CEE Workshop Round 4

Workshop Round Four (Tuesday, June 16 8:30 am 10:00 am)

Presenter(s)

Affiliation

Title

Kristen Fields M.S.

Dr. Sue Keller-Mathers, Ed.D
Sally Speed M.S.
Krista Vince-Garland, Ph.D.
Chris Hammond

CDHS/ICHP/SUNY Buffalo
State
ICSC Buffalo State College
Empire State College
SUNY Buffalo State TeachLive
Kaleidoscope

Pause Simulation: Using Avatars to Enhance

the Facilitator/Audience Relationship
Ketchum Hall 211 TeachLive Lab

Sean McNabney

Sheridan College

Pamela Szalay

Mental Health Association of

Niagara County/Beyonder
Academy

4A:

What is the Return on Empathy?

Rockwell Hall Room 301
A Culture of Creative Exchange at Sheridan
College
Rockwell Hall Room 304
Kid Culture Competence
Rockwell Hall Room 306

Pause Simulation: Using Avatars to Enhance the Facilitator/Audience Relationship

A unique opportunity in facilitator skill development has been forged in-between the safety of the Creative Studies
classroom and the uncertainty of real world experience. The TeachLivE lab is a mixed reality simulator where a facilitator
can interact with avatars to hone his or her skills within a variety of scenarios. The interaction is authentic and live; the
facilitator must react and manage the audience spontaneously, just like in a real world setting. Within TeachLivE, facilitators
can make mistakes safely before interacting with actual clients. Participants in this session will experience a demonstration
and have the opportunity to interact with the TeachLivE avatars. Results of a recent study on how TeachLivE was used as
part of the CRS 670 course, where students practiced managing disruptive resource group members, will also be shared.
Kristin Fields currently serves as a Training Coordinator at the Center for Development of Human Services (CDHS),
Institute for Community Health Promotion, SUNY Buffalo State. She administers a training contract focused on
management and supervisory skill development, as well as an extensive Train-the-Trainer program. Kristin also serves as
an internal facilitator for strategic initiatives and coordinates professional development opportunities for all CDHS staff.
She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Speech Language Pathology and a Master of Science degree in Creativity and
Innovation, both from SUNY Buffalo State.
Dr. Susan Keller-Mathers is an Associate Professor at the International Center for Studies in Creativity. She teaches
graduate courses in creativity and change leadership, develops creativity curriculum for learners of all ages and facilitates
teams and organizations to lead change. She co-authored two books on Creative Problem Solving for children, many
articles on creativity and researched the lives of mature women of creative accomplishment. She works worldwide in Asia,
the Americas, Africa and the Middle East to enhance creative performance and assist teachers, trainers and organizational
leaders to nurture creativity in others. Dr. Keller-Mathers holds a B.S. in Elementary Education, a M.S. in Creativity and
Innovation and a Ed.D in Curriculum and Instruction.
Sally Speed is currently an Adjunct Lecturer at SUNY Empire State. In that capacity, she is teaching undergraduate
courses and is part of a team to revise and update existing SUNY Empire State curricula. For thirty years, Sally developed
and managed statewide training systems for NYS Department of Health, Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, and
Office of Children and Family Services. Always an innovator, Sally conducted the first pilot for teleconferences as a training
medium and developed the first series of asynchronous training sessions for training in NYS policy and procedures.

CEE Workshop Round 4

Dr. Krista Vince-Garland earned her degree in exceptional education at the University of Central Florida. She is an
assistant professor with Buffalo States Exceptional Education department and Director of SUNY Buffalo State TeachLivE.
Her professional interests include the use of technology and simulation in teacher preparation, autism spectrum disorders,
severe/profound disabilities, behavior management, and single subject research. She is actively involved in several
professional organizations, including the Council for Exceptional Children, where she is a board member of the Teacher
Education Division professional development committee, the Technology and Media Division publications committee, and
the Educators with Disabilities Caucus.

4B:

What is the Return on Empathy?

Empathy has developed into a topic of wide discussion and focused research. While the most common definition is to put
oneself into the shoes of another, empathy goes beyond just perspective taking. Empathy leads to a desire for action and
can therefore be viewed as part of a creative problem-solving process. It can change lives and create transformation.
Neuroscience research conducted within the last decade has been supporting more than 30 years of anecdotal evidence
making this a good time to further analyze empathy and answer the question: What is the return on empathy? Within that
broader question for empathy, this workshop will address what empathy is, why we do or dont choose empathy, how its
done, and how it can be used to solve problems and yield returns.
Chris Hammond, director of Insight and Innovation at Kaleidoscope, is passionate about the opportunity space between
research and design. He grew up in a family of engineers but quickly developed a love of creating and sketching. After 10
years of working in the corporate sphere, he joined the team as a senior designer. He heads up insight and innovation
efforts and aims to lead with courage, integrity and empathy. His family, 74 Beetle and Lego bricks keep him inspired.

4C: A Culture of Creative Exchange at Sheridan College

Building on expertise in a number of disciplinary areas, the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Sheridan College
has implemented a variety of initiatives engaging both the internal college community and external community partners
aimed at fostering a culture of creative exchange and collaboration. This session will discuss some of these initiatives,
including Sheridan Reads, an extended reading event that creates a common community-wide reading experience through
the discussion and celebration of the works of writers from at home and abroad, and a new film series that sees Sheridan
partnering with local community organizations. The workshop will also address how these initiatives are linked to curriculum
and cultivate a creative environment within and beyond Sheridans walls by establishing forums for interdisciplinary
dialogue, critical thinking, knowledge exchange and creative narrative expression, and thereby capitalize on our
communitys, in the words of Richard Florida, deep reservoirs of creative energy.
Sean McNabney joined the faculty of Sheridan College in 2008 and currently serves as acting associate dean. He earned
his Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from The University of Western Ontario, where he also completed his Master of
Arts degree with a focus on the study of American Literature. In 2011, Sean began his doctoral studies at York University,
where he continues to pursue his research interests in the Western and Detective Fiction genres, gender and cultural
studies, historiography, creativity, and narrativity.

4D: Kid Culture Competence

When it comes to teaching kids, it is essential to consider the cultural differences between kids and adults. Adult teachers
and trainers must recognize their bias before they can design lessons for a younger audience, paying close attention to
potential differences in background knowledge, experience and learning style. In this workshop, participants are invited to
first channel their inner-child and experience a hands-on creativity lesson designed for middle schoolers. After a debrief, the
presenter will share tips for adapting presentation style and content to an adolescent and pre-teen audience. This will
include how to identify age-appropriate learning objectives, break down the whole into many more parts, and use play to

CEE Workshop Round 4

engage kinesthetically as well as intellectually. Participants will then work in groups to apply Kid Culture principles to the
task of designing a lesson plan on creativity. Participants will gain surprising new insights about familiar creativity concepts.
Pamela Szalay has written on creativity for Green Teacher, presented at Columbia Teachers College, co-founded the
Beyonder Academy and is currently collaborating with Dr. Rodney Dietert to advance creativity in science education. Kid
Culture Competence draws from Pamelas breadth of experience in designing general and domain-specific creativity
programs for youth from diverse populations, including the underprivileged and those with a mental health diagnosis. The
workshop also reflects the influence of E. Paul Torrance, Abraham Maslow and Paulo Freire. Her graduate studies in
adolescent education combined with her experience as an educator at the Mental Health Association steered here towards
issues of social justice and the connections between multiculturalism and creative thinking.