Attended a Folsom Makers Meetup (http://www.meetup.com/Folsom-Makers/) meet and greet Tuesday night at a local Folsom watering hole.  I’ve been to another of the group’s events, a showcase night at Entrepreneurs Campus (http://www.velocityvc.com/entrepreneurs-campus-ignite-accelerate-capitalize/), also in Folsom.  Made some good contacts, and had the opportunity to talk a bit about the college and our makerspace ambitions.  Lots of talent and energy in this town.  Hoping to bring some of that energy to FLC.

Transitioning a Course to Hybrid or Online
Friday, March 13 2015
1-2:15 PM, FL1-135 (Library Classroom)
If you’re planning to develop an online or hybrid course but don’t know where to begin, this is the workshop for you.

Regular Effective/Substantive Contact in Online and Hybrid Classes
Friday, March 27 2015
1-2:15 PM, FL1-135 (Library Classroom)
Instructor presence can make (or break) student success in online and hybrid courses.

Is Your Online/Hybrid Course Ready for Accreditation?
Friday, April 17 2015
1-2:15 PM, FL1-135 (Library Classroom)
Tools to help you evaluate and improve your online and hybrid courses.

Beyond the LMS: Tools for Increasing Student Engagement & Success
Friday, May 1 2015
1-2:15 PM, FL1-135 (Library Classroom)
Third-party tools for increasing student communication, engagement and success.

RSVP for any or all…

1.  D2L Data

For Spring 2015:

  • 432 course sections, or 61% of all course sections are linked to D2L course accounts
  • 6,534 (unduplicated) students, or 84% of all students are enrolled in courses linked to a D2L course account
  • 157 faculty from 65 disciplines are using D2L course accounts
  • Approximately 57% of faculty (full and part-time) are using D2L to support online, hybrid, and face-to-face courses

2.  Dean of DE

3.  Adaptive Media Design Specialist

The Accessibility and Universal Design Specialist supports faculty in the development of effective online learning environments for online, hybrid, web-enhanced course sections, and in-person courses to ensure that all content and media meet approved web accessibility standards and the principles of Universal Design. The position serves as the main point of contact for support of the college’s *Web Accessibility plan. The position will also develop and deliver training incorporating Universal Design principles for college faculty and staff.

DUTIES

  • Consults with instructional divisions and other departments on standards and best practices for compliance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG) AA standards for instructional materials and principles of Universal Design.
  • Works with individual faculty members and departments to design accessible online courses and course components, including assessments
  • Develops materials and resources that promote the principles of Universal Design and web accessibility
  • Provides technology based training sessions to individual faculty and small groups as appropriate
  • Serves as main point of contact for college-wide Web Accessibility plan.

4.  Innovation Center/Media Services Video Program

5.  ARC’s Instructional Technology Center’s Accessibility Series: Caption Your Videos

6.  Changes to Socrates and the DE Subcommittee of Curriculum

7.  OEI Chooses Instructure Canvas as Systemwide LMS

8.  Regular Effective/Substantive Contact Update

iPhone/GoPro Mount Mashup
We’ve had some success using the iPhone for aerial imaging from kites, balloons, and quads, so I’ve been looking for a way to mount one to our new Phantom’s GoPro mounting base plate. A quick search of http://thingiverse.com returned this GoPro-compatible iPhone case created by N3W0NE (CC BY-NC-SA). I printed it out on our new Printrbot, and while it technically fits, it needs a little adjustment to be ideal for our situation.  Most GoPro and iPhone users want to mount cameras facing forward, but ours needs to be pointing straight down, which sometimes doesn’t quite work – various mounts and housings get in the way.  For this model to work correctly for our needs, it needs to be tweaked so that the GoPro mount bit is on the short edge of the iPhone.  Not a big deal, and I’m grateful that communities like Thingiverse exist, and that folks are willing to share their work.

thingiverse_contact_card


The new quadcopter arrived, and it flies like a dream right out of the box.  We’ve been looking for a stable, predictable (some would say boring) flyer, and this machine seems to fit the bill.  Excited to put it through its paces in the next few weeks!