University Committee for the Advancement of Teaching (UCAT)

University Committee on the Advancement of Teaching (UCAT) mission: UCAT promotes student learning across the campus by focusing on teaching excellence and pedagogical improvement and innovation. UCAT aligns its resources with opportunities for faculty that have the potential to impact students from multiple disciplines.

UCAT is comprised of an eight-member committee appointed by the Faculty Senate whose members serve three-year staggered terms.

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2024-25 UCAT Initiative

Thank you to all who have participated in 2024-25. We’ve exceeded expectations and are pleased that all the designated funds for this project have been allocated to faculty participants. The program will pause for the remainder of this year and begin again in the fall of 2025.

Faculty Observation of Teaching - Options for In-Person, Online or Hybrid Courses

Goals:

1. Promote collegial, non-evaluative observations of teaching
2. Encourage conversations about teaching and the exchange of effective engagement practices that promote student success

Full-time faculty can earn $300 by engaging in structured teaching observations/reviews. Participants will identify a full-time faculty partner outside of their department/school. Each faculty member will observe one of their partner’s in-person or synchronous classes or review an asynchronous online course.

*If faculty want to be assigned a partner rather than identifying a partner, the registration will provide an opportunity for such a request.

Structured teaching observations/reviews require faculty members to:

1. Meet with their partner before the observations
2. Observe each other's class OR review an online instructor input form
3. Meet with their partner following the observations/review
4. Complete a short report that documents and describes the above (a-c) and includes a brief reflection (estimated completion time is under 10 minutes).

Meet your UCAT Representatives!

College of Arts and Sciences

Andy Miller

Associate Professor, Chemistry
UCAT member since 2025

andrewmiller@unomaha.edu

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College of Business Adminstration

Corrine Chen

Instructor, Management
UCAT member since 2025

corrinechen@unomaha.edu

Max (Zhihao) Yu

Assistant Professor, Marketing & Entrepreneurship
UCAT member since 2025

zhihaoyu@unomaha.edu

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College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media

Jack Zerbe

Professor, Theater
UCAT member since 2025

jzerbe@unomaha.edu

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Criss Library

Amy Schindler

Director of Archives and Special Collections
Archives & Special Collections, Associate Professor

UCAT member since 2024

acschindler@unomaha.edu

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College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences

Michael Fryda

Instructor, Teacher Education
UCAT member since 2024 - current co-chair

mfryda@unomaha.edu

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College of Information Science & Technology

Dario Ghersi

Associate Professor, Interdisciplinary Informatics
UCAT member since 2023

dghersi@unomaha.edu

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College of Public Affairs and Community Service

Yiwei Zhang

Assistant Professor, Social Work
UCAT member since 2023 - current co-chair

yiweizhang@unomaha.edu

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