2019/20 Humboldt State University -- Teaching for Transformation

Proposal Summary: The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) at Humboldt State University (HSU) set forth to utilize CSU Quality Assurance funds to deepen its structural support for online and blended course design and instruction. In doing so, the CTL launched a year long course design intensive and aligned programming that merged faculty development, course design based on the Quality Teaching & Learning framework, instructional design support, collegial collaboration, and online learning to provide structured immersive experiences for instructors. This multimodal approach focused on deepening the faculty learning experience with goals to (1) improve student learning experiences, (2) expand the number of course design exemplars for dissemination to the broader campus community, and (3) cultivate a culture at HSU that values and embraces quality online teaching and learning. The rapid transition to remote instruction in the spring semester 2020 due to the pandemic COVID-19 did not significantly compromise HSU’s QA goals and efforts. On the whole, participating faculty were better equipped to shift to remote instruction. However, COVID-19 did delay the dissemination of faculty work intended for the Teaching Excellence Symposium, which is now slated for fall 2020. COVID also compromised the SQuAIR goals as faculty and students were not prepared to address pre and post survey assessments of instructional impact as related to the course design institute. The 2020-2021 goals will revisit the research goals informed by the currently unknown instructional context.

Campus QA Goals

HSU’s 19/20 goal was to continue to provide high quality online/blended instruction that improves students’ academic success and timely progress to graduation through a broad organizational approach that embeds Quality Assurance (QA) into our campus culture impacting all learning and teaching modalities. HSU’s Center for Teaching Learning lead efforts to blend the intersection of faculty development, technology, and disciplinary thinking in alignment with CSU’s QA initiative and goals. Efforts included offering a year long course design institute and aligned CTL learning community programming one of which focused on teaching for transformation using technology and another on inclusive teaching. Further goals sought to share faculty work broadly across campus and the CSU. Finally, an initial goal was to participate in the CSU SQuAIR program but COVID-19 delayed these goals to AY20-21. 

HSU believes an explicit commitment to quality teaching and learning acts as a catalyst for change and innovation as the CTL continued the work of AY18-19 and AY19-20 and continued collaborations with faculty as they sought to reimagine how to transform their courses to maximize student success.

  • (Re)design that targets online/blended courses that identify as bottleneck, gateway, and opportunity gaps

  • Build further QA educator leadership capacity through a our Pathways to Digitally Enhanced Teaching

  • Creating a QLT campus culture through highly integrated professional development experiences

Quality Assurance Leads

  1. Julie Alderson, QA Faculty Lead
  2. Enoch Hale, QA co-facilitator
  3. Terri Georgopoulos, QA co-facilitator
  4. Kim Vincent-Layton, QA coordinator


Supporting Campus Partners

  • Center for Teaching and Learning Instructional Design Team, Canvas Team

  • Office of Institutional Effectiveness

  • Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

  • College Deans


Campus Commitment Toward Sustainability of QA Efforts

  • Creating a QLT culture through highly integrated CTL programming, consultations, and expanded resources

  • Creating policy and processes to further efforts through the successful adoption of a revised elearning policy

  • Participation in CSU professional development programming

  • Educator Submissions to QuARRY


Summary of Previous QA Accomplishments

  • 17 course (re)design projects in AY19-20

  • Revised eLearning Policy with QA Component spring 2020

  • Established CTL QA Peer Review Pathway 

  • Eight QLT-designed Canvas Course Templates

  • HSU QLT-designed Accessible Syllabus Template

  • Ongoing Campus QLT Learning Opportunities

  • HSU QLT Version with Examples of Inclusive Teaching Practices

  • Keep Teaching Resources

  • Launched Pathways to Digitally Enhanced Teaching

  • Pivot to Remote Instruction 2 day intensive workshops (spring 2020 and fall 2020)

  • Campus-wide Integration of Canvas Analytics and Ally 


Dissemination of QA Efforts

  • Teaching Excellence Symposium (rescheduled for fall 2020 due to COVID-19)

  • CTL website exemplars

  • CTL faculty stories (videos in development) 

  • Hale, E. (2020), Presentation to HSU Academic Affairs Leadership. Humboldt State University 

  • 50 HSU faculty participating in CSU QA summer 2020 course work 


Quality Assurance Results

Training Completions

HSU designed, developed, and facilitated a two-part, cohort-based Course Design Institute over the 2019/2020 academic year. The 2019/20 Course Design Institute provided opportunities for educators to engage in "Reimagining the Learning Experience" and make “Connections to QLT” by reflecting on their teaching goals and practices through the lens of the CSU’s Quality Learning and Teaching (QLT) instrument.



Fall 2019: Part I - Re-imagine Your Course/Learning Experience

The Course Design Institute began with examining the fundamental structures of our courses and developing course design goals based on results from the Teaching Goals Inventory. Participants explored what we know about HSU students, trends in course success data, and considerations around three logics (student, instructor, content). From there, they focused on how content, pedagogical, and technological choices inform/influence these factors. This formed the basis of their 'Action Plan'. This work continued in alignment with the CTL's QA work established in AY19-20. 

Spring 2020: Part II - Create Your Course/Learning Experience with Connections to QLT

Part two introduced the Quality Learning & Teaching (QLT) framework. Participants interfaced with this tool to prompt continued reflection on course design goals, develop learning experiences, craft assignment criteria and rubrics, and embed meaningful assessments to gauge student learning. Every participant was assigned an instructional designer with whom they worked to actualize their action plans. 


Student Quality Assurance Impact Research

Delayed due to COVID-19, but efforts will be revisited in fall 2020.

Development of QA Campus Resources


Accessibility/UDL Efforts

HSU has a deep commitment to meeting the needs of all our students. Through broad programming and intentional efforts, the CTL has made inclusive design a cornerstone of our work.

  • Universal Design and Ally Campus Orientation & Training Sessions (partnership with CTL, Student Disability Resources Center, Accessible Resources Center)

  • Ally in All Courses

  • Applying Universal/Inclusive Design Through CTL Programming and Consultations

  • CTL Faculty Learning Community on Inclusive Teaching 

  • Creation and dissemination of Course Equity Ratio Report 

Next Steps for QA Efforts at HSU

As HSU continues to fold QA efforts into programming and services, our next steps include:

  • Increase Participation in CSU QA Training

  • Analyze campus QA program participation data in relation to course student success data 

  • Continue CTL Inclusive Teaching Programming

  • Continue institutional partnerships focused on promoting exemplary online teaching and learning 

  • Expanding CTL Pathways to Digitally Enhanced Teaching to align with RTP efforts specifically focused on encouraging the creation of teaching development plans