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CTI's slate of programming serves the wide range of teachers at SSU: new faculty developing their approach to college teaching, experienced faculty looking to keep up with technological transformations, and everyone in between. Many of our workshops and events are offered online to ensure access b Our sessions are designed to be both informative and interactive, balancing overviews of best practices and emerging research with opportunities for discussion and connection among colleagues. 

CTI offers a range of programming types, including:

• Faculty Professional Learning Communities (FPLCs): semester- and year-long explorations of core topics with cross-campus colleagues; recent offerings include Reimagining General Education, Teaching In The Age of AI, and Collaborative Online International Learning
• Course Design Institutes for developing or reimagining course materials, including series like Course Redesign: Adapting for Transformation (CRAFT) and Equity-Minded Syllabus Review
• Workshops aligned with semester timelines and just-in-time needs like assessment and course policies
• Co-facilitated seminars, roundtables and workshops with faculty and staff colleagues from across campus
• Reading groups centered on single books or readings curated by topic
• An annual spring faculty symposium, held on campus each May
• Annual faculty innovation showcase, held virtually each December

CTI also offers individual, department and program consultations with our team of instructional designers, who are available to meet on campus, via Zoom or email. Faculty are encouraged to , and a member of our team will follow up. Faculty and staff Interested in department or program consultation can email us at cti@salemstate.edu.

CTI recently received a two-year strategic planning grant to advance online learning at Salem State through a multifaceted approach that emphasizes collaboration, community and continuous improvement. Our initiatives include supporting online learning through strategic cross-department partnerships, fostering faculty engagement via Online Learning Groups (OLGs) and promoting professional development in digital pedagogy both within and beyond our institution. 

Together with academic departments and programs, CTI is building the online infrastructure necessary to meet the changing demographics and diverse needs of our current and future SSU student population, ensuring equitable access and a high-quality learning experience for all. Courses are being redesigned to be more student-centered, ensuring that instruction aligns with the evolving needs of today’s learners. A few notable university-wide online learning partnerships include:

• Redesigned courses with the School of Social Work for:
  • Salem State’s first online bachelor of social work degree program

  • Fully online master of social work online program

     

• Redesigned course offerings to include online best practices in collaboration with:
  • Occupational Therapy department
  • Bertolon School of Business
  • Maguire Meservey College of Health and Human Services
  • McKeown School of Education

A key component of our work is the creation of a centralized hub for online learning, which not only supports current interests but also encourages the development of new courses, programs and initiatives that reflect contemporary student expectations. Please contact , Assistant Director for Online Learning, to discuss and strategize about transformative online courses and programs at Salem State.

CTI provides programming, resources and customized recommendations to faculty that helps them assess their emerging AI literacies and reflect on the impact of generative AI and other similar emerging technologies on their teaching. Specifically, we have offered support in the form of: 

• AI Faculty Professional Learning Communities, workshops and faculty showcases
• AI literacy resources to share with students and colleagues
• Reading recommendations that assess and critique specific AI tools and imagined use-cases
• SSU-specific guidance on recommended syllabus language and course design priorities
• Guest lectures and co-created course materials (lesson plans, assignments, modules) that consider the impact of AI on specific course contexts

We welcome conversations with faculty who are critical, skeptical, or concerned about AI's impact on teaching and learning at SSU. We also welcome inquiries from faculty who are curious about AI use-cases that align with course objectives, are informed by SSU community values and acknowledge professional contexts that are relevant to your courses and students. Please contact CTI instructional designer to talk more about teaching at Salem State in the age of AI.

Salem State is a teaching university with a longstanding commitment to educational innovation, and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) is one way faculty develop, investigate and share their teaching practice. CTI actively supports faculty engagement in SoTL, which involves systematic and/or reflective inquiry into how students learn and how teaching can be improved.

SoTL projects often include identifying a research question, selecting appropriate data sources, designing a study, securing IRB approval (when student work or participation is involved), analyzing findings and sharing results with broader audiences. CTI offers support at every stage of this process through structured programs, collaborative groups, consultations and campus-wide celebration. These offerings include:

• The SoTL Scholars Incubator Institute, a summer cohort-style learning intensive for faculty to develop and launch new SoTL projects
• SoTL Critical Friends Group, a year-long, interdisciplinary accountability group for faculty at all stages in SoTL research and dissemination process
• The annual Faculty Innovation Showcase (held virtually, each December on Reading Day) features presentations from faculty across campus to share and reflect on their recent innovations in course design, pedagogy, classroom research and more.
• Our yearly Teaching and Learning Symposium (held each May on the Wednesday after commencement), a day-long, conference-style event that highlights faculty teaching innovations, reflections and more. 

Faculty who are curious about SoTL at Salem State are invited to connect with CTI faculty fellow for support on designing, implementing and sharing classroom-based research.

CTI is committed to supporting early career faculty as they navigate their first years at Salem State. In addition to our ongoing programs, learning communities, workshops and one-on-one consultations, we offer dedicated opportunities tailored to the needs of new and early career faculty:

• New Faculty Orientation (held in August and January) is designed to welcome incoming full- and part-time faculty to campus, provide campus resources and introduce inclusive pedagogical practices.
• Early Career Faculty Friday is a monthly gathering and belonging group for newer full-time faculty to drop-in for a coffee hour designed for collegiality, conversation and connection across disciplines.
• ResourcedU: A series of virtual sessions intended to reveal the “hidden curriculum” of academia and highlight resources and support across campus that can assist faculty in their work. Designed to meet the needs of new faculty, this series is also open to established faculty, staff and administrators who are interested in the topics and featured resources.

These offerings are designed to build community, support professional growth and connect early career faculty with tools to respond to the needs of SSU’s community of learners. To learn more about new and early career faculty initiatives, email us at cti@salemstate.edu.

As Salem State’s faculty support hub, CTI engages in the collaboration, reflection and sharing of informed ideas and critical practices. In this spirit, we work closely with campus partners across Academic Affairs, including the Center for Research and Creative Activities, Frederick E. Berry Library, the Center for Civic Engagement, Program Area for General Education (PAGE) and the office of Institutional Research, Assessment, and Sponsored Projects. Additionally, we proudly partner with HSI-MSI Initiatives, the office of Inclusive Excellence, First-Year Experience and areas throughout the Student Success division to advance equity-minded, student-centered teaching and educational development across the university.