Teaching and Learning Collective

The Rider University Teaching & Learning Collective (The Collective) cultivates a collaborative culture of teaching excellence. Through a distributed, faculty‑led model, the Collective serves as the pedagogical conscience of the university, empowering instructors at every career stage to develop innovative teaching practices, deepen disciplinary expertise, and support both faculty and student success. The Collective brings together faculty leaders, fellows, and campus partners to create a sustainable, adaptable structure for professional learning—one that reflects our shared commitment to inclusive, evidence‑informed, and forward‑looking instruction.

The Collective Directors: two faculty directors who work with the provost and deans to tend to the structure, contributions, and effectiveness of the Teaching & Learning Collective:

• Directors serve two-year terms, staggered with one new director each year, following the initial two-year appointments of the inaugural faculty directors
• Directors will circulate calls for proposals and select each semester’s fellows; they will work with fellows to schedule institutes and other events; they will steward the fellows’ work to ensure successful completion of each project
• Directors will set the calendar for institutes/events, implement a confidential, voluntary, faculty-led peer review of teaching program centered on reflection and support, and design/implement a system for assessing the Collective
• Directors will be compensated with one course release per semester and a summer stipend

Annual Collective Fellows: a number of fellows will be chosen each year through a competitive submission process. For each of the Collective pillars presented below, one or more fellows will be chosen each year to design, develop, and deliver a semester-long institute for faculty. Each institute should represent a significant area of expertise, and fellows will be compensated with one course release for the academic year. Fellows will continue as “campus experts” in their area in future programming.

Advisory Board: six to eight faculty representing different colleges and career stages will serve as volunteers on the Advisory Board for terms of three years. The Board will help directors assess faculty needs, brainstorm and advise on programming, and assist with assessing the work of the Collective, fostering collegiality and connection.

The Collective will recognize 4 main pillars, or focus domains, of faculty development:

1. Teaching with Emerging Technology: Supports faculty in thoughtfully considering emerging technologies in teaching, focusing on knowledge of digital innovation, cultivating AI literacy, and maintaining academic integrity.
2. Responsive Pedagogies for Student Success: Guides faculty in evidence‑based approaches to course and curriculum design, accessibility, equitable assessment, and culturally responsive teaching to promote a more inclusive educational environment.
3. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) and Professional Development: Fosters a culture of scholarly inquiry into teaching, as well as structured support across the faculty career arc, cultivating high quality education and the well-being and advancement of faculty.
4. High-Impact Teaching and Experiential Learning: Expands faculty capacity to design transformative learning experiences through promotion of pedagogical models that deepen learning, strengthen community connections, and support student persistence.