“Cultivating a Cross-Country Mentee-Mentor Partnership through Quality Matters Opportunities with I-Eesha Patterson, Ed.D. from Montreat College (in Charlotte, NC) and Robert Shields Ed. D. from California Baptist University (CBU). The presenters wanted to share what the partnership between these two Christian institutions uncovered. Patterson and Shields learned that they both went to UNC Charlotte for their undergraduate degrees and had a common administrator who transferred from CBU to Montreat College. Their partnership started in July 20220. Interestingly, Patterson explained that they decided to go with Blackboard “original” instead of “Blackboard Ultra.” Shields mentored Patterson and advice on the QM process, peer review, and the QM workshops (and TOC). Shields has also recommended that Patterson complete the QM Peer Review Certificate. This is the second or third time this certificate has come up, and I am interested to learn more about it. Shields recommended options for “automating” course templates that they use at CBU. They exchanged ideas and experiences with the process. For example, Shields already used templates and checked standards. They also spoke about Blackboard (and LMS) administrators. This session was a back-and-forth conversational discussion of the mentor-mentee experience and how it impacted Dr. Patterson’s role in implementing Quality Matters at Montreat College. Shields did a “think and share” activity in breakout rooms. The prompts were focused on the value of collaborations between institutions to implement QM. After the ten-minute breakout room session, the groups came back to the main room and shared their takeaways. The exit ticket activity was the prompt: “Would the Mentee-Mentor relationship be beneficial to you? Explain.” One participant shared that they put in funds for travel to other institutions in a grant they submitted. Then people spoke about the value of a database to make connections with potential mentors/mentees. Those interested in being part of the database shared their contact information. This is a great idea! I would benefit from connecting with others developing online biotechnology courses or molecular biology training. Both Dr. Shields and Dr. Patterson worked so well together as presenters. It is evident that they learned a lot from each other as mentor/mentee in their QM journeys!
