Enhancing collaboration and dissemination through a faculty scheduled development management framework

Colleges provide professional development opportunities to faculty to promote knowledge growth and improvement of skills. At Camosun College, Scheduled Development (SD) time for faculty is based on the educational practice and recognition of the need for continuous professional development of faculty members. The paper presents the development of an online environment to enhance and promote active collaboration among faculty in the context of professional development. The Scheduled Development (SD) Connect tool is under development, implementation and is currently undergoing testing. SDConnect® is a multi-facet targeted software tool that aids in dissemination, tracking, integration, and collaboration, of faculty SD for post secondary institutions. The tool will also enable Camosun College faculty and staff to access the information database on SD activities, with the goal that it may lead to active collaborations and synergies among the faculty, departments and schools. This project will also enable the administration to efficiently administer SD proposals and approvals and to establish historical records and trends of the SD activities of faculty for better resource management. SDConnect® is part of an ongoing project called DEAL (Diversity In an Environment of Accessible Learning) at Camosun College.