About Us

Picture of all CTAL staff on Zoom screen

We foster an inclusive culture of evidence-based teaching and learning across the University by inspiring effective teaching and assessment using high-impact strategies, tools, and collaborations.

The Center for Teaching & Assessment of Learning strives to be an inclusive and strategic unit that fosters a culture of meaningful educational development and learning assessment for educators at the University including faculty, staff, and students. We work in partnership with individuals and groups to identify evidence-based solutions that are tailored to unique learning environments, advance university priorities, and that reflect individual teaching philosophies, educational goals, and disciplinary values. We empower our community of educators to become scholarly teachers who utilize research in teaching and learning assessment to inform the development of individual courses and programs resulting in integrated learning experiences for UD students.

We believe that…

  • Teaching, learning, and assessment are inextricably linked.
  • Teaching is a skill that can be developed and informed by knowledge, research, and reflection.
  • High quality teaching can be recognized and should be rewarded and celebrated.
  • Learning is the essential outcome and purpose of teaching.
  • Students are most successful when their learning is guided by educators who continually assess their students’ and their own development, skills, and knowledge.
  • The best learning occurs with engaged participants in an environment founded on principles of inclusive excellence.
  • Educators most effectively understand and improve teaching, learning, and assessment when they create and collaborate with communities of experts with diverse interests, backgrounds, and disciplines.
  • We can encourage and support the intellectual capital of the university by investing in projects and initiatives that help educators better understand existing teaching methods and develop innovative ones.

We also value the confidentiality of those seeking our services. View CTAL’s Confidentiality Statement. 

The Center for Teaching and Assessment of Learning (CTAL) Advisory Board provides support and informal consultation about educational development and assessment programs offered through the center.

Members College/Program Department Term
Jennifer Naccarelli Arts and Science Women and Gender Studies 2019-2023
Lauren Genova Arts and Science Chemistry and Biochemistry 2020-2023
Beth Morling Arts and Science Psychological & Brain Sciences 2020-2023
Ismat Shah Engineering Materials Science 2020-2023
Sharon Watson Lerner Management 2020-2023
Stephanie Del Tufo Education & Human Dev. School of Education 2021-2024
D. Chanele Moore Arts and Science Associate in Arts 2021-2024
Kent Messer Agriculture & Natural Resources Applied Economics & Statistics 2021-2024
Adam Wallace Earth, Ocean & Environment Earth Sciences 2021-2024
Darryl Flaherty Arts and Science History 2022-2025
Roberta Michnick Golinkoff Education & Human Dev. School of Education 2022-2025
Nicole Moody Health Sciences School of Nursing 2022-2025
Lillyrose Veneziano Broccia Arts and Science Languages, Literatures & Cultures 2022-2025

The Foundational Course Initiative (FCI) aims to transform the UD first-year experience to better support and engage our undergraduates at scale. FCI faculty are given the title of  Provost Teaching Fellows, and commit to a multi-year collaboration involving workshops, retreats and individual consultations focusing on four key areas that have been well documented as supporting student achievement and retention:

  1. Revise the way that content is delivered
  2. Create a feeling of belonging and community among students
  3. Build real-world examples and assessments into their courses
  4. Offer support for self-reflection and metacognitive behaviors tied to academic success and lifelong learning

 

Provost Teaching Fellow Course Term
Amy Biddle ANFS100: Animals & Human Culture 2022-2025
Katie Burke CHEM133: General Chemistry Lab 2022-2025
Dana Chatellier CHEM103/104: General Chemistry 2022-2025
Erin Connor ANFS100: Animals & Human Culture 2022-2025
Monica Dominguez Torres ARTH153: Intro to Art History: Pyramids to Cathedrals 2022-2024
Lauren Genova CHEM103/104: General Chemistry 2021-2024
Bruce Hietbrink CHEM321/322: Organic Chemistry 2021-2024
Cresean Hughes CRJU110 – Introduction to Criminal Justice 2021-2023
Phil Jones POSC150: Introduction to American Politics 2022-2024
Will Kenkel PSYC100: General Psychology 2022-2024
Robin Kucharczyk CHEM103/104: General Chemistry (AAP) 2022-2025
Agnes Ly PSYC100: General Psychology 2022-2024
Haritha Malladi EGGG101: Introduction to Engineering 2021-2024
Jason Mycoff POSC150: Introduction to American Politics 2022-2024
Kassra Oskooii POSC150: Introduction to American Politics 2022-2024
Kedron Thomas ANTH 101 – Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology 2021-2023
Jennifer Trivedi ANTH 101 – Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology 2021-2023

The University of Delaware Center for Teaching & Assessment of Learning (CTAL) may collect data about your engagement with CTAL to improve services and integrate with broader university teaching and learning initiatives.

We are also committed to protecting the confidentiality of data related to our work with educators and students in compliance with university policies (Data GovernanceFERPAInformation SecurityInformation Classification) and professional standards (such as those recommended by the Professional & Organizational Developers (POD) Network and the Association for Institutional Research).

To learn more about how we collect, use and share data, click on the button below.

 

View CTAL’s Confidentiality Statement

CTAL Staff

Your colleagues at CTAL are available to discuss teaching and learning in your courses, in your department or in your college, and to work with you to achieve the learning goals and outcomes that are important to you and your students. Our services include: one-on-one consultations, programs/workshops, consultations on the development of courses and programs, and guidance on their assessment.  In addition, we offer a venue for collaborating with you on research and grants focused on teaching and learning in your disciplines.

Center Leadership

Matthew Trevett-Smith, PhD

Director
mtrevett@udel.edu 

Dr. Matthew Trevett-Smith is the Director of the Center for Teaching & Assessment of Learning at the University of Delaware. With more than a decade of experience in educational and organizational development, he has served in a number of leadership and administrative positions in academic affairs, professional development, educational development, academic technology, and assessment of learning. He has been particularly effective in leading wide-ranging efforts to convene, support, and facilitate meaningful change in the areas of curriculum design, assessment of program educational goals, general education reform, technology-enhanced active learning, first-year student academic success and retention, and executing the intentional pivot to online education as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As director, Dr. Trevett-Smith oversees the day-to-day operations of the Center for Teaching & Assessment of Learning, including staff management, budget oversight, strategic planning, outcome reporting, workshop development, digital resource creation, and instructor and cohort-based improvement plans. He holds a BA in Anthropology, an MA in Cultural Anthropology, and a PhD in Cultural Anthropology.

Kevin Guidry, PhD

Associate Director of Educational Assessment
krguidry@udel.edu 

Kevin R. Guidry holds a Ph.D. in Higher Education and works with faculty to align curricula and improve existing teaching practices to enhance student learning. He specializes in assessment of student learning, development and assessment of program educational goals, and survey methodology having worked on teaching, learning, and assessment research and practice at levels ranging from individual courses to projects spanning hundreds of colleges and universities. He has served as a co-PI, external evaluator, or consultant on multiple externally funded projects expanding access to STEM disciplines.

Rose Muravchick, PhD

Associate Director of Educational Development
rosemur@udel.edu 

Rose Muravchick consults with faculty across the arts and humanities, as well as faculty in all disciplines seeking to: create or revise multicultural courses, adopt non-traditional grading, or develop courses for the Early College Credit Program. Her areas of professional development support also include creating classroom community, backward design, active learning, sustaining effective discussions, and generating authentic assignments. Rose has taught undergraduate students at Vassar College, the University of Pennsylvania, and here at UD in the Department of Art History. Rose completed her doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania in the department of Religious Studies where she wrote her dissertation on Islamic talismanic shirts from the gunpowder empires. Her most recent UD courses include: Arts of the Islamic World, and Material Culture of the Crusades. 

Educational Assessment & Educational Development Specialists

Andrew Jenks, PhD

Educational Assessment Specialist
ajenks@udel.edu 

Andy Jenks supports a range of CTAL efforts as a specialist in evaluation and assessment under the direction of Kevin Guidry. The scope of this work ranges, from individual consultations on alternative assessments with UD Faculty, to collaborative, university-wide projects focused on educational program goals and assessment. He has experience teaching a range of undergraduate courses at Delaware, where he taught en route to completing a social science PhD in 2021. Andy’s research focus is on disability and questions of access, and he previously worked with CTAL as an Equity & Access Consultant.

Stacie Larkin, PT, DPT, MEd

Educational Development Specialist
slarkin@udel.edu 

Stacie’s background in physical therapy education makes her a valuable resource for those teaching in the healthcare disciplines. Prior to joining CTAL, Stacie was the Director of Clinical Education in UD’s Department of Physical Therapy for 19 years. In addition to her past teaching responsibilities, Stacie has experience with accreditation and program assessment. Stacie helps support the multi-year  Foundational Course Initiative by working closely the faculty who teach large-enrollment, introductory courses in the social sciences and the arts & humanities. Her professional focus is:  active learning, course design, mindful learning practices and experiential learning. 

Stacie’s portfolio includes the College of Health Sciences and the College of Education and Human Development.

Anne McDuell headshot

Anne McDuell, MS

Educational Development Specialist
aterrell@udel.edu

Anne McDuell supports the Foundational Course Initiative (FCI) and a range of other CTAL efforts under the direction of Rose Muravchick. Within the FCI, Anne works closely with faculty who teach high-enrollment introductory STEM courses looking to adapt their curriculum to meet the needs of their departments and the students in these courses. Aside from the FCI, she also provides individual consultations on curriculum design with UD faculty. Anne has over six years of experience in student-centered, evidence-based teaching practices in a range of STEM introductory courses. She completed her masters at the University of Delaware in the Biology Department where her dissertation focused on early growth response genes in the developing lens. 

Amy L. Ritter, MS, RN

Educational Development Specialist
amyritt@udel.edu

Amy L. Ritter is an educational development specialist with CTAL who assists educators in using technology tools to create engaging, inclusive communities of learning. She has over 20 years of experience working with adult learners in nonprofit, community, and university settings with roles that include designing and teaching multi-modal courses in Educational Psychology, Spanish, ESOL, and GED. Additionally, she has extensive experience in training faculty on using technology in hybrid and online courses. Amy graduated from UD with Bachelor’s Degrees in Psychology, Philosophy, and Foreign Languages and Literatures. She also holds an ASN from Cecil College, an MS in Human Dimensions of Natural Resources from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and has completed graduate-level course-work in Experiential Education at the University of New Hampshire.

Operations & Administrative Support

Headshot of Brittany Maday

Tiffany Thornhill, M.Sc.

Administrative Assistant III

tthorn@udel.edu

Tiffany’s background in wildlife habitat management and research enables her to bring organizational and project management skills to the CTAL team. Tiffany spent seven years researching winter habitat use patterns of ruffed grouse in Canada before moving to Florida and working as a wildlife biologist for the state of Florida. While working and studying in Canada, she managed budgets, applied for grants, trained and hired assistants, oversaw their research projects, managed data, equipment, and day-to-day operations of the research camp. During her three years working in Florida, she spear-headed and developed multiple large projects and managed staff, equipment, data, and budgets. Tiffany assists in the day-to-day operations of the CTAL office, management of various projects, and budgets. She received her Bachelor of Science with Honours from Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, Canada majoring in Biology and minoring in Psychology. She later earned her Master of Science in Forestry from the Faculty of Forestry & Environmental Management at the University of New Brunswick in New Brunswick, Canada.

 

CTAL’s Graduate Assistants

Now Hiring

Please contact CTAL if you are interested in exploring a Graduate Student Research Assistantship with us!

Find us:

CTAL is now in 2 locations!

  • 212 Gore Hall
  • 313 Hullihen Hall

Newark, DE 19716
Phone: (302) 831-2027
ctal-info@udel.edu

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