For its dedicated practitioners, the work of teaching students is an evolution. Beginning in the summer of 2020, members of the Fitchburg State faculty in three cohorts have committed to improving their practice as part of an academy.
This faculty academy’s work is built around themes raised in “The Pedagogy of Real Talk: Engaging, Teaching, and Connecting With Students At-Promise” by Dr. Paul Hernandez, a nationally recognized educator and consultant who has presented at Fitchburg State.
“The pedagogy helps us connect better with students, so that ‘at risk’ students are less ‘at risk,’ and more ‘at promise,’” said Professor Sean C. Goodlett from the university’s Economics, History and Political Science Department.
Learn more: Faculty Commit to Real Talk in their Classrooms.
Faculty Academy Cohorts
First Cohort
Faculty lead: Sean C. Goodlett, EHPS
Danette Day, Education
Eric Budd, Political Science
Jonathan Harvey, Music
Kisha Tracy, English Studies
Wafa Unus, English Studies
Wendy Keyser, English Studies
Second Cohort
Faculty lead: Wafa Unus, English Studies
Amy Wehe, Mathematics
Christopher Picone, Biology
Deborah Stone, Nursing
Jeffrey Warmouth, Game Design
Jescah Apamo-Gannon, Education
Kori Ryan, Human Services
Laura Garofoli, Psychological Science
Melissa Dunn, Nursing
Michael Hove, Psychological Science
Ronald Krieser, Biology
Third Cohort
Faculty lead: Kori Ryan, Behavioral Sciences
Amy Kendrick, Nursing
Billy Samulak, Chemistry
Christopher Cratsley, Biology
Denise Simion, Business
Elisabet Takehana, English Studies
Emma Downs, Chemistry
Jiang Yu, Physics
Lindsay Parisi, Exercise Sport Science
Nermin Bayazit, Mathematics
Faculty Academy Scholarship
Harvey, Jonathan. "'Real Talk' in the Choral Rehearsal." College Music Society National Conference presentation, September 22-24 2022 (accepted).
Harvey, Jonathan. "'Real Talk' in the Choral Rehearsal." National Collegiate Choral Organization conference poster presentation, 14 May, 2022.
Harvey, Jonathan. "'Real Talk' in the Choral Rehearsal." International Symposium for Research in Choral Singing poster presentation, 29-30 April, 2022.
Day, Danette and Kisha Tracy. “Co-Talks in the Park: “Influential Educators and Events,” Fitchburg Abolitionist Park, 25 April, 2022.
Day, Danette and Scott Tyner. “Co-Talks in the Park: Teaching as a Vocation,” Fitchburg Abolitionist Park, 20 April, 2022.
Day, Danette and David Thibault Munoz. “Co-Talks in the Park: Education as a Means to Freedom,” Fitchburg Abolitionist Park, 13 April, 2022.
Unus, Wafa and Madhu Dhar. “Belonging Isn’t a Byproduct, It’s a Prerequisite: The Pedagogy of Real Talk and the Transformative Impact of Putting Belonging First,” Dream 2022 Conference: Achieving the Dream Annual Convening, 16 February, 2022.
Fannon, Sherri, Jacob Price, and Wafa Unus. “Real Talk: The Power of Authenticity, Creating and Measuring Inclusion,” AACU Conference on General Education, Pedagogy, and Assessment, “From Reflection to Reimagination: Making Excellence the ‘New Normal,’” 11 February, 2022.
Tracy, Kisha. "Having 'Real Talks' with Our Students about General Education," Fitchburg State University Center for Teaching and Learning, February, 2022.
Harvey, Jonathan. "'Real Talk' in the Choral Rehearsal." Massachusetts Choral Directors Association conference presentation, 13 July, 2021.
Keyser, Wendy, Wafa Unus, Jonathan Harvey, Sean C. Goodlett, Danette Day, Kisha G. Tracy, Scott Tyner, and Eric Budd. "Empathy in Action: Developing a Sense of Belonging with the Pedagogy of ‘Real Talk," Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, Vol. 19 (4), 2022.
Ryan, Kori, principal investigator. Massachusetts DHE Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF) Grant, "Sustaining and Scaling Implementation of The Pedagogy of Real Talk."
