Every two weeks, good-natured banter can be heard coming from a room in the Shenandoah esports arena.
It’s here where Esports Director Joey Gawrysiak, Ph.D.; Psychology Chair Scott King, Ph.D.; and Head Women’s Basketball Coach Melissa Smeltzer-Kraft, M.S., conduct their bi-weekly podcast, Buzzwords.
Hear the latest Buzzwords Podcasts
The three hosts spend the first 10 minutes catching up on the week, and then they move on to discussing the topics of teaching, learning and technology with a guest faculty member. Director of Transformative Teaching & Learning Karrin Lukacs, Ph.D., is the brainchild behind the project and was looking for faculty to become hosts. Gawrysiak and King volunteered and then asked Smeltzer-Kraft to join them. She agreed.
Part of the purpose for the show is to share effective ways of teaching during COVID-19 among various departments at Shenandoah.
Everyone has their own methodology in this new realm. This is another way to collaborate and share with each other.”
It is so much fun and enriching to hear perspectives from different departments as well as to let them have the chance to voice their thoughts on the current state of teaching and learning at Shenandoah.”
The other purpose of the podcast is to allow participants to connect outside the classroom — something faculty and staff have been unable to do since the pandemic started.
Faculty don’t see each other anymore. We want to hang out. This brings in other departments and faculty and gives people a sense of what everyone is doing.”
Guests are asked to discuss five things during the show:
- their highs and lows over the past two weeks
- their opinions on Shenandoah-related trends they’re noticing
- their favorite teaching tool
- things people believe they know about their department, but might not
- their buzzword of choice and how they are incorporating it into their teaching
So far, three buzzwords or phrases have been used for each of the first three episodes:
- Intentionality
- Soft Skills
- Fostering Independence
Guests talking about these topics, respectively, are:
- Psychology Lecturer Alida Gibson, M.S.
- Co-director of Shenandoah University’s Institute for Entrepreneurship Montressa Washington, Ph.D.
- Associate Professor in Physician Assistant Studies Erika Francis, M.S., PA-C.
The podcast will continue through the spring semester, with a total of eight episodes. The hosts are hopeful it will continue into next season.
I’ve had a lot of fun. It feels really organic and normal. I’ve left each time with a smile.”
