Smith Center Events
What’s Happening When?
To find out what’s happening when, please subscribe to our Smith Center Happenings Calendar by clicking on the link and then selecting “Add to Google Calendar” at the bottom left.
Upcoming events will also be announced in the OWU Daily as well as the Academic Affairs and/or Smith Center Newsletters.
Event Information
Teaching Circle
These are informal lunch gatherings to share teaching ideas, strategies, or challenges and connect with colleagues. Lunch will be provided and you can just show up!
Scholarship Roundtable
These are Informal lunch gatherings where you can hear from a few faculty colleagues about their research. Lunch will be provided and you can just show up!
Faculty Learning Communities
Small, cross-disciplinary groups of faculty (or faculty and staff, depending on the topic) who meet regularly over the course of a semester or academic year to collaboratively explore a specific teaching or scholarly topic, reflect on their classroom practices, and build a supportive peer network. Participation is voluntary and usually involves some reading and engagement outside of meetings. The expected time commitment will vary depending on the topic but should not exceed ~8-10 hours per semester. Learning Community work comes with a stipend.
Smith Center Workshops
These are one-off workshops where one person (usually an OWU faculty or staff member, occasionally an invited speaker) presents information on a specific topic followed by time for Q&A and discussion. These usually take place either from 12:10-1 or 4:10-5.
Smith Center Conversations (Advanced Pedagogical Topics)
Smith Center Conversations are 50-minute, peer-led sessions designed for active discussion and immediate pedagogical utility. These gatherings focus on collaborative sense-making and strategy sharing around common teaching challenges. Participation usually involves a brief pre-reading, a short (5-10 minute) opening framework provided by the host, followed by facilitated peer discussion focused on actionable classroom strategies.
GLCA Reading Groups
During the 2026-27 academic year, faculty and staff from across the GLCA will be reading and discussing Regan Gurung and Elizabeth Yost Hammer’s new book, Teach Like a Champ. (Sign-up is now closed.)