Programs

Georgia represented and advocated for adjunct faculty, starting with research about the Florida University System while learning how different departments on campus support their adjunct faculty. 

• Final Report

Burcu addressed increasing scholarship efforts and implementing an FGCU Accountability Partner Program.

• Faculty Accountability Program
• Final Report

Megan engaged campus-wide faculty cohorts with tailored programs for external fellowships, including the Fulbright Scholar Awards.

• Fulbright Overview

John identified areas of need and created support for adjunct faculty.

• Adjunct Handbook
• Final Report

Charles focused on designing an effective remote classroom.

• CAFE Design Model
• Communication Technologies for Remote Teaching
• Final Report

Anne-Marie explored how principles of intuitive, accessible and universal design can be applied to courses to support student success.

• Annotated Syllabus
• Design Principles
• Powerpoint Design Tips
• Final Report

Greg's aim was to aid faculty, regardless of discipline or career stage, to engage students in effective research experiences.

• Faculty as Mentors in Undergraduate Research
• Funding for Undergraduate Research
• Cultivating Minority Scientists
• Diversifying Science
• Ten Salient Practices of Undergraduate Research Mentoring
• Undergraduate Research Mentoring
• Final Report

Miles focused on how to re-invent and reinvigorate the large lecture style classes by creating an active learning environment.

• Active Learning
• Cynthia Brame Active Learning
• Independent Learning in Undergraduate Education
• Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education
• Final Report

Heather is available to work with faculty to incorporate best practices for information literacy objectives into new or existing course assignments.

• Final Report

Menaka Navaratna is an associate professor of Mathematics at Florida Gulf Coast University, where he has served as the department chair of mathematics division. His terminal degree is in the area of applied mathematics where real-life applications are modeled using differential equations. Since joining FGCU, he has served on many committees and teams. He was a member of CAS Peer Review and Support Committee (PRSC), University Curriculum Team (UCT), FGCU Senate and the chair of the CAS Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (CAS UCC). He has completed several Lucas Center Faculty Learning Communities (FLC) which are devoted to enhancing teaching, learning, and the university experience.

mnavarat@fgcu.edu | 239-590-7544

Alayde Barbosa (Alli) started teaching at Florida Gulf Coast University as an instructor of Geology in 2014. She is now an instructor II who has been an active participant of the Lucas Center Programs to improve her teaching. She is a geologist with a masters and a PhD in Geochemistry. She is very passionate about Geology and teaching. She is originally from Brazil and  enjoy the opportunity to be helpful to other faculty with their teaching.

abarbosa@fgcu.edu | 239-590-7226

Angel Taylor is an Instructor II of English in the Department of Language and Literature at Florida Gulf Coast University. Angel has participated in several Course Design Academies with the Lucas Center for Faculty Development, and many other workshops provided there.  She believes in the benefits of actively engaging in the process of refining and improving her pedagogy to best accommodate her students’ varied learning styles.  Angel has attended several conferences about student centered learning, and has presented at several conferences, locally and nationally, regarding the successes of incorporating student centered learning into her curriculum. She is also actively involved with several assessment initiatives here at Florida Gulf Coast University.

ataylor@fgcu.edu | 239-590-7942

Brenda Thomas is the Director of the University Colloquium program and an instructor in the Department of Integrated Studies at Florida Gulf Coast University.  Though her education centered around environmental science, specifically disturbance ecology, her recent research interests have focused on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.  Brenda has participated in many Lucas Center Academies and Faculty Learning Communities devoted to student-centered learning.  She was a participant in the launch of the Lucas Center’s Student Faculty Partnership Program.

bthomas@fgcu.edu | 239-590-1497

Tanya Huffman is a Level III Mathematics Instructor at Florida Gulf Coast University where she has been teaching undergraduate mathematics and statistics courses since 2007. She is the coordinator of business calculus sections and the recipient of the 2015 FGCU Senior Faculty Teaching Award. Tanya is a member of The FGCU Whitaker Center for STEM Education Leadership Team and a co-PI on NSF Widening Implementation & Demonstration of Evidence-Based Reforms (WIDER) Grant for STEM Professional Academy to Reinvigorate the Culture of Teaching (SPARCT) at FGCU. Her research interests are in mathematics education with specialty area in project-based learning. She regularly presents her innovative teaching techniques at the faculty professional development workshops and conferences. Since 2014, she has been directing enrichment summer programs for middle school students.

thuffman@fgcu.edu | 239-590-7648

Dr. Jackie Greene is Instructor III in the College of Education. She is the former Assistant Director of the Lucas Center, and she has extensive experience conducting peer observations of teaching and Small Group Instructional Diagnosis feedback sessions.

jgreene@fgcu.edu | 239-590-7774

Dr. Dan Bacalzo is an Associate Professor of Theatre and the Assistant Director of the Bower School of Music and the Arts. He has participated in numerous Lucas Center academies, programs, and workshops inclusive of New Faculty Academy, Course Design Academy, Student-Faculty Partnership Program, Mentor Coach Program, Academic Portfolio Workshop, and the Peer Observation of Teaching Workshop. He is the recipient of multiple professional development and innovative assignment design award grants, as well as Seidler undergraduate scholarly collaboration fellowships and an Aquila Award for Outstanding Student Scholarship Support.

dbacalzo@fgcu.edu | 239-590-7404

Reid Lennertz, MBA, MA, is a recently promoted Instructor II in the Daveler & Kauanui School of Entrepreneurship where he has taught since 2019. In 2021, he was the recipient of the Junior Instructor Teaching Excellence Award. Prior to 2019, while serving as the Director of FGCU Career Services, he was an adjunct Instructor for the Lutgert College of Business and the College of Arts & Sciences. In 2013, he was nominated for the Adjunct Faculty Teaching Excellence Award. Reid has attended numerous professional development program through the Lucas Center, including the Student-Faculty Partnership Program in Fall 2021. He is presently the Chair of his School’s Promotion and Support Committee, giving him valuable insight as to the role of Teaching Observations in the promotion process. 

rlennert@fgcu.edu | 239-745-4041

Dr. Jingshun Jason Zhang is an associate professor in assessment, evaluation and research at College of Education at Florida Gulf Coast University. Dr. Zhang has more than 30 years’ experience in teaching, research, and academic service in

USA, Canada, and China. He has taught many courses in assessment, evaluation, measurement, mathematics, calculate, probability, and computer application face- to face, virtually for undergraduate, master, doctoral students and other

trainings. He also has many broad studies on the classroom teaching, online teaching and learning, classroom assessment, large-scale assessment, program evaluation, educational measurement, etc. Jason has joined many programs of

the Lucas Center such as New Faculty Academy mentor, Student-Faculty Partnership Program, Course Design Academy (multiple level), Peer Observation Program, and others. Based on Boyer’s scholar model He always try to do his best to integrate the teaching, research and service together along with multiple grants such as The Wing for the future, innovative assessment design awards, COE min-grants and others.

jzhang@fgcu.edu | 239-590-1855

Jan-Martijn Meij has been in the sociology program since 2011 and has greatly benefited from the programs and workshops at the Lucas Center. He considers good teaching to be something that looks different for different people in different situations. Every teaching situation that is observed offers opportunities for growth for both the observer and observee. Reflection on one’s teaching is an important part of the process in improving your pedagogy.

jmeij@fgcu.edu | 239-590-1884

Jeff Kleeger is a professor in the Justice Studies Department of the College of Arts & Sciences who has participated in several professional development activities and programs offered by the Lucas Center. He is interested in different teaching and learning approaches and recognizes the efficacy of mixing and matching to enhance student learning outcomes. Jeff’s philosophy on teaching is collaborative learning based, but he equally respects the value of a good traditional lecture. Jeff believes the science and art of teaching and learning can always be enriched by reflective practice and so he brings this perspective to his teaching, research and service focus in the sociology of law and law study.

jkleeger@fgcu.edu | 239-590-7861

I am a Communication Instructor II at Florida Gulf Coast University. I have been teaching here since 2010. I am a popular professor on campus and I have had the privilege of teaching a variety of Communication courses such as Public Speaking, Theories of Human Communication, Gender and Communication, Interpersonal Communication, Fundamentals of Communication, Intrapersonal Communication, Nonverbal Communication, Rhetoric of Social Movements, and others. I believe that my strengths in the classroom lie in my ability to be vulnerable. Students seem to easily relate to my teaching style and I am proud to say that each semester my courses have a waiting list.

I have a great working relationship with my colleagues. I have had the privilege of team teaching with two of them. Through this experience we have honed our teaching skills and styles, a true gift, as the opportunity to continue to improve is part of what I love about teaching. 

Beyond my teaching role, I helped to establish the Communication Lab on our campus. I am currently the associate director. The Com Lab is a resource for students of all disciplines to access help for anything speech or presentation related, including topic ideas, outlining help, delivery tips, and recording of speeches/presentations. We also host the Public Speaking competition every year which has become quite popular and most recently we created Socrates on Stage, a Ted Talk style event which is a collaboration between Communication and Philosophy students.

Additionally, I serve on several College wide committees such at the College Governance Team and Student Affairs committee.

The training I received from the Lucas Center during the Peer Observation of Teaching workshop has been valuable. I look forward to helping co-create a culture at FGCU that values the ongoing development of our teaching.

aparke@fgcu.edu | 239-590-7833

Matt Palmtag is an Instructor III in the department of Biological Sciences, where he teaches high enrollment introductory courses such as General Biology I and II, and upper level specialty courses such as Animal Nutrition. Matt’s main goals as an educator are to combine his experience with evidence-based pedagogical research to plan for improvement, develop student critical thinking skills required for career success and lifelong learning, invite and respond to student and peer feedback to improve student engagement, and reciprocate the value with which his students and colleagues have treated him. Peer observation of teaching (POT) provides the perfect opportunity for Matt to continue to reach his goals and support colleagues to reach theirs. Throughout his time at FGCU he has had the opportunity to co-instruct with seven of his colleagues. He has also engaged in formative and summative peer observation both as an observer and observee with over a dozen other colleagues throughout the university.  In 2013 Matt earned the FGCU Junior Instructor Teaching Excellence Award. He has served as a mentor in the Lucas Center Mentor Coach Program since 2014, this program fosters professional development through discussion and participation in POT. He also participated in the Lucas Center Peer Observation of Teaching Workshop in 2022. Matt credits POT as one of the most significant professional development activities that has shaped his career and teaching philosophy and is eager to share his experience to support his fellow faculty members.

 mpalmtag@fgcu.edu | 239-590-1263

Dr. Daniel Lambrecht has experience teaching a range of science courses, ranging from introductory large-lecture classes such as General Chemistry to advanced and more specialized courses such as Biochemistry and Physical Chemistry. He continually strives to improve his teaching by incorporating student feedback, peer observation, and professional development opportunities such as the workshops offered by the Lucas Center. As somebody who has received valuable teaching feedback from colleagues, he recognizes that an external, objective mentor is invaluable to analyze and improve one’s teaching approach. This is particularly important to ensure one’s teaching approach is rooted in best practices and focuses on objective, measurable learning outcomes as appropriate within the discipline and across fields.

dlambrecht@fgcu.edu | 239-745-4459

Dr. Cara Brooks is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mathematics.  During her time at FGCU, she has observed the teaching of roughly 20 faculty across five colleges through her various roles: elected member of FGCU’s Teaching Excellence Award Committee, participant in the Whitaker Center’s STEM Professional Academy to Reinvigorate the Culture of Teaching, and mentor for the Lucas Center’s New Faculty Academy.  She has taught upper- and lower-division college mathematics courses for over 20 years, was observed numerous times, and received training at the Lucas Center’s Peer Observation of Teaching workshop. 

Based on readings of the literature and personal experience, she has found that peer observation (as an observer and being observed) can play a fundamental role in the development and continued improvement of one’s teaching.  She recognizes the trust required to invite an unknown observer into your classroom.  Whether it is a summative letter for a portfolio or a formative assessment of a new teaching technique, she provides detailed and purpose-driven observations based on the request of the faculty member.  She is committed to engaging in open discussions during the pre- and post-observation meetings and to applying her knowledge about peer observation and best practices to provide kind and constructive feedback.    

cbrooks@fgcu.edu |  239-590-7073

Dr. Shelby Gilbert is an Associate Professor of public health in the Marieb College of Health and Human Services. The primary focus of her teaching is guided by the behavioral and social sciences to explore how issues of access—access to educational opportunities, quality health care, and community resources—impact the health outcomes of people most negatively impacted by social, political, and economic policies. She has participated in many Lucas Center activities over the years, and one of the most impactful things she has learned is to always approach teaching with the question “what do I want my students to remember from this course five years from now” at front of mind. 

Inspired by this question, she understands the importance of assessing our teaching to determine what has, and has not, worked to engage our students. Evaluation of our teaching effectiveness is an important component of what we do FGCU, and while student perceptions of our teaching and our own self-reflection are helpful, each of these on their own represents a small, flawed view of our teaching practice. It is also important that we are assessed by our peers who can provide an objective observation of our teaching to provide valuable feedback of what works well and, more importantly, what can be improved.

sgilbert@fgcu.edu | 239-590-1851