Over the course of the next year, YFile聽will be profiling the projects through videos and stories. Today, the camera's spotlight is on Monahan and聽the story of his inspiration for AIF.聽

Patrick Monahan grins when he recalls his 鈥淎ha!鈥� moment, which聽led to the creation of the Academic Innovation Fund.聽

Several years ago, 91亚色鈥檚 vice-president academic & provost聽had just completed a series of consultations with 91亚色 community members regarding the , a document that would outline the future academic priorities of the University. What he discovered during that process energized him.聽

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鈥淎s we went through the White Paper a couple of years ago, what impressed me were the people who participated in that process,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e sat in focus groups and we talked about our ideas, dreams and aspirations for the University. What was so striking聽was that people had so many great ideas 鈥� there were literally hundreds!鈥�

He discovered the main obstacle preventing these ideas from becoming a reality centred on the lack of resources. Monahan had heard of projects in the United States that provided seed funding for academic initiatives. He thought the idea had merit and turned to his colleagues in the Provost鈥檚 Office to see if they could find funding that could be used to create a made-in-91亚色 solution to turn the ideas into working projects.

His聽inspiration led to the formation of the Academic Innovation Fund of $2.5 million that would provide an initial investment of resources to bring projects from the drawing board to reality.聽In the fall of 2010, applications were invited from the University community for funding (up to $200,000 each) to support new initiatives advancing 91亚色鈥檚 strategic priorities in relation to teaching and learning and the student experience.

The response, he discovered, was nothing short of amazing. 鈥淚t was just fantastic because of the tremendous energy and participation," he said. 鈥淭he committee was only able to fund 39 of those projects, but all the project submissions were very interesting and innovative, and showed a real commitment to the University and to our students."

The 39 projects funded include聽clusters of initiatives that support聽e-learning,聽experiential education and the student experience.聽From a project to enhance how first-year students move from high school to university, to a student-run sustainable business initiative, each of the AIF projects聽is as diverse as the University community. There is a project to create an online enrolment system for new students, a mentorship program for varsity athletes, a partnership between two faculties to develop a blended learning initiative, a community centred action plan for experiential education, and a project to bring public history into the classroom, to name just a few.

All of the projects, said Monahan, reflect 91亚色's DNA. "Each of the projects is about engaging people in these ideas," he said. "I hope that what this does is that it shows people what is possible and that we can build on this energy."

Monahan said that聽many people聽have told him聽how excited they are to see their ideas finally becoming a reality.聽"What I find so interesting is that there are ideas that would never have occurred to someone sitting in an office here in the 91亚色 Research Tower or even in a dean's office," he said. "Ideas like聽a project that we have with refugees in Thailand connecting them with researchers and students here in Toronto or a project聽to teach area youth how to swim."

The AIF projects provide a concrete example of the potential for innovation and engagement that resides in the 91亚色 community. "It is an example of the idea that the collective brain is always better then a single brain.聽If you get one hundred people in a room and get them thinking and talking 鈥� you are going to get more ideas than with 10 people, five or one. That is what makes this a really successful initiative so far."聽

By Jenny Pitt-Clark, YFile editor

Republished courtesy of YFile鈥� 91亚色鈥檚 daily e-bulletin.

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These questions and more聽will be聽explored in the ninth annual 2010 Summer Institute (ASI 2010) Aug. 23 to 25 at 91亚色's Keele campus.

This two-and-a-half-day professional learning event, with a theme of Creating the Future Now, will feature keynote speaker Alec Couros, professor of educational technology & media and coordinator of information & communications technologies at the University of Regina, as well as聽spotlight speakers Garfield Gini-Newman, a lecturer at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) at the University of Toronto, and Bill Muirhead, associate provost, academic, at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT).

Right: Alec Couros

Couros has given聽many workshops and presentations, nationally and internationally, on topics such as openness in education, social/networked learning, instructional design, digital citizenship and critical media literacy.

Gini-Newman is working with schools and school districts across Canada, and聽in the United States and Caribbean, to embed critical thinking in teaching from kindergarten to graduation. He was a finalist for the Governor General's Award for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History and has been nominated for his work in the pre-service program at OISE.

Left: Garfield Gini-Newman

Muirhead is responsible for the design of聽UOIT's technology-enhanced learning and mobile learning programs, which provide laptop computers and academic software to all students and faculty at UOIT. With extensive experience in international research into online learning, as well as the application of information and communication technology in higher education, he has received many awards.

At this year鈥檚 ASI, delegates will investigate the role of the Internet and other interactive technologies for teaching and learning and for building and sustaining professional learning communities. In addition, the ASI will heighten awareness of how technological tools and resources enrich learning and increase overall engagement in both teaching and learning. One of the goals of the ASI is to expand opportunities for delegates to reflect as individuals, share as teams, shape new learning experiences and to benefit from ongoing professional learning.

Right: Bill Muirhead

ASI 2010 is intended as both a guided and self-directed exploration of 21st-century educational tools and knowledge-building approaches that will create the future for teaching and learning now, and prepare all learners for success. It provides an opportunity to meet face-to-face, exchange ideas and become inspired about experiences with, and the possibilities of, learning with technology.

The annual event also features presentations, group discussions and hands-on workshops to develop knowledge and ideas for the effective use of technology for teaching and learning.

Sponsors for ASI 2010聽are , , , the , , , , and .

For registration information and to view the event agenda, visit the Web site.

Republished courtesy of YFile鈥� 91亚色鈥檚 daily e-bulletin.

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