Issue date: 11/17/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Kim Acheson Administrators open the newly renovated section of the Old Library with a ribbon cutting ceremony.

Students walking through the hallway of the Old Library for the past few months may have been curious as to the renovation to one of the rooms. Room 1142 of the Old Library has been turned into the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL).

CETL is a place for educators on campus to interact and discuss teaching methods with other educators.

The room was designed to benefit professors and other educators, which then would affect the learning of the students on campus. Conference rooms and presentation areas are featured in the room where professors can meet and talk about new ideas for their classrooms.

"The ultimate goal here is student learning," Interim CETL Director Robert Eierman said.

"This is a place for educators to come and talk to colleagues about things that are working or not working in their classroom and pick up some tips along the way," he said.

Eierman thinks this new room was needed on campus.

"The very cool thing about this is it's a gathering place for educators," he said. "Having a space to accommodate different kinds of meetings is really important."

Programs for professors will also be put into effect through CETL. "Communities of Practice" is a program that will encourage educators to develop a new project for their classroom and then discuss it with others.

"An English professor may try out a new project or a chemistry professor may try a new experiment," Eierman said. "They come back and discuss how well the students liked it and what worked and what didn't work."

Kate Hinnant, associate lecturer of English, thinks the new center will be a great place for professors to discuss what is going on in their own classrooms with other professors.

"Every time I have collaborated with another professor, I have learned something new, so focused discussions in the center seem like they'll be illuminating," Hinnant said.

A large donation to CETL and the renovation was made by UW-Eau Claire alumnus Casey Sylla, who is the president of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Foundation.

"The donation made by Casey has enabled this to become a great place to meet and interact," Eierman said.

On Thursday, CETL had an open house where everyone was invited to visit the new room, ask questions and see what the center is all about.

"I think the open house went great," Eierman said. "Hundreds of people came through and it just shows that we are now officially open for business."

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