November Cordes Chair Event

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Margaret Butcher

All faculty are invited to join as Margaret Butcher speaks about "Teaching from the Heart: Using Techniques of Kindfulness in Teaching to Build a More Empathic and Compassionate Campus." This presentation will be at 1:30 on Nov. 30 in the Cordia Harrington Center for Excellence, Room 349, and is part of the Wally Cordes Chair Teaching Talk series.

Please click here to RSVP to attend in person or remotely.

In today's world of self-absorption and social and political division, we all need a space that is welcoming and inviting. Teaching with just intellect and without heart may be 'safe' but can lead to passionless learning. Creating a classroom that honors space for everyone in the room with a trusting environment can help students find the "So what?" and "Who cares?" that may lurk within the course content. Teachers who view themselves simply as a delivery mechanism for content is missing the opportunity to turn on kindness and compassion in their students that can help build a better humanity. Butcher encourages us to realize the need for kindfulness in our curriculum and he will share with us her journey in the creation of the Communicating with Kindness course.

Margaret Butcher is a teaching assistant professor in the Department of Communication. She is known for creating innovative and student-centered classes.

The Wally Cordes Teaching and Faculty Support Center invites six outstanding teaching faculty each academic year to serve as Wally Cordes Chairs. Faculty are selected as Cordes Chairs because they embody the student-centered teaching excellence that late University Professor Emeritus Wally Cordes exhibited throughout his 40-plus-year U of A career.

For more on Wally Cordes go to the TFSC website.