The Digital Gardener Faculty Fellows Program is a semester-long set of virtual programming designed to help faculty learn to integrate digital literacy into their courses, teaching, and work with students. It is a faculty-created, faculty-led program invested in skill development, pedagogy and practice, and cultivating a community of educators committed to digital literacy, digital creativity, and digital learning. The program aims to share best practices, offer exposure to cutting edge platforms and approaches, and enable faculty to better prepare students for an increasingly digital world.
It features one virtual kick-off event and 14 other virtual sessions (7 required, 7 optional) focused on digital literacy, emerging platforms, and best practices. While these sessions include instruction on how to use specific tools and technologies, they are people oriented, pedagogy focused, and purpose driven. The tools may change from semester to semester, but the underlying commitment is to prepare faculty to thrive in the digital environments in which they are operating today.
Example sessions include:
Multimedia Composition (Scrolling Digital Essay)
Generative AI in the Classroom
3 Ways for Integrating Digital Literacy in the Curriculum
Digital Equity: Access & Accessibility
Digital Portfolios: Platforms and Purpose
Lowering Barriers to Success through Course Design
Assessing Digital Projects: Approaches & Heuristics
Making Videos & Designing Video Assignments
Making Podcasts & Designing Audio Assignments
Making Images & Designing Visual Assignments
Social Annotation & Student Engagement
Information & Media Literacy
Interactive Video & Other Instructional Assets
Digital Collaborations & Futures Thinking
Participants in the Open Digital Gardener Faculty Fellows Program receive:
Program Certificate & Digital Badge. Successfully completing the program earns fellows a DGFF Certificate and digital badge.
Diversity of Sessions.Access to a range of sessions (Kick-Off event + 14 virtual sessions) focused on digital literacy pedagogies, practices, and platforms.
Cohort & Community.Fellows will be part of a designated cohort for community engagement, peer feedback, and idea development.
Personalized Support. Fellows receive direct support from program directors and senior/mentor Digital Gardener Fellows (1 on 1 consultations, project feedback, etc.).
Network of Educators. Access to a growing network of colleagues exploring how to integrate digital literacy skills in their work.
Select Events. Access to select in-person events (annual DGFF Showcase; annual DG Summit) and, once completed, invitations to ongoing programming for DGFF alums.
To successfully complete the program, Fellows must:
Participate in a virtual kick-off meeting (TBD based on participant availability)
Participate in at least five of sevenrequired virtual sessions (see below)
Participate in at least three of sevenoptional virtual sessions (see below).
Commit to integrating digital literacy practices into the curriculum by completing one of the following: building one in-class activity, creating one instructional asset, or designing one course assignment.
Participate in one cultivator group designed to extend digital literacy work beyond your own engagement with students.
Produce a promotion/retention statement (i.e., a written statement reflecting on involvement in the program as it relates to professional development).
Meeting Schedule for Required & Optional Sessions We have set four potential meeting times, with the final official meeting days/times determined by participant availability:
Option 1 - Thursdays 10:00-11:00am ET
Option 2 - Thursdays 5:00-6:00pm ET
Option 3 - Fridays 10:00-11:00am ET
Option 4 - Fridays 12:30-1:30pm ET
Fellows rank order meeting preferences during registration.
There will be multiple virtual events over the course of the semester to complement the required components of the program, as well as some in-person opportunities like our annual Digital Gardener Summit in April/May. Though additional programming elements are optional, attendance is encouraged. More information will be shared about the dates and scheduled events once the cohort has been determined.
No Experience Necessary!
Experience with digital literacies or competency with digital tools or technology is not required. Applicants merely need an interest in increasing opportunities for students to develop greater digital literacy and digital creativity skills — improving students’ capacities for digital expression and integrating new avenues for engagement with course content and disciplinary ways of knowing, doing, and making.
