Meet the Staff
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Christine Rener - Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning Innovation
- Leadership of teaching and learning initiatives across the university
- Workshops and consultations
- Supervise the Pew FTLC Staff
Christine serves as the Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning Innovation. As such, she works with a large number of committees, task forces, and other groups across campus to promote and support innovative teaching and learning practices. She develops and leads workshops and conferences and consults with individuals, groups and departments.
Email: [email protected]
Book a meeting with Christine on Zoom, in person in Allendale, Downtown, or on the Health campus.
Maggie Goss - Assistant Director
- Faculty consultations (including Mid-Semester Interviews about Teaching)
- Workshops on evidence-based teaching practices
- Teaching resources
- Annual Fall Conference on Teaching and Learning
- Sandbox Learning Innovation Grant and Teaching Innovation Grant
Dr. Maggie Goss (she/her) is the Assistant Director of the Pew FTLC. Her main responsibilities include consulting with faculty, developing programs on evidence-based teaching practices, staying up to date with relevant research in educational development, and facilitating the Sandbox Learning Innovation Grant and the Teaching Innovation Grant application process. Prior to joining the Pew FTLC, from 2020-2023 she was an Affiliate Faculty member in Writing at GVSU. She holds a PhD in Rhetoric from Carnegie Mellon University where she took a discourse analytic approach to study language in the media, and issues in professional and technical communication. Dr. Goss’ commitment to research-based learning stems from her own research background in textual analysis and evidence-based pedagogies.
While at Carnegie Mellon University, she worked as a Senior Graduate Teaching fellow at the Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence and Innovation, where she trained and consulted undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral students across the disciplines to help improve their teaching practices. Dr. Goss is also a member of the Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education (POD Network) and regularly participates in teaching and learning conferences.
Email: [email protected]
Book a meeting with Maggie on Zoom, in person in on the Valley or City Campus.
Raquel Ramirez - Project Manager
- FTLC Program Management and Special Project Support
- New Faculty Orientation
- FacultyBadges@GVSU
- Sponsored Teaching and Learning Event Grants
- Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI)
Raquel Ramirez has taken on the new role of Program Manager at the Pew FTLC! Having served as the Project Coordinator for the Center for the past six years, she will be moving into a role that allows for management of some of our bigger programs and events as well as special projects including the Aspire iChange Alliance, the Intercultural Development Inventory, FacultyBadges@GVSU, and Center data analysis. She and Merisa, our new Pew FTLC Project Coordinator, support the Pew FTLC Faculty Fellows with their Center programming.
Email: [email protected]
Merisa Smith - Project Coordinator
- FTLC Project Coordination
- Learning Communities
- Event Programming
- Website Content and Center Promotion
Merisa Smith is the newest Project Coordinator at the Pew FTLC! Merisa is an alumni of Grand Valley State University with a B.A. in Advertising and Public Relations. She and Raquel, our new Pew FTLC Project Coordinator, support the Pew FTLC Faculty Fellows with their Center programming. Merisa brings years of experience working in construction trade school administration and she is excited to translate that work to her alma mater.
Email: [email protected]
Chris Haven - Director of the General Education Program
Chris serves as the director of the General Education Program, which is housed within the Pew FTLC.
Chris Haven serves as the Director of the GVSU General Education Program within the Robert and Mary Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center. He is also a Professor of Writing here at Grand Valley, teaching courses in intermediate and advanced fiction, beginning creative writing, style and techniques, genre and writing, editing and publishing, and sports and writing. He has presented on creative writing pedagogy topics including the use of AI in the classroom. He facilitates group workshops, and is available for individual consulting, to support pedagogy and assessment in the General Education Program. He is available for individual consulting to support pedagogy and assessment in the GVSU General Education Program.
Dr. Haven has presented on creative writing pedagogy topics including the use of AI in the classroom, and facilitated group workshops. He is the author of short story collection, Nesting Habits of Flightless Birds (Tailwinds 2020), and poetry collection Bone Seeker (NYQ Books 2021).
Email: [email protected]
Book a meeting with Chris on Zoom, in person in Allendale
Lindsay Ellis - Director of Supplemental Writing Skills
Lindsay serves as the director of Supplemental Writing Skills, which is housed within the Pew FTLC. She is a Professor in the English Department and directs the Lake Michigan Writing Project.
Email: [email protected]
Janel Pettes Guikema - Director of Curricular Initiatives
Janel serves as the director of Curricular Initiatives in the Pew FTLC. She is a Professor in the Modern Languages and Literatures Department who teaches French courses.
Email: [email protected]
Samantha Mulder - Administrative Asisstant
- Budget Management
- Teaching Award Support
- Grant Reimbursement Process
- Calendar Support: Christine Rener
As the Pew FTLC Administrative Assistant, Samantha manages the budgets associated with FTLC grants and activities and helps departments through the reimbursement process. She is also responsible for guiding faculty and staff though the annual Faculty Teaching Excellence Award nomination and award process. Samantha has been at GVSU for 12+ years and received a B.S in Health Communications and an M.Ed. in Adult and Higher Education from GVSU. She is excited to be able to support faculty in this role!
Email: [email protected]
Sam Condon - Office Assistant
Sam Condon serves as the Office Assistant for the GVSU General Education Program within the Robert and Mary Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center.
In this role, Sam provides administrative and clerical support to Dr. Chris Haven, Director of General Education Program, and to Dr. Christine Rener, Vice Provost for Instructional Development and Innovation, and Director of Pew FTLC. He also provides programming support to Dr. Lindsay Ellis, Director of Writing Across the Curriculum (Supplemental Writing Skills), and to the Faculty Research and Innovation Center here on campus.
Email: [email protected]
Book a meeting with Sam on Zoom, in person in Allendale.
Patty Bolea - Pew FTLC Faculty Fellow
- Faculty Mentoring Communities
- Pace Initiative for Connecting Mind and Health
- Minds That Matter Series
Patty Stow Bolea has worked with the Pew FTLC as a Faculty Fellow for over 10 years. As a social work faculty member focused on supporting faculty and students, Patty has worked on several projects including the History of Inequality self-paced online course as well as the Minds That Matter Series, created in partnership with psychology faculty and aimed at providing education and strategies to faculty supporting mental health and learning differences. More recently, this same group created the Pace Initiative for Connecting Mind and Health which works to integrate health, mental health, and wellness into disciplinary coursework. Patty also leads our Faculty Mentoring Communities Program, bringing together those who are looking for a place to connect, and give and receive guidance surrounding professional progress at GVSU.
Email: [email protected]
Ellen Shupe - Pew FTLC Faculty Fellow
Ellen works with faculty from across the institution interested in international education activities, including but not limited to, international virtual exchange, study abroad, and global learning in on-campus courses. She leads and curates both on-campus opportunities (consultations, workshops, resource collections, grants) and off-campus events (conferences, institutes).
Email: [email protected]