2017 SIEF Award Recipients

Katherine Lithgow is the senior instructional developer for the Centre for Teaching Excellence. She is travelling to Australia to visit Deakin University in Melbourne, Griffith University in Brisbane, and Macquarie University in Sydney.

Katherine uses her expertise in integrative learning to work with instructors and help students succeed inside and outside of the classroom. She hopes the SIEF will facilitate an exchange of innovative ideas about experiential learning, programs, and incentives that she can bring back to Waterloo.

“My main goal is to create dialogue with institutions to share unique approaches to experiential education,” says Katherine.

She is also looking forward to exploring the country with Australian colleagues she has met at international conferences over the years and visiting attractions such as the Sydney Opera House.

Monica Vesely is using SIEF funding to travel to institutions in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands to learn about teaching orientation strategies and approaches used at foreign institutions that have a large number of international faculty and students.

As an instructional developer for the Centre for Teaching Excellence, she designs and delivers instructional development programs and provides consultations for faculty members and staff instructors in course design, instructional skills, and evaluation. By exploring alternate professional development approaches with her international colleagues, she looks forward to being better able to support new faculty here at Waterloo.

“I am excited to meet with peers and engage in conversations so we can share our expertise on new faculty orientation and training,” says Monica. “I am particularly interested in exchanging ideas and best practices associated with delivering new faculty programming to an international mix of faculty that will be teaching an international mix of students.”

Adam Wlad is an information systems specialist for Information Systems & Technology’s Enterprise Resource Planning group. Through the SIEF, Adam is travelling to the United Kingdom to further his knowledge of software solutions and learn how several universities manage web-based tools to amplify information systems and application software.

Adam supports Quest, the University core student information system. He plans to visit the University of Glasgow, University of Strathclyde, and University of Derby to learn about how they amplify information systems and application software related to themes within the Higher Education User Group.

“This is a great opportunity to meet people who work in similar roles to me,” says Adam. “I look forward to learning from new colleagues and also representing Waterloo and sharing our own ideas.”

As a theatre fanatic, Adam will also take in a few plays staged by the Royal Shakespeare Company while in Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare.  He also hopes to visit several Scottish castles, art galleries, and museums, and to travel to the Scottish Highlands.