About the Program
In many AC courses, creative projects are central to “lifting” the analytical work of the classroom into broader circulation. The Adobe Fellows Program is a two-year pilot project to support faculty and students in utilizing digital design tools to deepen and enhance the academic experience and to explore new avenues for public dissemination of research and teaching centered on social impact issues.
The program is a collaboration between the American Cultures (AC) Center and Academic Innovation Studio, with strong support from Digital Learning Services, Educational Technology Services, and the Library.
Why Should I Join the Adobe Fellows Program?
It is more important now than ever for instructors to be digitally literate. The Adobe Fellows Program teaches faculty how to utilize and integrate Adobe tools broadly into the curriculum, to support their, focus on their strengths and train students to support one another. These results help us collectively honor the university's public mission and unique culture while enhancing teaching, learning, and scholarship in exciting ways.
Upon completing the program, faculty will receive a certificate, a letter for their merit file, and $2,000 course improvement grant. Faculty participate in a series of workshops and trainings throughout the academic year. These trainings will help them to develop and pilot at least one assignment using Adobe Creative Suite.
Assignment Development
Projects within the Adobe Fellows Program focus on a variety of pedagogical topics and social issues including arts and design, data visualization, video and sound editing, assignment design, social justice, community engagement, critical reflection and analysis for underrepresented communities. Students are hungry to learn digital literacy skills but aren't given meaningful opportunities within the curriculum.
On the faculty side, this includes monthly meetings, one-on-one consultations, co-developing resources around related needs (such as grading rubrics, copyright, accessibility, creative process), and topic-driven workshops that serve both the cohort and the larger campus. On the student side, we are creating a pipeline for students in AC courses to develop their creative, technical and mentoring chops by assisting instructors and other students. Our model is a multi-pronged approach that involves working closely with faculty cohorts and providing near-peer support for students.
Upcoming Opportunities
The Adobe Fellows program is an opportunity for select faculty to develop Adobe-based assignments in their AC courses, with the support of a staff-and-student team over a one-year period. Ten AC faculty from various disciplines will be chosen for the first cohort as AC Adobe Fellows. Another ten faculty will be chosen in Spring 2019 for the second cohort. Additional cohorts may be formed depending on funding availability. Fellows will receive specialized training, consult with certified staff and students on developing and piloting their assignment, and have the opportunity to meet and share ideas with other faculty from across campus. No previous experience with Adobe products required! For more information, please contact Jean Cheng and Victoria Robinson or adobefellows@berkeley.edu.