Fall 1997
Vol 6 Issue 1
IN THIS ISSUE...
Who's Doing What with Technology
Who's
Doing What at the Colleges
The Next Generation of Ocotillo
SEE ALSO...
The Forum
Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction
The Next Generation of Ocotillo
Manny Griego, GCC, Ocotillo Faculty Chair
An exciting new generation of Ocotillo is under way and promises to be beneficial for each Maricopa college. While the first generation of Ocotillo was comprised of district-level committees that dealt with different technology issues, the "new" Ocotillo will be college-focussed and will consist of roundtables at each college which emphasize issues of instructional technology. Common issues that will naturally arise will be addressed by district-wide committees.
For those of you not familiar with Ocotillo, here is a brief history. During the 1987-88 academic year, Alfredo de los Santos, Vice Chancellor for Student/Educational Development, visited with faculty groups to discuss the instructional agenda for the Maricopa Community College District. He raised issues concerning the manner in which evolving technologies would be used for teaching and learning. Faculty responses to Dr. de los Santos' "questioning" gave birth to a District-wide group that would become known as "Ocotillo," named for the Sonoran Desert plant of Arizona and Northern Mexico. With its many branches reaching upward and outward, the Ocotillo plant was an ideal metaphor for this new organization, since its ideas, like the plant, reach out, and flourish in the nurturing environment of the Maricopa Community College District.
First Generation
Ocotillo's first generation spanned 1988 through 1995. Basically, it was
a district-wide, faculty-driven "grass roots think tank" that welcomed
all interested faculty, administrators, and staff who wanted to participate.
Its intent was to envision the future of instruction infused with appropriate
technologies. Many issues were cooperatively addressed and resolved by
participants to help students, faculty, and staff enhance learning within
the District. A few accomplishments included dealing with access, strategic
planning, standards for technology facilities, technology integration
with learning, and many more.
Hiatus
After listening to a substantial amount of feedback, Ocotillo took a one-year
hiatus in 1996 to consider its future by researching, reflecting, and
restructuring. The "new" Ocotillo would be college-based and would develop
ongoing technology plans that focus support for effective infusion of
appropriate technologies with teaching and learning. The "new" Ocotillo
would, of course, require continuous improvements in planning, acquisition,
implementation, service, training, and assessment.
The New Ocotillo Generation
The 1997-98 academic year marks the first year of the "new" Ocotillo.
An Ocotillo Roundtable at each college is led by a college faculty chair
and is co-chaired by a Dean of Instruction (DI). Each college roundtable
works with existing committees on its campus to discuss, plan, and implement
strategies that address the role of ever-changing technologies in their
service to students.
The roundtables are based upon the Teaching and Learning Technology Roundtable (TLTR) model from the American Association of Higher Education (AAHE). Many participants in the roundtables have received TLTR training by AAHE at their annual Summer Institute. With support from both Vice-Chancellors Ron Bleed and Alfredo de los Santos and the college Presidents, over 40 Maricopa faculty and staff members participated in AAHE's most recent summer institute held in Phoenix.
The Ocotillo General Faculty Chair (that's me) and "Ocotillo Central" (MCLI- Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction) provide on-going leadership and support for the college Ocotillo Roundtables. Close interaction exists with the college Ocotillo Roundtables through the college faculty chairs. District-level ad hoc roundtables, staffed by those interested, will be created to address common college issues as they arise. Solutions and/or recommendations will be shared with the colleges. This mechanism also lends itself for issues to be addressed at the Ocotillo Retreat, held every year in May.
As in previous generations of Ocotillo, participation should be open to all interested faculty, administrators, students, and staff who want to participate. Rather than dictating the structure of the roundtables, we asked the faculty chairs and DI co-chairs to design a roundtable that would fit with their own system. Based upon the AAHE/TLTR model, the following Ocotillo Roundtable guidelines were suggested to ensure representation by a broad spectrum of the college community:
- Chair - faculty member to provide leadership, direction, energy/liaison with faculty
- Co-chair - Dean of Instruction to provide support/direction/technical assistance/resources/leadership/linkage between administration and student services.
- Members - faculty with diverse characteristics including seniors, new-comers, techies, non-techies, occupational/transfer/service (librarians, developmental education, etc.)
- Chief Technology Administrator - Dean or Director of Information Technology
- Faculty/Staff Development Coordinator
- Support Services - includes teaching/learning center staff, computer lab coordinator, media services/audio/video staff, networking/telecommunications staff
- Students
- College President - to provide ad hoc involvement and strong support
This semester, each college Ocotillo Roundtable has begun working on a long-range technology plan. Our timeline calls for draft copies to be made available on college web pages by mid-November. These will be accessible only by Maricopa colleges. As a group, the Ocotillo faculty chairs have been researching and developing a collection of essential "elements" that should be common to all Maricopa plans. An Ocotillo web page will then link to each of the college plans, which will include links to the parts of their plans that cover each agreed-upon essential element. This mechanism will facilitate access to common information by students, faculty, staff, administrators, and others.
Early December will see us begin plans for the May 1998 Ocotillo Retreat. During the 1998 Spring semester, the college roundtables will develop ideas for Instructional Technology support. The Ocotillo faculty chairs and co-chairs will meet to evaluate their Instructional Technology plans and to discuss ideas for implementation.
As you can see, a great deal of work needs to be completed before the May 1998 Ocotillo Retreat. However, the process is difficult because we have never traveled to the place we want to go. But collectively, we are beginning to have a good idea of where that might be. We also know that present and future technology plans for each college must be tied to its mission and budget process. We also know that whatever we do will be done with our students foremost in mind.
I look forward to an exciting two years as Ocotillo General Faculty Chair. To learn more about Ocotillo at your college, read the summaries from each faculty chair in this issue and visit us on the web at Ocotillo Central: