Design Team Processes

There are various processes that occur within the Design team, leave requests, outside eCampus projects, annual reviews, etc.

Project & Data Management

We started using Wrike for project management in spring 2020. Contact Sean Holland to get access and request training (delivered by Wrike) in the tool.

We track and manage data — including faculty attendance at our events/programs, course developments, and more — using Airtable. Contact Nathan Feemster for access.

Google Drive

Most of our meeting notes and shared documents are created and stored in Google Drive in either a shard drive or regular drive. iTeach planning documents, teaching tips, and other documents that involve sharing with another user should be stored and shared through google drive.

Standard Design Team Meetings

• Weekly “DT” meeting for catching everyone up on what’s happening across the team, as well as doing group problem-solving
• Brown Bags sessions to hear about conference proceedings or cool stuff
• Tool Palooza Work Jam Session — designers all join to try out a new tool or work on a problem/issue together
• Three times a year OKR (Objectives and Key Results) meetings with your supervisor

Servers

Contact Brant  bkschalk@alaska.edu to get access.

ORION –   all of the UAF eCampus’s information/projects – create your own directory for file ex-change/backup in DESIGN directory. This is one option. You’re also welcome to back up to Google Drive. This may no longer be in use.

Commdev – community dev site – you have to be on UA network to access. If you think you need access, get with Brant

Community.uaf.edu – Community installation of WordPress that houses most of our projects, training materials, IDT, course, student and faculty blogs, and open courses.  Contact any Instructional Designer to get access and create your own blog.

iteachu.uaf.edu – online faculty development/training site – update this site every iTeach. Teaching tips also go on iTeachU.

UAF eCampus/iTeach/iTeachU logos and Graphics

Located in eCampus Marking shared drive

Slack

We are using Slack as an internal communication tool. Ask Christen to add you to UAF eCampus

Google Calendar

Google Calendar is part of UA Google Apps and is serving a function of group scheduling for Design Team and UAF eCampus. Please share your calendar at the “See All Event Details” with all member of the Design Team, the UAF eCampus Admin group (Owen Guthrie Donna Oyen ), and anyone else who you regularly meet with. You can access these settings under Calendar > Calendar Settings > Calendars > Edit Settings > Share with Specific People for the calendar you are sharing. Use the “Private” option on appointments/events that you want to keep the title/details of the event private, though this should not apply to most UAF eCampus related activities.

Ask Kendell to give you access to UAF eCampus Faculty Development so you can add events related to faculty development.

Ask Donna to give you access to UAF eCampus Leave (view).

Please keep your calendar up to date including appointments, lunch, or anytime you are away from the office. If you get invited to a meeting be sure to accept or deny the invitation so the inviter knows who to expect and we don’t run around the office looking for you.

Timekeeping Policies

Block out appropriate time on your calendar. The first place we should all look–if someone’s not at their desk and we need them–is their calendar (which, it should be needless to say, should always be up to date). Remember we have simple labels for times you will be gone:

• OS:  Off site but working as normal
• IN:  you want to let people know you’re physically in the office
• OoO:  you’re flexing your time a bit and away from your real or virtual desk for up to 4 hours.
• Admin L:  You’ve been cleared to take time off due to lack of connection at home, childcare or family care due to illness, or other COVID-19 related matters. This category protects you from the loss of  leave  balances in the event of matters you can’t control  but requires approval from Madara or Owen.
• SL:  you’re sick and can’t work (cc Donna please)
• AL:  approved annual  leave

If you are getting your hair cut, nails done, shopping for new underwear…we’re glad that you’re taking care of business, but we really don’t need to know the details. “Leave” or “Out of Office”   is good enough.

If you are gone for all-day events of whatever kind, please BLOCK OUT THE ENTIRE DAY with an actual block,  in addition to  using the all-day event banner option. The problem with the all-day event is that it isn’t obvious when scheduling meetings that the person isn’t actually there because the calendar  doesn’t include events from  at the banner.

Off-Site (OS) Time

See General Office procedures.

Black-out Dates for Annual Leave

Please plan to available during these peak times. If you need to take leave, it is probable that we’ll grant it during these times, but it isn’t guaranteed.

• two weeks before and one week after a semester begins (Jan, May, July, August)

Professional Development/Conference Requests

Professional development and conference attendance is very important for keeping actively engaged and inspired in our positions on the  Instructional Design Team. Consider a yearly opportunity that pertains to enriching your skills. The DT has a google calendar called “ID Related Conferences/Events” that any of the DT can add new IDers. Follow the directions for Travel.

Opportunities, where you’re accepted to present, are given more priority and may not be limited to once a year. Upon returning to the office, plan some kind of presentation about your experience to be delivered to the IDT/eCampus Staff.

Equipment/software check-outs/loans, email and software license access (requires a secure log in with UA id)

• Design Team Accounts – team accounts for a variety of applications, software and services.
• Tech Loan Library (airtable) – connect faculty with Karina or Brant for help with this
• eCampus email accounts  – various email accounts used for team activities

File Naming Conventions

Convention  standards

Teaching Tips

We publish a weekly 1-page teaching tip that is distributed campus-wide as well as to specific people. The tips can be found on our iTeachU. See more information on Airtable.

#facdev

OKR’s

Three times a year , you’ll get together with Madara and Heidi and develop and discuss your OKR plan. How Google Sets goals: OKRs  and This is the internal grading system Google uses for its employees.  Template for OKR form

Annual Reviews and Merit-based Compensation

Instructional Designers will receive an annual review on their anniversary date, based on University of Alaska HR regulations. Supervisors and designers will get a chance to review current job duties as well as performance. *Merit bonuses, paid time off, and other merit-based awards may be awarded at the discretion of supervisors. Instructional Designers may request their own step-increases based on the following criteria. (note: UAF HR requirements only allow for one increase per year or from your last approved increase.)

Extraordinary Performance  consists of activities that show initiative beyond that which has been assigned by immediate supervisors, which have a dramatic impact on the way eCampus is seen by other units and upper administration and/or the public, and which contribute to and include other members of the Design Team.

Innovations include creativity and experimentation into current emerging technologies and their application to education, sharing emerging tech with faculty and providing best practices to the UAF as a whole.

Skills Mastery resulting in performance improvements, innovation, and/or benefits to faculty courses/faculty development activities.

Volunteering for activities organization-wide, contributing to the effectiveness of eCampus as a unit.

Team Morale: includes high levels of teamwork; positive, strategic approaches to activities that include other members of the Design Team; and overall positive contributions to the eCampus workplace.

Exceptional Faculty/University Relationships: foster and create interactions with university entities to gain positive relationships and provide exceptional customer service.