During a special pinning ceremony, held virtually via Zoom, on Southern State’s Central Campus, six educators from the College were recognized for earning their ACUE Certification in Effective Online Teaching Practices.
Organized and led by the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE), these educators earned a nationally recognized teaching credential through a rigorous training process offered by the Ohio Association of Community Colleges (OACC) Success Center.
Educators from Southern State who successfully completed the program include Jason Sharrett, Adjunct Instructor of History and Distance Education Support Specialist, from Hillsboro (Highland County); Dr. Joshua Montgomery, Associate Professor of Computer Science, from Greenfield (Highland County); Bob Krauss, Instructor of Mathematics, from Winchester (Adams County); Alice Richmond, Adjunct Instructor of English, from Mt. Orab (Brown County); Travis Martin, Associate Professor of Accounting, from Wilmington (Clinton County); and Jamie Harmount, Adjunct Instructor of Education, from Greenfield (Highland County).
“I am pleased that Southern State supports exceptional professional development opportunities for our faculty,” said Dr. Erika Goodwin, Vice President of Academic Affairs. “ACUE is a national certification that is a 25-week program at graduate level equivalent coursework. This certification serves to greatly enhance the quality and skills of our faculty teaching online and subsequently the experience for our students taking online courses,” she said.
ACUE equips instructors with effective and equity-promoting teaching practices that can be implemented immediately with students to help promote increased learning and academic success. These practices are combined with stackable micro credentials. Data has shown that ACUE Certified Faculty retain more students, measurably improve student achievement, and close equity gaps.
Dr. Goodwin went on to say, “Close to 50 percent of our courses are now online or virtual. In this 24/7 world, colleges need to be flexible and offer course options to fit a myriad of lifestyles. Online options are proving to be popular and convenient for our students. I appreciate and thank our faculty who have elected to take this certification.”
A new training cohort is currently underway with ACUE, and SSCC has five new educators enrolled in the program.
