The Center for Faculty Innovation (CFI) aims to support JMU instructors and their dedication to pedagogical innovation, student learning, and ongoing professional development. There is no one right way to teach, no singular “best practice,” no magical solution to any of the teaching challenges that instructors routinely face. The CFI honors this complexity. We provide many opportunities for faculty to come together, reflect, share experiences, and learn about research related to teaching and learning in order to find inspiration and strategies that may be applied to different contexts. In particular, the CFI is committed to supporting instructors as they consider, navigate, leverage, and incorporate diversity in the classroom. From individual consultations to semester-long institutes to a teaching listserv, our programming reflects the variability of faculty lives, needs, and paths toward growth.

Emily O. Gravett is the assistant director who oversees the teaching area. She may be reached at graveteo@jmu.edu. Click here to learn more about her background and interests.


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Teaching programs are designed for faculty to make progress towards the following outcomes:
  • Appreciating pedagogy—the art and science of teaching and learning—as a significant higher education endeavor;
  • Identifying factors that influence pedagogical choices;
  • Creating assignments and/or courses that support higher-level learning (deep learning);
  • Designing and offering courses or curricula that align learning objectives, assessment, and learning activities;
  • Articulating how current pedagogical choices reflect disciplinary norms;
  • Practicing the integration of scholarship and teaching; and
  • Integrating knowledge of student development models in teaching philosophies and practice.

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