VITAL Faculty Associate Program

The Faculty Associate Program provides the opportunity and the time for the following groups of faculty to pursue a special interest related to teaching and/or students’ learning: (1) tenured faculty members; and (2) faculty members who hold full-time, permanent continuing non-tenure track positions and who have been at Villanova for six or more years. Faculty Associates spend a semester and/or summer working with VITAL on a project of their choice that must have the potential to enrich teaching and learning at Villanova and thus strengthen Villanova’s academic community. Faculty Associates meet regularly with the director of VITAL for project design and consultation on implementation and assessment.

  • Work on projects that enhance the teaching and learning resources within their academic programs (undergraduate / graduate level);
  • Conduct research about the teaching/learning interests and/or needs of the department, college, or University;
  • Provide leadership for faculty communities of practice, programs, book discussions, and/or faculty consultations;
  • Share their teaching expertise by developing instructional resources and/or programs for Villanova’s academic community in partnership with VITAL. VITAL invites faculty with interest in two areas: (1) using A.I. for learning and teaching; (2) designing engaged student learning in the new LMS;
  • Develop departmental processes to assess student learning, conduct peer observations, assess effective teaching in the discipline, create teaching portfolio.

VITAL has two Faculty Associate positions available. Each position is for a single semester, which may be fall, spring, or summer. During the fall and/or spring semester, Faculty Associates will receive a reduction of one course in their teaching loads during the semester of their appointment. During the summer, Faculty Associates will receive a stipend. Project-related expenses up to $1,000 may be requested. Eligible faculty members will receive letters of invitation to apply to the Faculty Associate program in late January each year.

Applications for AY 2026-2027 will be due by the end of March 2026. Please contact Gabriele Bauer with project ideas before submitting a proposal.

Past Faculty Associates

Meet Our Faculty Associates

VITAL Faculty Associate, Summer 2026

Jerusha Conner, PhD
Professor, Department of Education and Counseling
Program Director, Graduate Education

Project: “Advancing the Proposal for a Mission-Based, CPED-Aligned EdD in Educational Leadership”
Synopsis: This project encapsulates three goals: (1) conduct literature review and comprehensive market and competitor analysis and examine regional and national demand for doctoral level preparation of K-12 education leaders; (2) hold an external consultant-led department faculty visioning retreat to refine program goals and curriculum; and (3) produce a fully developed proposal.

VITAL Faculty Fellow, Summer 2026

Dron Mandhana, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Communication

Project: “A Departmental Service-Based Learning Framework in Communication”
Synopsis: The goals are (1) develop an integrated cohesive pedagogical framework for discipline-based service learning; and (2) design adaptable teaching and learning resources for service-based learning integration across client-facing undergraduate and graduate courses. The project will inform intentional, course-integrated service-based learning grounded in reciprocal partnerships and accompanied by structured reflection that connects students’ experience to disciplinary content.

VITAL Brightspace for Learning Faculty Fellow, Summer 2026

Angela Hanson, PhD
Assistant Teaching Professor, Mathematics and Statistics

Dr. Hanson will apply her comprehensive, practice-based teaching experience with the Brightspace tools to develop instructional resources for Villanova faculty. Specifically, she will develop resources for student engagement, alternative grading, and student experiences with the Brightspace learning environment.

VITAL Microsoft for Higher Education Fellow

Valentina DeNardis, PhD
Director of Classical Studies
7-year Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert

Dr. DeNardis will offer online sessions that demonstrate use cases for Microsoft tools in higher education. Sessions will focus on particular topics or tools or provide an overview of various tools. Dr. DeNardis will create an online community (using Microsoft Teams) where Villanova faculty and staff can share their ideas and experiences using Microsoft tools on campus. The learning community will also be apprised of the latest Microsoft tool resources and updates.