GCC faculty named ambassadors for SUNY online teaching

Press release:

The State University of New York (SUNY) has pioneered the world of online learning, and its success has been made possible in part by a community of researchers, instructional designers and online educators.

To build its foundation and advance its online efforts, SUNY launched the Center for Online Teaching Excellence (COTE) that celebrates, connects and grows effective online learning education practitioners across the SUNY system while also furthering its knowledge of the most effective teaching and learning practices in online education. Two faculty members at Genesee Community College, Gary Glaser and Jennifer Sisbarro will now be on the forefront for this advancement, after being named SUNY COTE Teaching Ambassadors for 2017. Glaser and Sisbarro were nominated by the College and by accepting, became the first COTE Ambassadors from GCC.

Glaser has taught both online and in-class courses at GCC for eight years. He developed Anatomy and Physiology 1 & 2 hybrid courses to help students work around their busy schedules, providing a large digital library of materials that students can utilize and reference when not in the actual classroom or lab. He also developed a fully online Human Biology class, which includes an online lab component. Gary currently serves as the chair of the Online Faculty Advisory Committee at the College, which is responsible for improvements to the online learning environment.

Sisbarro is an assistant professor of music at GCC. She serves on the Online Faculty Advisory Committee and she participated in the Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) course orientation. Among the online courses that Sisbarro teaches are: History of Rock and Roll (MUS 203), Music Appreciation (MUS101), and Basic Musicianship (MUS102). She also developed the online Hip Hop Culture (MUS107) course. Sisbarro began teaching at GCC in 2014, and she previously taught at Finger Lakes Community College and Hobart and William Smith College. She has been performing in musical theatre productions since the age of 10, and has toured internationally with the Geneseo Chamber Singers and performed with the Cayuga Vocal Ensemble.

"I am passionate about teaching online, and I believe that online learning is a wonderful alternative for non-traditional students who have careers, families, health issues and other life commitments," Sisbarro said. "I feel fortunate to be offering classes for students who otherwise may not be able to attend college."

The SUNY COTE is nationally and internationally recognized for its commitment to academic excellence through research-driven, community-supported practices of innovative teaching, learner-centered instruction, and pedagogy-focused approaches. SUNY COTE ambassadors are awarded a certificate of recognition and a digital badge in honor of distinction, and are considered exemplary online SUNY educators who are enthusiastic and effective in online teaching and positive, as well as strong advocates for online teaching and learning within the SUNY community.

Genesee Community College currently offers 16 different online associate degree and certificate programs and was ranked as the number one Best Online College for community colleges in New York State by Affordable Colleges Online (AC) in 2016-2017. The College offers more than 100 online courses each full semester; and tuition and fees are below $5,000 for full-time study for a full academic year.