NISOD’s 2016 Conference on Teaching and Leadership Excellence Honors, Celebrates, and Inspires Community and Technical College Educators
Austin, Texas [June 15, 2016] – The National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) welcomed over 1,000 community and technical college teachers, administrators, staff, and their family members to Austin, Texas for the 38th annual International Conference on Teaching and Leadership Excellence.
The Hilton Austin became a hotspot of inspiration, insight, and skill advancement for educators and leaders from community and technical college across the U.S. and beyond. “This year we held the entire conference at the Hilton Austin,” said NISOD Executive Director Edward J. Leach. “The new location really resonated with our audience because of greater opportunities to engage in thoughtful discussions and acquire strategies and tactics they can implement at their institutions.”
NISOD conference participants explored every facet of teaching and learning excellence through over 200 educational sessions, including pre-conference seminars, special sessions, breakout sessions, roundtable discussions, and poster sessions. The cutting-edge sessions fostered lively discussions and deep engagement among conference participants.
During the conference, more than 100 community and technical college upper-level administrators participated in the Administrator Series, sponsored by Civitas Learning. Presidents, chancellors, and other executive leaders shared ideas for driving innovation through continuous improvement, improving completion rates, promoting transfer student success, and building a culture of excellence. Mark Milliron, Co-Founder and Chief Learning Officer for Civitas Learning, shared how higher education institutions are optimizing their data and maximizing their insights to inform decisions. Each speaker emphasized the importance of trying new things and being unafraid to fail.
The conference also marked the 25th year of NISOD’s coveted Excellence Awards. Nearly 200 member colleges submitted the names of 775 awardees. The 340 recipients in attendance at the Excellence Awards Dinner and Celebration were recognized for the extraordinary work they do everyday on their respective campuses. Joined by 100 former Excellence Awards recipients, this year’s recipients, their colleagues, families, and friends enjoyed music, dancing, and great camaraderie at the festive affair. “NISOD is proud to continue our long history of recognizing the outstanding work of community and technical college educators at our member colleges, especially on this 25th anniversary year of the Excellence Awards,” said Leach. “We are thrilled to have been joined by so many colleagues and their family members during our annual celebration of outstanding Excellence Award recipients.” To date, more than 25,000 recipients have been honored with the prestigious award.
During the dinner and celebration, NISOD and Community College Week also showcased the 2016 winners of the Scott Wright Student Essay Contest. Chosen from well over 200 outstanding entries, the three winning students wrote about a faculty member, staff member, or administrator who helped them achieve their educational goals. Paloma Marinelarena, El Paso Community College (TX); Eduard Prieto Caballero, Mountain View College (TX); and Cheryl Carroll, New Mexico State University–Alamogordo (NM) lauded in their essays, respectively, Carlos Mejia, Academic Advisor; Juan Sandoval, Coordinator, STEM Program Services; and Frank Webb, Associate Professor, Philosophy. The students and the employees featured in their essays each received a $1,000 check. In addition, each student’s college received a complimentary 2016-2017 NISOD membership.
Conference keynote speakers offered new perspectives on the business of education through thought-provoking addresses, to overwhelming audience acclaim. Kai Kight, the 2016 Suanne Davis Roueche Distinguished Lecturer, encouraged audience members to reinvent the world around them by rewriting familiar notes in order to grow individually and as organizations. Dr. Gail O. Mellow, President of LaGuardia Community College, and the recipient of NISOD’s John E. Roueche International Leadership Award, explored a groundbreaking model for improving college teaching to increase student success.
Also at the conference, NISOD and Diverse: Issues in Higher Education bestowed the 2016 Most Promising Places to Work in Community Colleges(MPPWCC) awards, which recognize community and technical colleges with an exceptional commitment to diversity. The 2016 PPWCC awardees included Antelope Valley College (CA), Dyersburg State Community College (TN), Front Range Community College (CO), Harrisburg Area Community College (PA), Montgomery County Community College (PA), Mountain View College (TX), Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology (OK), Seward County Community College (KS), and Southwest Virginia Community College (VA). Each college received a handsome engraved acrylic award and a specially-designed logo that can be used to promote their commitment to diversity.
The 2016 winner of NISOD’s first annual Student Art Contest, Jason Grill, St. Clair County Community College (MI), was also recognized with the unveiling of his winning design. Grill received $1,000 and five poster-size copies of his work. Grill’s design will also be featured as the front cover of NISOD’s 2017 International Conference on Teaching and Leadership Excellence conference program. In addition, St. Clair County Community College received a complimentary 2016-2017 NISOD membership.
All of the action at NISOD’s 2016 conference is highlighted on the conference’s archived web page.
Presentation proposals are now being accepted at www.nisod.org/cfp for NISOD’s 2017 International Conference on Teaching and Leadership Excellence, being held May 27 – 30, at the Hilton Austin.
About NISOD
The National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD) is a membership organization committed to promoting and celebrating excellence in teaching, learning, and leadership at community and technical colleges. For community and technical colleges that want to make the most of their professional development dollars, NISOD provides budget-friendly, high-quality, and faculty-focused programs and resources. For nearly 40 years, NISOD’s customer-focused approach has helped align our wide array of benefits with the needs of our members, which explains why the American Association of Community Colleges named NISOD, “The country’s leading provider of professional development for community college faculty, staff, and administrators.” Visit www.nisod.org for more information about NISOD.
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