Sessional academics gather for Connect 2019
The Great Hall played host to the inaugural Connect 2019 event last week, welcoming more than 80 of our invaluable sessional academic staff.
The skill-building expo, a joint initiative of the UON Academy, the Educator Network (tEN) and Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL), offered short presentations as well as a number of booths to develop skills and assist sessional staff with tools to enhance their teaching impact.
“I did not know about the BOLD Lab,” said Dr Sarah Valkenborghs.
“I actually just had a student last week asking if there was any way they could catch up on an Exercise Physiology lab they were going to miss. Being a physical lab, giving them a reading wouldn’t really help. Now I know the BOLD Lab can support me with video production, I’ve got some ideas that can help students keep up, and provide them with a resource to review at the end of the year.”
In addition to the BOLD Lab, sessional staff were able to ask questions to staff from the Library, UniSuper, and Human Resource Services, among others.
Providing sessional staff with new resources for their teaching toolkit was just one of the fantastic aspects of this event, while attendees also highlighted the networking opportunities.
“It has been wonderful because often, as a casual employee, you often don’t get to sit in a staff room and have a yarn. I hope they make this a regular event,” said one participant, while another added “I’ve enjoyed making connections with my colleagues. It’s fantastic.”
Tina Crawford, Director People and Workforce Strategy, said the UON Academy was consistently looking at ways to show sessional staff how valuable they are to the University.
“We are committed to providing more opportunities for professional development, making sure staff know about the support streams available to them, listening to their feedback and developing initiatives to address their needs,” she said.
Positive feedback to date has been taken on board by the UON Academy who hopes to continue to host these events again in 2020.
If you would like more information on UON Academy, feel free to visit their website, or join their LinkenIn community.
Related news
- Launch of the School Students’ Statement on the Right to a Healthy Environment
- Funding boost to technology for lower emission steel
- Newcastle team on mission to improve childhood cancer outcomes
- Shanae’s passion for caring delivers her dream to work in health
- Food and nutrition degree serves Keren a rewarding career
The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.