Fall 2022

Congratulations to our Fall 2022 award recipients!

  • Course Production Team Instructional Designers, Center for Teaching and Learning / School of Professional Studies:
    • Blair Stamper
    • Sam Gist
    • Chris Muellenbach
    • Melanie Lewis
    • Kory Trosclair
    • Pariss Coleman
    • Enoch Park

“The instructional designers on the Course Production Team in the Center for Teaching and Learning have demonstrated exemplary dedication to accessibility and access for UNC Charlotte’s online students. As part of the course development process, the instructional designers regularly go above and beyond, working beyond their 40 hour work week, to ensure that faculty’s courses and content are accessible, not only for government requirements but for student experience, navigation, and experience in the online and blended courses they develop with faculty. Not only do the instructional designers work tirelessly to integrate universal design for learning principles into the online courses they collaborate on with faculty, they actively work to develop resources and frameworks that help to make these ideas and concepts easier for faculty to understand. These frameworks and resources are generously shared with the larger online learning community outside of UNC Charlotte in professional settings and other institutions, all in the spirit of increasing access and accessibility for higher education students. The instructional designers on the Course Production Team are truly dedicated to equity and inclusiveness in UNC Charlotte’s online courses. Their focus in course development is always on student experience and student success. From proposing alternative navigation strategies, rewriting course materials for clarity, assisting faculty with creating more diverse assessments, to creating alternative forms of content to meet learners needs, everything the instructional designers do in their work is to ensure the accessibility of online courses to UNC Charlotte’s students. The mission of the School of Professional Studies is to ensure ‘that all learners, regardless of age, level of experience, or previous education, have opportunities to learn, grow, and achieve their personal and professional goals with a UNC Charlotte education.’ While meeting these goals is part of the instructional designers’ charge within their roles in the Center for Teaching and Learning and the School of Professional Studies, they truly go above and beyond every single day in their work with faculty to ensure these goals are being fulfilled to the highest extent. “

  • Nance Riffe, Communication Studies

“Dr. Riffe is a fantastic professor with an incredible amount of empathy and understanding for her students.”

  • Katherine Hall-Hertel, The Graduate School

“Katherine chaired the Campus Accessibility and Advisory Committee (CAAC) for many years, only recently rotating off. In that role, she helped prioritize projects on campus to improve physical access, as well as projects related to technical access, like web accessibility. Under Katherine’s leadership, the Committee also launched a tool to help departments check their websites for access and worked with Chartwells to get more transparency around menu ingredients to support guests with food allergies. Even though Katherine is no longer a member of CAAC, she continues to let Katie Montie know when her eagle eyes see issues related to access on campus, like the need for contrast stripes. Her leadership has created meaningful improvements in student accessibility at the University, both at the academic and community levels, and Katherine’s passion for improving access for students continues to permeate her work. “

  • Tracie Kumbine, Atkins Library

“Tracie along with our colleague Kim Looby put in an extensive effort to reform our library’s disability policy, procedure, and website. She leads the accessibility committee and has long been at the forefront of addressing student disability concerns.”

  • Ashlyn Walden, Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and Digital Studies

“Ashlyn Walden has done extraordinary work in making her WRDS classes, her presentation materials, and her research accessible to all people. She knows the ins and outs of Canvas and creates Canvas courses that include videos, transcripts, multiple ways for students to engage with the material. She is an absolute expert on Universal Design for Learning and her work deserves to be recognized.”

  • Ryan McKeel, Office of Identity, Equity and Engagement

“Ryan McKeel is the Assistant Director for Leadership & Community Development in the Office of Identity, Equity and Engagement within the Division of Student Affairs. Last year, Ryan heard from several students who identified as living with a disability (physical, invisible, neurodivergent) that they felt supported by the Office of Disability Services in gaining accommodations, but were lacking the ability to gather in community and find a sense of belonging with other peers who identified as living with a disability. Out of these conversations, Ryan supported and assisted an undergraduate student in creating and leading a program called ‘3D: Disability, Discourse, and Development’ to provide unique accessibility to community building among students. 3D is a space for students who identify as disabled to gather in community to build space and relationships with one another. Together, 3D focuses on the development of leadership, career/professional, and community organizing skills. Participation in ‘3D’ is open to any student who self identifies as disabled, neurodivergent, chronically ill, or otherwise as someone who lives with a disability, visible or invisible. Students do not have to be registered with the Office of Disability Services in order to participate in ‘3D’. During Fall 2022, 3D students were offered seven opportunities to gather (4 in person + 3 virtual) to engage in conversation on topics including identity development and intersectionality, ADA protections and EEOC complaint process, radical acceptance and self-care, community development and collective leadership, interviewing skills, workplace accommodations and disclosure, and a Q&A session with a disabled/ chronically ill professional. Participants also took part in common reading of literature dedicated to disability visibility including ‘I’m Tired of Chasing a Cure’ by Liz Moore, ‘When You are Waiting to be Healed’ by June Eric-Udorie, ‘Why My Novel is Dedicated to my Disabled Friend Maddy’ by A.H. Reaume, and ‘Still Dreaming Wild Disability Justice Dreams’ by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha. In addition, 3D invited guest speakers from Student Legal Services, Counseling & Psychological Services, Career Center, and Atkins Library to engage with students.”

  • Liz Butler, Chemistry Department

“Unfortunately the Burson building has a few classrooms that only have steps to reach the front of the room, so wheelchair users cannot access the front to complete required class presentations. Liz quickly and graciously offered to assist in unlocking a back hallway for a student that uses a wheelchair, so that the student could access the front of the room to present. Liz works in the chemistry department, but the student and instructor she assisted were not from a chemistry course. Liz was just willing to help–even outside of her normal work hours. Liz is a shining example of campus employees who work hard to promote inclusion for all 49ers.”

  • Monique Wilson, Office of the Registrar

“Unfortunately there are still several classrooms on campus that only have steps to reach the front of the room. In these classrooms, students who cannot use stairs are unable to complete required class presentations, so the course has to be moved to an accessible classroom for such presentations. This scenario arose this semester for a course in the College of Business in the Friday building, and I reached out to Monique for help finding an accessible classroom alternative. Note this request came in late November! Monique literally responded in minutes with multiple options, and was very pleasant and gracious to work with. Even after the instructor found a classroom on his own afterwards, Monique maintained patience and a very pleasant disposition. Employees like Monique truly help our campus to be more inclusive to all 49ers!”