Funded Projects
| Project Title | Overview of the Project |
|---|---|
| I Belong Daicia Price Social Work $6000.00 |
Social work practitioners are classified as health care providers and therefore responsible for delivering services to a diverse population. Practitioners with non-dominant social identities that have been historically marginalized and impacted by systemic, institutional, and interpersonal oppression can experience challenges when working with client systems that perpetuate oppression while receiving services. Course outlines in predominantly white institutions often support new practitioners with dominant social identities in learning how to work with client systems that are marginalized. The current structure further marginalizes new professionals that are attempting to learn ways to work with clients that have oppressive ideas and beliefs while simultaneously learning to work with clients that have similar social identities that lead to issues related to transference. Reports from new professionals that they don’t feel like they “belong” in a profession that is heavily represented by white, heterosexual, cisgender, Christian, women are consistent with President Ono’s reflection at the DEI 1.0 Evaluation report information session. This project, I Belong, seeks to adapt course materials to include real world examples of social work practice with youth and adults with complex and intersectional identities as professionals with complex and intersectional primary and secondary social identities that have experienced marginalization and systemic oppression. Role plays, scenarios, and videos will be developed to enhance the learning experience of students that have diverse social identities, with a focus on ensuring that an equity focused approach is used in the development of resources and tools. |
| Communication education: Using evidence based training Heidi Mason Nursing April Bigelow Nursing Karen Harden Nursing Deborah Price Nursing Jude Divers Medical School $9700.00 |
Proficient communication skills are key to helping patients and families understand their illness and allow them to make decisions based on their personal goals and individual values. Unfortunately most programs do not offer specific communication training. Education to improve communication skills has been associated with earlier and better serious illness conversations. Education and improved communication skills is also linked to an improvement in documentation of goals of care. VitalTalk is an education program that uses evidence-based training methods with simulated patients in a controlled setting to help providers improve their communication skills when having difficult conversations with patients and family members. The course involves a didactic component that teaches the process and a simulation component that enables participants to practice the skills they have learned. Participants are armed with the necessary skills to improve their conversations with patients, particularly those that are sensitive, difficult, or challenging. Nurse practitioners in every specialty need to develop the skills necessary to communicate effectively with seriously ill patients and their families. At the present time the University of Michigan graduate nurse practitioner programs do not have a specific, comprehensive program to teach communication skills to our graduate nursing students. The goal of this project is to teach students specific strategies in effective communication, delivering bad news, and initiating difficult conversations using this method. This can be done though lectures which will teach the evidence based methodology and tools and. This will be augmented by simulation to practice using the skills. |
| Summer Writing Workshops for Engineering Graduate Students Sarah Burcon Engineering - Technical Communication $9820.00 |
The pandemic presented a variety of challenges for graduate student writers, and many now find themselves 1-2 years behind in their lab work and corresponding publications. We would like to offer graduate student writing workshops during the Spring and Summer 2023 terms to help boost students’ productivity and get them back on track with their writing and publications. The workshops would be modeled on TC 610: Technical and Professional Communication for Graduate Students. This course is designed for graduate students who are producing a significant piece of writing and/or oral presentation(s) and who wish to refine their skills as academic and professional communicators. One component of TC 610 is a weekly workshop, during which students work together to improve their writing and their classmates’ writing by providing feedback; the course instructors facilitate this process. During the workshops, students apply writing principles learned during lectures and one-on-one meetings. The workshops are also an excellent opportunity for students to support one another as they grow more comfortable with academic and professional writing processes. We propose offering writing workshops this spring and summer to help engineering graduate students improve their writing and presentation skills, specifically, skills and techniques for creating high-level written documents: e.g., dissertations, proposals, articles, and presentations. We would use a portion of the course content from TC 610, but much of the workshop time would be spent reviewing students’ writing and providing feedback for revision. |
| Equity-Focused Nutrition Counseling Curriculum for Dietetics Training Kendrin Sonneville Public Health $6000.00 |
Approaches to Nutrition Counseling (NUTR 646) is a required course for all Dietetics students at the University of Michigan. The course covers topics including patient-centered care, trauma-informed care, health literacy, cultural humility, weight bias, and weight inclusivity. While this content represents essential elements of dietetics workforce training, the extent to which the learning environment in the course supports the learning and success of students, particularly those with marginalized and minoritized identities, requires greater attention. The overarching goal of this project is to support the development and implementation of an expanded equity-focused, weight inclusive curriculum within NUTR 646 for Fall of 2023. Funds provided by the Gilbert Whitaker Fund for the Improvement of Teaching will support both of these goals by providing compensation for consultants with historically marginalized identities to provide feedback on curricular changes to NUTR 646 and by providing funding for preliminary testing of curricular changes. |
| MBot-ROS: Flexible and scalable mobile robot platform to support robotics coursework at Michigan and beyond Peter Gaskell Engineering - Robotics Abhishek Narula Engineering - Robotics $10000.00 |
The MBot is a small, low-cost mobile robot platform developed at the University of Michigan (UM) to support hands-on labs in robotics courses. The main objective of this proposal is to support development of a new software suite for the MBot platform. The new software suite will be flexible to support modular course development; it will be scalable by enabling easy adaptation, and it will be accessible to the wider robotics community here at Michigan and beyond. To achieve these objectives, we propose to transition the MBot software from the current Lightweight Communications and Marshalling (LCM) framework to the Robot Operating System (ROS). ROS is an open-source robotics middleware suite, consisting of software libraries and tools that support building robotics applications. ROS is widely used across the wider robotics community. Transitioning to ROS will enable flexibility and scalability for the MBot platform; it will allow for robotics students at UM to get hands-on experience with a valuable software suite used in industry and academic research; and it will increase accessibility of the MBot platform and software for robotics students outside UM as the ROS suite is supported by extensive documentation and an online community of robotics researchers. |
| Equitable Teaching and Learning in a Large-Lecture R&E Course Victoria Langland LSA - History LSA - Latin American and Caribbean Studies LSA - Romance Languages and Literatures Farina Mir LSA - History $5980.00 |
We co-teach a large, introductory lecture class with a Race & Ethnicity (R&E) designation: “History 101: What is History?” (cross listed with International Studies 205) and are submitting this proposal in order to improve the teaching of this 318-person class. The proposal originates out of exciting new opportunities on campus to make teaching and learning a more collaborative, engaging, and equitable experience, such as that manifested in the opening of the new Central Campus Classroom Building (CCCB). The CCCB is the first facility at U-M to be designed entirely to support active learning in large courses, and we have requested use of the auditorium (CCCB 1420) in the Fall of 2023 to be able to fully take advantage of this opportunity. We are similarly requesting Whitaker funds so that we can substantially re-conceptualize the way that History 101 is taught, moving away from a reliance on majority lecturing and towards the regular integration of well-designed, intentional, active learning strategies in the lecture hall. Among other benefits, active learning strategies promote equitable teaching as they provide multiple opportunities for students to interact with one another and to share responsibility for building and engaging with their learning community. They also offer multiple modes of engagement to reach all students so that all students have equal access to learning. With these changes, we will be poised to foster more active learning and to ensure equally the success of all of our students. |
| Addressing Technical and Ethical Issues in Information Retrieval David Jurgens Information $5942.00 |
This project aims to develop course content for undergraduate and graduate level Information Retrieval courses that will expose students to the technical and social challenges of developing these systems. Information Retrieval covers technologies that enable people to access otherwise-unreachable information, including the most common example, web search engines. Building these types of technologies requires solving hard technical challenges, such as how to effectively organize millions (or billions) of documents for efficient retrieval or how to understand how to interpret a user’s search query. However, these search technologies play an increasingly important social role as mediators and arbiters of what information can be retrieved. When search engines are designed without social or ethical considerations in mind, the technology has the potential to detrimentally impact society and further marginalize people. For example, in her book Algorithms of Oppression, Prof. Safiya Umoja Noble points to an early example of Google’s search behavior for the query “black girls”; due to feedback loops, early versions of the search engine returned mostly links to pornography on the first page of search results. Furthermore, new issues of search engines gone awry have become more pressing as misinformation and adversarial behavior by website providers both influence what is retrieved on the first page of results. This Gilbert Whitaker Fund proposal would develop a series of homework assignments that helps students deeply engage with the technical and ethical aspects of designing search engines to help prepare them for addressing these real-world harms once they graduate. |
| Advancing Health Equity by Assessing Social Determinants of Health in Advanced Health Assessment Heather Jones Nursing Elizabeth Kuzma Nursing Beth Ammerman Nursing $10000.00 |
Social determinants of health (SDOH) are broad and impact the quality of life, health and well-being, and functioning of individuals and communities. SDOH include economic stability, access to quality healthcare, access to quality education, neighborhood and environment characteristics, and social community/context. SDOHs are associated with significant inequities and health disparities. Healthy People 2030 lists SDOH as a Core Objective and recognizes the need for healthcare providers to address SDOH in the healthcare setting. The University of Michigan School of Nursing (UMSN)’s primary mission is to improve the health of society through preparation of exceptional nurses who will grow to be leaders in healthcare. As there is a strong focus on healthcare providers, such as advanced practice nurses (APNs) (nurse practitioners [NPs] and nurse midwives [NMWs]), addressing SDOH, we plan to integrate content on SDOH topics into the UMSN’s Advanced Health Assessment for APNs course which will encompass APN students from all our offered program specialties (primary care: family, adult-gerontology, and pediatric NP; acute care NP; NMW). Currently, this course has limited content on SDOH. This project will lay the foundation for building content on SDOH into the APN programs intentionally to integrate SDOH content with greater depth as students progress through their programs. This health equity focused teaching project will consist of multiple phases of development, including: assessment of best practices, assessment of current program content, identification of gaps and opportunities, outlining content additions and integration plan, content development, content launch, and evaluation. |
| Development of a Translation Major Kristin Dickinson LSA - Germanic Languages and Literatures Nicholas Henriksen LSA - Romance Languages and Literatures Julie Evershed LSA - Language Resource Center $10000.00 |
We request support from the Gilbert Whitaker Fund to develop and submit a proposal for a Translation Major, housed in Comparative Literature and open to undergraduates across all departments. The introduction of this new major into the LSA curriculum is based on our department’s ongoing commitment to translation studies, and comes with the enthusiastic endorsement from external reviewers in our Fall 2022 departmental review. The major will encourage students to build on the LSA language requirement by taking advanced courses related to translation; it will enable them to pursue translation as a double major with a specific language or discipline; it will also encourage diverse students with multilingual backgrounds to integrate translation into their undergraduate studies. Translation Majors will learn about translation as a process and a product, and gain skills to prepare for careers in professional translation. We have formed a planning team of six members from Comparative Literature and other units who will meet with external consultants during the 2023-24 academic year, to discuss different models for developing an undergraduate translation program. In addition, our team will reach out to Undergraduate Chairs and Senior Lecturers in LSA language and literature departments, to collaborate on designing new courses that will meet requirements for the major and support enrollment in advanced language courses in other units. After gathering external and internal feedback, the team will submit our complete proposal in March 2024 to the LSA Curriculum Committee, with the goal of launching the Translation Major in Fall 2025. |
| Developing and Evaluating a Film-based Pedagogy for Intersectionality and Sexual Health Education Erin Kahle Nursing Renee Pitter Nursing $5810.00 |
Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) inequities disproportionately impact vulnerable populations, specifically groups with intersecting and underrepresented identities, including by race and ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status. Key to reducing SRH disparities is health care provider education that includes curriculum that expands knowledge of the impact of intersectionality and underrepresentation on health inequity, broadens perspectives and attitudes around holistic care across all populations, and improving cultural consciousness through self-reflection and dialogue. To address this, our project will develop and evaluate an innovative pilot curriculum using film-based pedagogy to explore issues of intersectionality and SRH disparities. The use of art pedagogy has been used to improve communication skills, enhance empathy, and expand cultural consciousness. Using the artistic medium of film, students will have the opportunity to engage in shared learning experiences through facilitated dialogue and critical reflection. The visual nature and in-depth discussions will assist students in integration of the material into future studies and practice. The objectives of this project include collaborating with topical experts to identify relevant films that address broad, cross-cutting topics of intersectionality, identity, and health, and pilot testing course modules, including film and interactive curriculum materials, among a sample of UMSN undergraduate and graduate students. If shown to be valuable and feasible as a educational program, we will expand the course as a health sciences elective curricula in alignment with UMSN principles and creative integration of interdisciplinary elements addressing diversity, equity, and inclusion. |
| Developing Innovative Collaborations across South Asian Language and Culture Courses Syed Ali LSA - Asian Languages and Cultures Pinderjeet Gill LSA - Asian Languages and Cultures Arvind-Pal Mandair LSA - Asian Languages and Cultures Vidya Mohan LSA - Asian Languages and Cultures $10000.00 |
We are a group of six faculty members in the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures who have received LSA NINI funding for our proposal “Decolonizing the Curriculum in South Asian Languages and Cultures Courses” to develop and pilot multilingual, collaborative projects in and across South Asian languages and cultures courses. This collaboration has been inspired by the work going on across departments to understand DEI issues in a multilingual, transnational context and to find connections between academic expertise and the ethical commitments of lived experience. We seek funding for the four language lecturers in the group to receive 2 weeks of part-time summer support while they work with the two tenure-track faculty members to develop a complement of assignments promoting student collaborations around issues such as “Language Justice in South Asia,” “Social Movements in South Asia” and “Translating Stories of Violence in South Asia” that will be piloted in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years. |
| Embodied-Knowledge in the Post-Pandemic Humanities Classroom $5569.67 |
In recent years, scholars have increasingly demonstrated the benefits of embodied learning for students’ acquisition of knowledge. To date, however, this emphasis on the body’s role in knowledge acquisition has not translated into pedagogical advances in humanities-based classrooms. This oversight has led to an over-reliance on passive student engagement and assessment, leading to poorer academic outcomes and increased student disconnectedness. I am applying to the Gilbert Whitaker Fund for the Improvement of Teaching to translate the lessons I learned related to embodied knowledge from my pandemic-era instruction into my post-pandemic teaching. Specifically, I seek funds for three new courses I am developing for the 2022-2023 academic year at the University of Michigan. Embodied-Knowledge activities will include the creation of Parchment Scrolls, Aramaic Incantation Bowls, and Books in the Book Arts Studio. Students will also engage with curated items from the Kelsey Museum, the Papyrology Collection, and early books in University’s Special Collections Library. Hands-on and embodied assessment options will also be encouraged. These include opportunities for students to create an exhibit of early Jewish and Christian art or create a 4-to-8-minute video or podcast to showcase their knowledge of a particular area. I will also incorporate regular opportunities for student feedback throughout the course through verbal and written forms to ensure student learning. By creating body-based and sensory-infused pedagogical experiences and assessment options, these courses will introduce students to the ancient world, the Bible, gender, religion, and Early Jews and Christians in a more embodied way. |
