The Online Faculty Fellows Hub is a resource containing a wide array of strategies, definitions, and guides to help faculty prepare to teach online.

Individual guides offer help with Course Design and Management, Presentation of Materials (for both blended and online classrooms), Communication and Collaboration with Students, Group Work, and much more.

Although focused on online teaching and learning, all faculty can benefit from the information available in the Hub. Each page is organized around pedagogical questions and offers strategies for ways to define and apply solutions in the classroom.

Available Resources

eLearning Toolbox
Access guides that break down all the tools used across Simmons College for asset design, course organization, and creative exercise creation.

Follow step-by-step guides on how the Toolbox can be used in the classroom to best serve you and your students.

Faculty Spotlights
Learn about other faculty members’ experiences teaching in blended or online classrooms.

Online Faculty Fellows Program
Simmons Online sponsors the Online Faculty Fellows Program, focusing on faculty development and collaboration for those who are preparing to teach or design courses for online delivery.

Training
We currently offer Basic Training, and coming soon, Simmons Online will offer Advanced Training.

• The next Faculty Fellows Basic Training session is Oct 3 – 28. Interested in signing up? Contact Kristen Palson.
• Advanced faculty training sessions will begin in Fall 2016. Look for complete details to be announced in September.

Congratulations! Spring semester is over and you can (maybe? hopefully?) relax a bit and enjoy the beautiful weather Boston has to offer this time of year.

Whether you’re on campus, off campus, or halfway around the world this summer, you can still access many Simmons services.

TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT

Service Desk
Open for phone support Monday-Friday from 7:30am – 5:30pm at 617-521-2222.

Technology Support Center
Located in LEF-331 and open for walk-ins Monday-Friday from 8:00am – 6:00pm.

If you need help during the evening or on the weekend, or if you’d rather not pick up the phone, you’ll find answers to many common questions on the Service Desk website.

Services Available Online
You can access your email, calendar, Google docs, Moodle, AARC, Workday, and more from any location using mobile sites and apps.

If you need access to technology services that are only available from the on-campus network, you can tap into them remotely using VPN. Simmons VPN is accessible on mostcomputers and mobile devices.

ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES

If you’re staying in Boston this summer, most on-campus services are available to you. Be sure to check in advance for modified summer hours.

Dining
Common Grounds Cafe and The Fens are open throughout the summer for staff, faculty, and students taking summer classes.

Public Safety
Located in Palace Road, suite P-106, Public Safety officers are on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In an emergency, call 617-521-1111 (or dial 911). For all other Public Safety needs, call 617-521-1112.

On-Campus Parking
On-campus parking is available during the summer. Purchase parking online via the online parking store.

Awareness Guides Spreading Across Campus
Public Safety student workers Fiona Chadwick and Meghan Cokely have created a series of emergency preparedness guides for distribution across campus. These handouts highlight how to prepare for an emergency and what you can do to remain calm in the event of an emergency on campus.

Fiona and Meghan also created “You’ve Been Bitten” cards which call out the importance of preventing theft of personal items on campus. When our officers see unattended bags, electronics, and other items, they’ll leave a card to remind you that theft on campus can often be prevented simply by keeping an eye on your things while in public spaces.

Thanks to our student workers for their invaluable contributions to the mission of Public Safety!

Relay for Life Fundraising
In March, the Public Safety team volunteered with Northeastern University Police Department’s Relay for Life team. Their efforts helped to raise more than $1,500 for the American Cancer Society.

Public Safety Who’s Who
Coming soon, there will be a Public Safety team photo wall outside of our main entrance in Palace Road and near the entrance of the Public Safety Office in Simmons Hall. We hope this helps everyone on campus recognize our team members. If you see us around, say hello! We’re always looking for opportunities to engage with the community.

Throughout July and August, the Buildings & Grounds team will be working to replace the roofs of the School of Management Building and the Park Science Center.

Both buildings’ roofs sustained damage during a hailstorm late last summer. Temporary repairs were made shortly afterwards so that the roof replacement project could be postponed until after the academic year concluded.

While work is in progress, a crane will be parked on the grassy area between the two buildings. This area will be inaccessible during the project, but the rest of the academic campus quad will still be available for you to get out and enjoy the summer weather.

If you have any questions about this project, please contact Richard Stewart at [email protected].

Simmons Technology is rolling out ID card based printing for faculty and staff across campus. This service allows you to print, copy, and scan quickly and securely from any multi-function device (MFDs) on campus by tapping your ID card on the reader.

Earlier this month, we conducted a successful pilot period in the Technology department and the Library. We expect to activate ID card readers on all remaining MFDs between May 3rd-5th.

This change provides faculty and staff with the same flexibility that CampusPrint provides to students: a networked, secure, campus-wide solution that allows you to get your documents when and where you need them. With tap-access printing, there’s also no need to cancel print jobs you may have sent accidentally or decided not to print.

Please note that while this feature will be available on all MFDs, you can continue to print directly to MFDs in your office or department without tapping your ID. Copying and scanning at MFDs will require tap-access at all times.

In May, Simmons Technology will provide drop-in training sessions and project manager Roy Balcom ([email protected]) will work with individual departments to coordinate trainings, as requested.

Over the last month, Simmons Technology has seen a sharp increase in spam containing malicious attachments. Opening infected files that you receive via email can install unwanted and dangerous software on your device. Some files even contain malware that will lock you out of your device and demand a ransom in exchange for unlocking it.

We don’t want to see anyone at Simmons end up in these types of situations. Here’s what we’re doing—and what you can do—to stay safe:

• We adjusted Gmail’s spam filtering tool to enhance our ability to detect and quarantine spam and malware.
• We are available to help you identify potential problems with attachments.
• You should be cognizant of who has sent you an email with an attachment and the name and file type of the attachment. If it looks unusual or suspicious, don’t open it.
• You should install antivirus software on your computer. If you’re using a Simmons-owned computer, antivirus software is already installed and running.
• You can learn to look for signs that your device has been compromised by a virus or malware.

If you have questions about information security or concerns about a specific email or attachment, please contact the Service Desk at 617-521-2222.

The new VoIP telephone system at Simmons makes it easier than ever to connect to a colleague or department using a voice-activated directory. To access the directory, dial 3411 on campus or 617-521-3411 from off campus. The directory is also available from off campus when calling 617-521-2000 outside of business hours.

Using a speech recognition tool, the directory can look up and connect you with any department or employee on campus when you say their name. You can also search for departments by saying department guide or using common synonyms such as help desk to reach the Technology Service Desk. There is a full list of department extensions and synonyms available, along with instructions for updating department information.

If the system is unable to match the employee or department name, there is also an operator available during normal business hours.

For more information about the voice-activated directory, visit the Service Desk website. If you need additional assistance, please contact the Service Desk at 617-521-2222.

Following a complete overhaul of in-room technology equipment, the Career Resource Center in SOM 106 is now the Career Resource Center Meeting Room.

The space is available for meetings of up to fifteen people and features a complete suite of media technology, including:

• Built-in projector and screen
• Windows computer with wireless keyboard and mouse
• HDMI and VGA video/audio connections for laptops
• Blu-ray player
• Audio conferencing equipment (coming soon)

You can reserve the Career Resource Center Meeting Room directly through events.simmons.edu (R25).

Supporting Trans* Students
The Department of Public Safety often shares information with the Simmons community to help ensure our safety. What we don’t often see is the commitment to continuing education that helps the officers and civilian staff better understand the needs of a diverse campus.

On March 7th, Public Safety held a team workshop, entitled “Supporting Trans* Students at Simmons College: Understanding for Safety and Empowerment.” The workshop was conducted by Merrimack College professor Susan Marine. Dr. Marine is an expert in empowering women and gender non-conforming students, and she brings years of experience in violence prevention, diversity initiatives, and LGBT advocacy—issues that are vitally important to our community.

R.A.D. Self-Defense Classes
During February and March, Sgt. Jarrad Farrington and Inspector Michael Legee taught R.A.D. (Rape Aggression Defense) self-defense courses in Alumnae Hall. The R.A.D. system is a comprehensive course consisting of 12 hours of strategies to help develop awareness, increase prevention, reduce risk, and learn physical self-defense. To learn more about R.A.D. and upcoming classes, please call 617-521-1112 or email[email protected].

New Academy Graduates
We would like to congratulate Blake Coleman and Phillip Dimanche on their graduation from the Police Academy. Officers Coleman and Dimanche recently completed the Massachusetts Law Enforcement Training Alliance #9 course.

Funded by a generous grant from the Ruby W. and LaVon P. Linn Foundation, Technology and Advancement have partnered to significantly upgrade the technology available in the SOM Executive Dining Room (M513).

The Executive Dining Room is available for events that require advanced web conferencing and teleconferencing capabilities. With built-in support for presentations, screen and webcam sharing, GoToMeeting and Skype conferencing, and assistive listening devices, the space can accommodate events with up to 24 attendees.

To make things even easier, basic presentations can be set up without the support of Technology. Just follow the touch screen prompts to connect your device and display your presentation. For events requiring the use of conferencing features, please contact Technology two weeks in advance to ensure the proper configuration of equipment in the space.

If you would like to reserve the Executive Dining Room for an upcoming event, please contact Conferences and Special Events ([email protected]) to discuss available dates and times.