Academic Practicum Workshops

Thursday, March 17 from 12-4pm

SPE is pleased to announce the development of new pre-conference activities at the 2005 National Conference in Portland. The Academic Practicum Workshops will take place 12-4pm on Thursday, March 17. There will be two tracks, one devoted to pedagogical issues, and one encompassing the career and promotion process.

The ‘pedagogical’ track will begin with a panel discussion: ‘Transitions in Photographic Education: Changes in Imaging Technologies and Curricular Structure’ centering on photographic education revision and the implementation of imaging technologies. That panel will be followed by ‘Curriculum 101’, a hands-on workshop devoted to curriculum construction with emphasis on adjusting curriculum to the new advancements of digital technologies. Participants in the curriculum workshop are encouraged to bring syllabi, course outlines, and projects for discussion and sharing.

The ‘academic career’ track will begin with ‘Experiences in Academic Survival’ a panel composed of academic administrators who will discuss ways to survive and prosper in the academic world. The panel will be followed by a Dossier Seminar; participants are encouraged to bring resumes, narratives or their institutional tenure and promotion policies for discussion and advice.

The Academic Practicum Workshops are included in the regular conference fee. Only a $10 administrative fee applies (one time fee to take the APW and/or Adobe Workshops, nonrefundable). Participants may attend the panels or workshops singly or in tandem and may mix the sessions between the tracks. Make sure your travel plans include this special early program on Thursday, March 17!

Pedagogical Track: 12-4pm

TRANSITIONS IN PHOTOGRAPHY EDUCATION: CHANGES IN IMAGING TECHNOLOGIES AND CURRICULAR STRUCTURE
12:00-1:45pm
Larry Volk, Neal Rantoul and Ron DiRito
With new standards developing each year, all photographic education programs are in one of 3 phases of a significant change: they are considering how and when to implement new imaging technologies into their existing curriculum, they are in the process of doing so now, or they have made significant changes and continue to be involved in an ongoing process of adjusting to these changes. This panel will center on what has occurred in several programs across the country in order to broaden a dialogue in an area that would appear to be the most pressing issue in photographic higher education today.

Panelists:
Larry Volk has been an artist, teacher and commercial photographer for 16 years. Currently he is an assistant professor of photography in the School of Art and Design at Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts. Prior to this he taught for 8 years at Northeastern University, in addition to lecturer positions at Montserrat College of Art, RISD and the University of Virginia. He holds a BA (1984) from the University of Michigan and an MFA (1993) from RISD.
Ron DiRito is an Associate Professor and the Chair of the Photography Department at
Montserrat College of Art in Beverly, Massachusetts. He has been teaching photography and art at the college level for the past 13 years. He received his MFA from RISD and a BA from Metropolitan State College in Denver, Colorado.
Neal Rantoul is a career artist and teacher. He has taught photography as an art for thirty years. He is currently head of the Photography Program at Northeastern University; he taught for thirteen years at Harvard, and for several years at the New England School of Photography. His 1971 BFA and 1973 MFA degrees come from RISD.

CURRICULUM 101
2:00-3:45pm
Susan Smith Evans, Barbara Houghton, Libby Rowe, Samantha Stengel-Göetz and members of “Transitions” panel
A hands-on workshop devoted to curriculum construction with emphasis on adjusting curriculum to the new advancements of digital technologies. Participants of the workshop are encouraged to bring syllabi, course outlines, and projects for discussion and sharing.
Workshop coordinators:

Susan Smith Evans received her MFA in photo from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and has been teaching part-time at College of the Desert, in Palm Desert, California, for the past 17 years. She loves teaching at the community college level because of the diversity of its population.
Barbara Houghton is professor of art at Northern Kentucky University. After teaching at Metropolitan State College Denver for 18 years, she left Colorado for the Midwest. She holds a BA from University of Illinois Chicago and an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She's taught in higher education for 31 years. She works in her studio every day.
Libby Rowe (BFA, University of Northern Iowa, MFA, Syracuse University) recently relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, where she is expanding the photography program at Vanderbilt University. As Rowe has participated in the creation of courses in all areas of photography, including alternative visions and studio based travel experiences, as well as rewriting curriculum, she is no stranger to the detailed syllabus.
Samantha Stengel-Göetz holds MFA’s in Photography and Multimedia from the University of Oregon. She is currently Assistant Professor of Digital Media and Photography at Washington State University. Her videos, installations, and photographs have been exhibited widely, and include solo and group exhibitions in the United States, Australia, Japan, and Hungary.

Academic Track: 12-4pm

EXPERIENCES IN ACADEMIC SURVIVAL
12:00-1:45pm
Michael Ensdorf, Gary Kolb and Ken White
Back by popular demand, this panel consists of academic administrators who will discuss which activities of the professoriate are most highly prized, define academic terminology and how to develop persuasive narratives as well as mastering the balancing act between teaching, committee work and research expectations. The panel will discuss all aspects of surviving and prospering through the academic minutiae of re-appointment, tenure and promotion.

Panelists:
Michael Ensdorf, Associate Dean at Roosevelt University in Chicago, is responsible for technology and general education for the College of Arts and Sciences. Ensdorf also coordinates the college’s mentor program, which was established to help junior faculty prepare for the tenure process. Additionally, Ensdorf teaches Beginning, Advanced and Digital Photography.
Gary Kolb is a senior Professor in photography at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. He is also Associate Dean in the College of Mass Communication and Media Arts. He has served as President of the SIUC Faculty Union, Chairperson of the University Judicial Review Board, and Chairperson of SPE.
Ken White has held academic positions at Princeton, Washington University in St. Louis, University of Illinois and RIT. Currently RIT is one of the largest Photography faculties in the country where Ken serves as BFA Program Chair at RIT with eleven full-time, three untenured and five adjunct faculty in Fine Arts Photography.

DOSSIER SEMINAR
2:00-3:45pm
Dornith Doherty, Susan Dunkerley, Robin Dru Germany and members of “Academic Survival” panel
A hands-on workshop devoted to academic appointment preparation. Participants in the workshop are encouraged to bring resumes, narratives or their institutional tenure and promotion policies for discussion and advice.

Workshop coordinators:
Dornith Doherty received her MFA in Photography from Yale University in 1988. She received a Japan Foundation Grant, a Fulbright Lecture/Research Fellowship, a US Dept. of the Interior Artist-in-Residence Grant at the Joshua Tree National Park, an Indiana Arts Commission Individual Artist Master Fellowship, and a Society for Contemporary Photography Fellowship. She is currently Associate Professor of Photography at the University of North Texas where she has served on Promotion and Tenure committees at the divisional and the university level. Her work as been exhibited widely in the United States. She is represented by Gerald Peters Fine Art in Dallas, Texas, and Bassetti Fine Art Photographs in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Susan Dunkerley is a tenured associate professor at Baylor University in Waco, TX. Prior to her appointment at Baylor, she labored as a visiting artist, visiting assistant professor and adjunct instructor, in addition to working as a stylist, shooter and photographer’s assistant in New York City. Dunkerley’s most recent project, “Transmit,” an installation of stained glass panels with photo emulsion and sandblasted imagery, was exhibited at the Galveston Art Center during FotoFest 2004. Her MFA is from Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY.
Robin Dru Germany is a digital/photo artist teaching at Texas Tech University. She has served on many search committees, mentors junior faculty, and has held tenure for several years at her university. Germany has served on college tenure and promotion committees and has participated in the review process within her unit. She has won numerous grants both within and outside of the university and exhibits her work nationally.