Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


OLC to Deliver Discounted PD on Online Instruction to Minority-Serving Institutions

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 05/18/20

The Online Learning Consortium (OLC) has received a grant to work with minority-serving institutions as they shift to online instruction. The $50,000 award from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation will fund delivery of affordable, short-term workshops to reach instructors in institutions that need professional development resources most.

Under the grant, OLC will make 13 workshops available at a discount price of $45, including five that are self-paced. Among the criteria for qualifying are stipulations that learners be employed at a federally recognized minority-serving institution and fairly new to delivering online instruction at a school where other internal training resources are limited.

Topics cover:

  • "New to online essentials" (in three parts);
  • "Strategies for facilitating live, online sessions";
  • "Giving effective feedback" (also available in a self-paced format);
  • "Engaging learners in online discussions";
  • "Increasing interaction & engagement";
  • "Applying Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles to online courses to increase accessibility & engagement";
  • "Creating effective assessments" (self-paced);
  • "Strategies for designing and facilitating engaging online discussions" (self-paced);
  • "ADA & Web accessibility" (self-paced); and
  • "Strategies for increasing interaction & engagement" (self-paced).

The program, available on a first-come, first-serve basis, is expected to continue through December 2020.

Registration is open now on the OLC website.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • layered glass panels and light trails

    Stanford Online Launches Immersive Learning Studio

    Stanford Online recently marked its 30th anniversary with the announcement of a new immersive learning studio, according to a university news release. The studio takes advantage of AI-powered and immersive learning technologies to continue delivering personalized and faculty-led education.

  • blue wooden cubes block texture abstract background

    Gartner Estimates Worldwide IT Spending at $6.31T for 2026

    Gartner recently forecast that worldwide IT spending will total $6.31 trillion in 2026, a 13.5% increase from 2025. Sectors experiencing the largest growth include data center systems, software, and IT services.

  • silhouette of business person facing wall of data

    Why AI Strategy Belongs in the President's Office

    Institutions that are succeeding with AI share one thing in common, and it is not a better committee, a larger budget, or a more sophisticated technology stack. It is a president who never handed off the steering wheel.

  • glowing ai text in a digital cube surrounded by data elements

    USC Launches AI Initiative to Accelerate Innovation in Health Sciences, Security, Business, and the Arts

    The University of Southern California recently announced that it has launched a "transformational" new AI initiative thanks to a $200M gift from venture capitalist Mark Stevens and his wife. The project will leverage AI toward breakthroughs and innovations in subjects like the health sciences, business, security, and the arts.