Town Halls Will Discuss Education Innovation, Library Renewal Project

Two upcoming events will provide the campus community with updates on Tech’s educational innovation ecosystem and forthcoming renovations to the Library. 

On Tuesday, Oct. 20, the Office of the Provost will host “Help Transform Georgia Tech’s Educational Landscape: A Town Hall on the Educational Innovation Ecosystem” at 11 a.m. in Room 1443, Klaus Advanced Computing Building. The town hall will discuss a new, unified initiative between the Center for 21st Century Universities (C21U), the Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning, Professional Education, and the Office of Information Technology.

Forthcoming initiatives include opportunities to participate in a new Learning Management System pilot, a call for applications in response to the latest Massive Open Online Course Request for Proposals, the latest opportunities from the Georgia Tech Fund for Innovation in Research and Education (GT-FIRE), and next steps in the Learning Analytics initiative. 

Included in the streamlining efforts is the reorganization of C21U, moving the unit from the College of Computing to the Office of the Provost. The Office of Educational Technology will also be moved under C21U. The move to the Office of the Provost will allow C21U to serve as an advisory unit, as well as provide flexibility and analysis unrelated to any particular student type or academic discipline. 

On Thursday, Oct. 22, the Office of the Provost will host a town hall on the “Reimagination and Renewal of the Georgia Tech Library.” This event will take place at 11 a.m. in Room 152, Clough Commons, and will discuss the phased approach for the Price Gilbert and Crosland Tower renovations.

The guiding vision of the renovation is to reimagine the library of the 21st century. Once completed, the renovation will double current seating capacity, include virtual browsing and collaborations with Emory University, and will feature a host of new user-centric features for students and faculty including a library store, faculty reading room, teaching and innovation studios, project rooms, and collections showcases.

Use of the Georgia Tech Library and its collection has changed over time. Specifically, physical checkouts of print books have decreased dramatically. Now, a growing number of students use secure e-resources and full-text articles. Notably, visits to the library and usage of electronic resources are at an all-time high. Read more about the project at www.renewal.library.gatech.edu. 

Questions for either town hall may be submitted in advance to provostsoffice@mail.gatech.edu. There will also be an opportunity to ask questions during the events.