe physical distance (at least 6 feet), while cleaning supplies and disinfectants, including hand sanitizer, will be provided. General disinfection of high traffic areas will be conducted by UTRGV Facilities personnel, though all faculty are responsible for cleaning personal spaces and shared-space equipment (copiers, printers, water coolers, coffee makers).
Events:
Prior to August 23rd
Non-essential, indoor and outdoor in-person events hosted by UTRGV continue to be cancelled through August 22nd. The Return to Campus Events/Gatherings Subcommittee continues to review and approve requests to have an in-person event on a case-by-case basis until then.
The In-person Event Review Form is required to request approval for an exception to host an in-person event prior to August 23rd.
- Occupancy: Event organizers can plan for an attendance of up to 75% of the venue capacity.
- Catering: If catering will be provided, it must be grab and go (pre-packaged) in one of the following manners:
- Attendees can pick-up their meal and leave the venue.
- Individuals who are vaccinated may opt to eat alongside with others who are fully vaccinated. Unvaccinated individuals should plan to practice social distancing protocols.
- The event organizers can plan for a meal break and regroup after the meal.
Effective August 23rd
Indoor and outdoor in-person events hosted by UTRGV will be allowed starting Monday, August 23rd.
- The In-person Event Review Form is NOT required for in-person events scheduled after August 23rd.
- Occupancy: The university will transition all space types to 100% occupancy for the Fall semester.
- Catering: If catering will be provided, it must be grab and go (pre-packaged) until further notice, in one of the following manners:
- Attendees can pick-up their meal and leave the venue.
- Individuals who are vaccinated may opt to eat alongside with others who are fully vaccinated. Unvaccinated individuals should plan to practice social distancing protocols.
- The event organizers can plan for a meal break and regroup after the meal.
At all times, a department hosting an in-person event is responsible for:
- Being prepared to transition to virtual, postpone, or cancel the in-person event if the threat of COVID-19 community spread increases.
- Promoting compliance with COVID-19 institutional policies and protocols found on the new Committed to Your Safety. Your Success. Your Experience. resource page.
For questions, please contact the Return to Campus Events/Gatherings Committee at UniversityEvents@UTRGV.edu.
Thoughts
Alyssa Cavazos on compassionate pedagogy
How to approach putting courses online
GSOLE
The Global Society of Online Literacy Educators (GSOLE) will continue to offer Walk-In Webinars this week. The website currently lists the Tuesday webinars, and will be updated soon with the times and Zoom links for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday sessions. It’s a place to ask questions of people who teach online frequently and study online writing instruction. So if faculty have questions about designing low- or high-stakes writing assignments, or want to talk about strategies for responding to writing and managing the literacy load of online teaching, attending a GSOLE walk-in webinar would be a good idea! Walk-In Webinar Schedule: https://www.glosole.org/walkinwebinars.html
CTE Session on Student Engagement
by Katherine Christoffersen & Nicole NicholsonPowerpoint | Graphic Organizer
Center for Teaching Excellence Teaching Continuity Guides
Cengage
To help ensure learning continuity during the COVID-19 disruption, Cengage is providing free access to Cengage Unlimited, inclusive of our entire catalog of online textbooks, homework solutions, study tools and more. Starting today (March 19, 2020), students will receive free access through this mid-semester disruption whether or not faculty have adopted courseware or eBooks from Cengage. Attached are the Student Instructions for accessing Cengage Unlimited. Once the 14-day trial ends, students will see the Start Trial option again in the sidebar. Students can continue to extend the trial through the end of the current semester by running through these steps again. If you or your colleagues need help setting up a course on MindTap, we are here to help! We are also providing instructions to help both faculty and students get up-and-running quickly. Visit Cengage.com/covid-19-support for more information. Faculty can also access self-serve “how to” resources here.
UTRGV Student Accessibility Services (SAS)
Student Accessibility Services (SAS) staff appreciate instructors’ efforts during this transition and want to continue collaborating to ensure equal access for all students. SAS has developed a Faculty FAQ for Online Courses, Accommodations, and Accessibility. This information can be viewed using the following link: Faculty FAQ. Feel free to contact SAS with any questions or concerns related to the FAQ or accommodations in the online learning environment. Brownsville: 956-882-7374 | Edinburg: 956-665-7005 | ability@utrgv.edu
Serving Students With Disabilities
A number of disability-rights advocates have expressed concern that students with special needs will get lost in the abrupt transition to remote learning. If you need guidance as you shift your class, the Association on Higher Education and Disability has posted some helpful links on its site, including Maintaining Access to Opportunity in the Face of the Coronavirus Crisis, edited by Jane Jarrow, president of Disability Access Information and Support.
Information from COLTT Office
The Center for Online Learning & Teaching Technology would like to provide you a list of upcoming Blackboard training sessions for your department. The sessions will prepare faculty to transition to delivering remotely. All courses offered at UTRGV, have a Blackboard course site already available with faculty enrolled in them. We ask that you please pass this on to your faculty that do not teach online.
Trainings
The goal for trainings is to prepare faculty to create and organize content in their Blackboard course(s) for remote instruction. As well as provide additional trainings to provide video lectures (with Panopto), and offer live sessions if needed (through Zoom).
We are offering the following training sessions via Face-to-Face and Online:
- Blackboard Training
- Please bring your Syllabus
- Panopto – Allows instructors to record video lectures
- Zoom – Training will provide faculty with instructions on how to implement zoom to host live sessions with your students
We will be available to offer these sessions online, via Zoom or face-to-face. If you would like to have face-to-face sessions, please reserve a computer lab for our staff to use.
You can register at http://utrgv.edu/training
COLTT Continued Support
Our department will continue to provide support with our normal office hours. Support will be provided:
- Through Phone:
- Brownsville: 956-882-6792
- Edinburg: 956-882-6792
- On Campus
- Brownsville: Casa Bella (BCASA) 613
- Edinburg: Education Complex (EEDUC) 2.202
- Through Support Ticket
Office Hours: Monday -Friday: 7:30AM – 6:00PM
If you are at a distance, we can support you via Zoom or Bomgar. Please contact our offices so that we can connect with you.
Contingency, In case department is notified to work from home
If the University offices are asked to work remotely, we will be available via:
- Through Zoom (Each Instructional Designer will be assigned departments to support)
- Through Phone (Our office numbers will be redirected to our home phones)
- Through Support Ticket - Submit a Ticket
- Through Email (if you are currently working with an Instructional Designer use the same email)
- We will also provide contact information of Faculty Champions from your department that are available to assist you.
In Blackboard, a Faculty Continuity Support tab will appear with needed contact information to gain access to support, trainings and resources. If in the event offices are asked to work remotely, the Faculty Continuity Support tab will provide our contact information. See image below.
COLLT remains dedicated to continuing our high level of care and support. We will be available to assist you to help maintain your high standards of academic rigor and collaboration in the online environment during our transition.