University at Buffalo (UB)
New Faculty Academy
2025 New Faculty Fellows and Instructors from CATT and UB Libraries : May 2025, Capen Hall
The New Faculty Academy is a collaboration between the Office of Faculty Affairs, the Office of Curriculum, Assessment and Teaching Transformation (CATT) and the University Libraries.
This 10-week, in-person series supports faculty in developing effective, evidence-informed teaching practices grounded in how students learn. Each session connects core teaching topics to key principles from the learning sciences. Participants will explore practical strategies while examining the theoretical foundations that make those strategies effective. The Academy is designed to foster reflection, dialogue, and application across disciplines. Faculty will leave with a stronger, more intentional approach to course design and teaching.
On this page:
| Date/Time | Session | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Sept. 15, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | How Learning Works (Foundations) | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Sept. 22, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Designing for Learning (Syllabus & Alignment) | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Sept. 29, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Motivation & Belonging (Student-Centered Teaching) | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Oct. 6, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Learning Through Activity (Active Learning) | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Oct. 13, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Attention, Memory & Structure | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Oct. 20, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Feedback & Assessment for Learning | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Oct. 27, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Designing for Variability (Accessibility & UDL) | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Nov. 3, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | AI & Teaching: Cognitive and Pedagogical Implications | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Nov. 10, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Course Integration (Putting It All Together) | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Nov. 17, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Reflection & Teaching Identity | UB Downtown Gateway, 77 Goodell St., Suite 208 Buffalo, NY 14203 |
| Nov. 24, 2026, 1-3 p.m. | Wrap-Up Session | TBD |
Recognition of 2025 New Faculty Fellows
Meet the 2025 New Faculty Fellows
Gustavo F. Cerqueira, Restorative Dentistry, SDM
Final Project Title: Knowledge development and achieving excellence career: My gains after New Faculty Academy Writing and Publishing.
Adedoyin Inaolaji, Electrical Engineering, SEAS
Final Project Title: Implementing Research Data Management Practices in My V2G Grid Management Project
Yu (Chelsea) Jin, Industrial and Systems Engineering, SEAS
Final Project Title: NSF Grant Writing and Completed Projects Supported by Knowledge Gained from NFA
Adaias O. Matos, Restorative Dentistry, SDM
Final Project Title: Innovating Education: Active Learning, Assessment, and AI Integration in the RDN 833 Fixed Prosthodontics Lecture Series
Mostafa Mohammed, Computer Science and Engineering, SEAS
Final Project Title: Preparing future CS teaching faculty
Lisa Ranzenhofer, Psychiatry, JSMBS
Final Project Title: Designing Engaging Lectures: Reflections on My First Several Didactics
Mohini Ratakonda, Periodontics and Endodontics, SDM
Final Project Title: Enhancing student participation through innovative pedagogy
Joseph T. Smith, Jr., Microbiology & Immunology, JSMBS
Final Project Title: A Four-Phase Mentoring Plan for Effective Transitions and Training
Sabrina F. Sochacki, Restorative Dentistry, SDM
Final Project Title: Enhancing student engagement using new teaching methods
Stéphane Térosier, Romance Languages and Literatures, CAS
Final Project Title: Documenting the sounds of Martinican Creole: International collaboration and its challenges
Nathaniel Woodard, Community Health and Health Behavior, SPHHP
Final Project Title: Improved Engagement and Deeper Learning: Lessons Learned from Refining In-Class Instructional Practices
Past New Faculty Fellows
Isabel Anadon, Sociology, CAS
Final Project Title: Not all policies are the same: Examining differences in sanctuary laws and policies across the United States
D. Michael Applegarth, School of Social Work
Final Project Title: Parole Supervision, Specialty Caseloads, and Mandated Treatment for Individuals with Mental Illness
Eloise Bihar, Materials Design and Innovation, SEAS
Final Project Title: Welcome to the inception of MDI 440 - Design and Function of Soft Materials
John H. Giammatteo, School of Law
Final Project Title: Prosecuting Discretion in Immigration Court
Jessica Hollister, University Libraries
Final Project Title: Transitioning to a tenure-track faculty librarian: the experience and the research opportunity
Swathi Karamcheti, Environment & Sustainability, CAS
Final Project Title: Integrating AI into curriculum and teaching
Opinder Kaur, Economics, CAS
Final Project Title: Transforming Learning Experiences: Implementing Interactive Pedagogies in ECO 380
Celine Krzan, Operations Management and Strategy, SOM
Final Project Title: Engaging Minds, Building Skills: Adopting Active Learning Strategies in MGO 199
Cheryl Lucas, Rehabilitation Science, SPHHP
Final Project Title: A Project- Based, High- Impact Assignment for Graduate Occupational Therapy Students Participating in a Global Health Leadership Course
Kelin Luo, Computer Science and Engineering, SEAS
Final Project Title: Course scheduling and evaluation in large classes
Christine Marie, Media Study, CAS
Final Project Title: Exploring Depth Through Light: Stereoscopic Shadowgrams in Contemporary Art and Research
Alfredo Oliveros A., Biological Sciences, CAS
Final Project Title: Evaluation of Emotive Dysfunctions Exerted by Cisplatin in Chemotherapy-induced Cognitive Impairments
William Sack, Media Study, CAS
Final Project Title: Everyone should learn to code! ... or should they?
Prashant Sankaran, Industrial and Systems Engineering, SEAS
Final Project Title: A Course Developer’s Journey from Planning to Execution
Shannon Seneca, Indigenous Studies, CAS
Final Project Title: Fishing for Answers: Assessing Exposure to Indigenous Communities from Emerging and Legacy Contaminants in the Lower Great Lakes Watershed”
Maura Sepesy, Chemical and Biological Engineering, SEAS
Final Project Title: Making Learning Fun: A Student-Centered Learning Approach
Paris Wicker, Educational Leadership and Policy, GSE
Final Project Title: Black student well-being across the diaspora and culturally responsive teaching (CRT): Pedagogical lessons from Brazil and the United States
Amanda Adams, School of Nursing
Final Project Title: Adapting the KWLA teaching tool in the newly implemented concept-based curriculum at the School of Nursing
Robert Caldwell, Indigenous Studies, CAS
Final Project Title: The Iconic American Indian Tipi in Spain’s Second Age of Discovery
Sabrina Casucco, Industrial & Systems Engineering, SEAS
Final Project Title: Modeling the impact of health disparities and caregiver support on the time to transition away from the community for patients living with dementia
Mary Kamela, University Libraries
Final Project Title: Building Campus Partnerships Through Literacy: Great Stories Club Grant
Jorge Luis Fabre-Zamora, School of Law
Final Project Title: Law as Normative Political Communities: Foundations for a Theory of State and Non-State Legal Phenomena
Kate Nelischer, Urban and Regional Planning, SAP
Final Project Title: The Impacts of Sidewalk Toronto's Public-Private Partnership on Participatory Planning
Loren Pilcher, Global Gender and Sexuality Studies, CAS
Final Project Title: How NFA Helped Me to Think About & Plan My First Book Project
Diana Ramirez-Rios, Industrial & Systems Engineering, SEAS
Final Project Title: Funding Grant Opportunity on Critical Supply Chain Delivery Operations for the National Cooperative Highway Research Program
Jocelyn Swick-Jemison, University Libraries
Final Project Title: Autoethnography: ADHD and the early career teaching librarian
Lourdes Vera, Sociology, and Environment & Sustainability, CAS
Final Project Title: Developing a Public-Facing Lab Infrastructure for Interdisciplinary Research
Kārlis Berkolds, Riga Technical University, Department of System Theory and Design; SEAS/CSE Visiting Faculty
Final Project Title: Redesign of a course: “Computer organization.”
Dennis Daniels, Epidemiology & Environmental Health
Final Project Title: COVID Delta in New York: A discussion about an interactive formative assessment case study for Master of Public Health students
Collie Fulford, English
Final Project Title: Braided Knowledge: Adult Students (and Me!) as Researchers and Writers
Māra Pudāne, Riga Technical University, Department of System Theory and Design; SEAS/CSE Visiting Faculty
Final Project Title: Lessons learned: revision of a project proposal
Ilya Slavinsky, Sociology
Final Project Title: Improving Classroom Instruction with UB Learns and Kahoot
Mujeeb Shittu, Biotechnical and Clinical Laboratory Sciences
Final Project Title: The roles of Toolkit genes in maintenance of normal heart function in aging Drosophila
Nicole Thomas, University Libraries
Final Project Title: Critical Librarianship: Strategies to Support Inclusivity in Library Instruction and Hiring
Sreyasee Das Bhattacharjee, SEAS, Computer Science and Engineering
Final Project Titles:
"Augmented Intelligence for Learning and Teaching Assistant via Relational Graph Temporal Attention Network"
"Toward Effective and Inclusive Teaching in Computing"
Nichol Castro, CAS, Communicative Disorders and Sciences
Final Project Title:
"From the Ground Up: Developing a New (for me) Course"
Jacob Chambers, JSMBS, Microbiology and Immunology
Final Project Title:
"MIC 201: A Course in Transition"
David Gray, CAS, Philosophy
Final Project Title:
"Introduction to Ethics Goes Online"
John Fiege, CAS, Media Study
Final Project Title:
Podcasting and the Environment
Stephanie Fredrick, GSE, Counseling, School, and Educational Psychology
Final Project Title:
"Adolescent Screen Media Use, Cyberbullying, and Suicide Risk: A Latent Profile Analysis Approach"
Jonathan Lopez, SPHHP, Biostatistics
Final Project Title:
"Developing New Learning Outcomes and Aligning Assessments"
Kamontá Heidelburg, GSE, Counseling, School, and Educational Psychology
Final Project Title:
"Black to Success: A Culturally Enriched Social Skills Program for Black Males"
Thea Knowles, CAS, Communicative Disorders and Sciences
Final Project Title:
"Prominence & communicative intent in dysarthria"
Luke Pryor, SPHHP, Exercise and Nutrition Sciences
Final Project Title:
"Superhero Physiology"
Richard O'Brocta, SPPS, Pharmacy Practice
Final Project Title:
"Analyzing Student Achievement of Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience"
Stephanie Poindexter, CAS, Anthropology
Final Project Title:
"Accessibility and active learning: Teaching Primate Diversity online or in person"
Xin Tao, CAS, Geography
Final Project Title:
"Mapping forest disturbance and age change in North and South Carolina"
Matilde Sanchez-Pena, SEAS, Engineering Education
Final Project Title:
"A longitudinal study of stigma of mental health conditions and its relationship with help-seeking attitudes within the engineering culture"
Jessica Swenson, SEAS, Engineering Education
Final Project Title:
"Investigating the Productive Beginnings of Engineering Judgement in Engineering Science Courses"
Gene Zubovich, CAS, History
Final Project Title:
"Culture Warriors Abroad: a Global History of the American Culture Wars"
Monica Tran Xuan, CAS, Economics
Final Project Title:
"Optimal Redistributive Policy in Debt Constrained Economies"
Farah Vandrevala, SEAS, Electrical Engineering
Final Project Title: "Teaching Philosophy and Scaffolding Usage"