Harper College
Academy for Teaching Excellence

On Demand Programs

The Academy is pleased to offer several of its on-demand workshops in a new, self-paced module format in Blackboard. The new format allows for more interactivity and engagement within the workshops and provides a “one-stop-shop” to access and participate in a variety of the Academy’s most popular workshops.

To participate in any of the workshops, simply self-enroll into the Academy On-Demand Workshops Collection in Blackboard (enrollment information below), then complete any of the workshops available within the shell. You can work at your own pace and complete the workshops in any order. You will remain enrolled in the shell across semesters, allowing you to return to resources and complete new workshops as they become available.

As you complete each workshop within the course, you will be prompted to complete an action plan, which will result in the awarding of CEUs and a badge.

How To Enroll & Participate in the On-Demand Workshop Collection

All of the courses listed below can be accessed in the Academy On-Demand Workshop Blackboard Collection course in Blackboard. To access the Collection:

  1. Self-enroll in the collection by completing the steps outlined in this link (must be logged in with your Harper credentials to access).
  2. Once in the course shell, complete the “Getting Started with On-Demand Workshops” orientation.
  3. Once you complete the “Getting Started” content, all on-demand workshops in the collection will be available to you.
  4. For any workshops that you complete and submit an action plan form for by August 7, 2026, you will receive the applicable CEUs for the Summer 2026 semester.

On-Demand Workshops Available in the Collection

The following workshops are available within the collection:

In 2010, in an effort to improve course dropout rates, Odessa College sought out the common thread between their courses which had the greatest student retention. What they uncovered are four simple, yet effective practices that can increase your connection to your students and promote student success in your face-to-face or online classroom. They called their findings The 4 Connections. This on-demand workshop will share Odessa’s fascinating story and give you the tools to bring the power of the 4 Connections to your classroom in more intentional ways.
The Applying Equity Matrix (AEMy) is an interactive tool that allows instructors to review inclusive and equitable classroom practices in six categories: accessibility, belonging, engagement, flexibility, humanization, and transparency. In this workshop, we’ll cover the importance of each of the six categories, navigate the interactive AEMy tool, and provide an opportunity for participants to identify and contribute strategies that increase support related to equity themes supported by research and literacy in equity pedagogies.
Becoming an Ally Advocate recognizes your ability to leverage Blackboard Ally to improve the accessibility, quality and usability of course content for all students. Faculty who complete the requirements and are recognized as an Ally Advocate will be awarded the Ally Advocate badge. You can share this badge through various platforms, with other colleges or potential employers to show verification of completing training and criteria for course accessibility. Earning the badge is also a good way to show your commitment to an inclusive learning environment. Faculty who achieve Ally Advocate status will receive 1.0 CEUs.
What can Harper instructors do to make their courses more equitable? This on-demand workshop presents opportunities for instructors to implement more equitable practices using the Enacting Equity in Courses tool. Under the guidance of instructors and Academy staff, participants will review institutional data and consider areas for improvement in their own courses.
GoReact is a tool that allows students to record or upload videos right into Blackboard, which you can then watch and give time-stamped text, audio, or video feedback. This is a fantastic tool for video/audio responses to prompts, student/group presentations, language/pronunciation practice, skills demonstration, and more. In this on-demand workshop, you will hear about a variety of ways Harper faculty are already using GoReact, and will learn how to easily set up, collect, and grade GoReact assignments within Blackboard.

On-Demand Workshops Separate from the Collection

The following workshops are separate from the On-Demand collection, but available for self-enrollment and completion for CEUs.

This Digital Accessibility course will provide guidance and readings on how to create and design content, course materials, documents, media, presentations, and more for accessible and inclusive teaching and learning experiences. This course will also address methods and techniques for how to meet WCAG 2.1 standards and ADA Title II compliance. Self-enroll by completing the steps outlined in this Self Enroll Instructions document (You must be logged in with your Harper credentials to access this instituionally shared document).
Pioneered at the University of Washington, Small Group Instructional Feedback (SGIF) is a voluntary, non-evaluative process for collecting feedback from your students on their experiences and perceptions of your course mid-way through the semester. Since 2019, Harper faculty have been using the SGIF process to great success in their classes. SGIF is available to all faculty, every semester without the need to attend a workshop. To participate in SGIF and earn 0.4 CEUs during a semester.
Last Updated: 8/26/26