Continue your journey. We’ll help.
We support you! Providing faculty and staff with teaching and technology help is what we do. Please explore our site for tools and resources to help you in your professional development. If you find you still have questions, contact us at cci@potsdam.edu to open a support ticket. We’ll do our best to respond promptly and even schedule a follow-up meeting with you if needed. If you’re interested in collaborative discussion, join the Creative Instructors Community team and post your thoughts and questions in the Professional Development and Brightspace channels (watch Joining a Microsoft Teams with a code – 01:16, code n9v5whd).
Come by each week and check out our Featured section. We’ll post on important CCI news and highlight new functionality available on your favorite program or app. (Week 9 – 03/20/23)
*Want a reminder, sign-up and we’ll send you a Featured email each Monday.
We all create content and it’s up to us to make sure it’s accessible…for you, your friends, your family, and for everyone! Learn what steps you should take first to make your documents, videos, and presentations more accessible.
Accessibility Resources
Below is a listing of the videos and websites referenced in the Creating Accessible Content – First Steps video.
- How do I adhere to ADA guidelines and laws? on the CCI’s How Do I website.
- Tech Tools training resources website on the CCI website.
- How to Create and Customize Headings in Microsoft Word (PC & Mac) – 06:02.
- Word for Mac: Headings – 02:59.
- Color-blindness and Contrast and Color Accessibility on the WebAIM website.
- Presenting with cameo in PowerPoint – 01:41
- Export Word to PowerPoint with a few clicks – 06:24
- Learn How to Insert New Slides in Microsoft PowerPoint – 01:39
- Learn How to Check Accessibility in Microsoft PowerPoint – 04:33
- Creating Accessible PowerPoint Presentations – 53:08 (“Setting Reading Order” at 14:18-17:50)
- Making your PowerPoint presentations accessible – 44:26
- Accessibility in PowerPoint: What is Accessibility and How to be Compliant with Your Presentations – 15:51
- Deque University Accessibility training accessible from the HR Training & Development webpage.
Posted on Week 8
Convert your Word document into a PowerPoint presentation
The purpose of a PowerPoint is to help a speaker present. Instead of trying to make a PowerPoint serve both as a presentation aid and as comprehensive notes (for session participants), use the A.I. powered “Export to PowerPoint” feature to convert your Word document into a PowerPoint (watch Export Word to PowerPoint with a few clicks – 06:24). Now, you can tailor your slides for the presentation and your document as a session “notes” resource.
Posted on Week 7
Wellness
Take a deep, cleansing breath and learn how to incorporate short wellness activities into your classroom sessions. Public Health and Human Performance Professor, Tanya Hewitt outlines how to provide “instructional support” in the classroom. Watch the Classroom Wellness Primers – 23:13 video to gain a library of wellness resources to pass along to your students.
Posted on Week 6
Word Editor
The “Editor” tool in Microsoft WORD does so much more that check for grammar and spelling errors. Find out how you and your students can use this new feature to dramatically improve the writing in your document (watch New Editor Tool for Microsoft Word 365 – 05:44).
Posted on Week 5
NO LAG Sharing in Teams
Microsoft Teams is an extremely powerful app, but (to be honest) it’s a resource hog (demanding a strong internet connect and a robust computer). That said, you can still seamlessly share your videos and presentations with your “audience” if you follow these simple steps (watch Present videos in Microsoft Teams meetings WITHOUT LAG – 06:17).
PowerPoint Live in Teams
Here is more information on using Live to share (watch Present PowerPoints in Teams - The Right Way. – 03:20).
Posted on Week 4
Microsoft Whiteboard
Need to Collaborate? Check out this great new MS Whiteboard feature. You’ll be able to track who’s making changes to the shared board. The “Collaborative Cursor” is a great addition to the Whiteboard experience within a Teams meeting (watch Collaborative Cursors in Teams Meetings Whiteboard – 02:36).
More about Whiteboard
If you haven’t tried the Whiteboard in your Teams meeting, here is an overview (watch How to Facilitate Productive Meetings with Whiteboard – 11:02). The creative use of this M365 app has enormous potential for effective brainstorming/planning and for interactive/engaging class collaboration. Other recent enhancements now allow you to add website links and YouTube and Stream videos (watch How to use Links and Videos in Whiteboard – 05:10).
Posted on Week 3
Record in New Stream
Do you need your students to make a screen recording for your course? The best tool for students is the recorder in Microsoft Stream. Find out how to make quick-and-easy videos your students can share with the class (watch The NEW Microsoft Stream – 03:40).
Posted on Week 2
PowerPoint Live in Teams
While you can display a PowerPoint in a Teams meeting by “Sharing” your screen, there is a MUCH better way! Learn how to use the PowerPoint Live feature in Teams (watch Present PowerPoints in Teams - The Right Way. – 03:20). This “Live” experience will be remarkably better for you and your meeting participants.
Record in PowerPoint
If you are creating a recording for your students, using Teams will often be your best choice (watch Record in Teams – 02:23). However, if you have a long presentation (i.e. you have a lot of slides), using PowerPoint to record offers you the option of recording slide-by-slide. If you find you want to re-record a given slide, you don’t have to record your entire presentation (watch PowerPoint Recording Tips – 13:26 or Record PowerPoint on a Mac – 08:51).
Posted on Week 1
Manage Tasks with To Do
Microsoft “To Do” is a great way to manage your tasks! To Do is integrated with Teams, Outlook, Outlook online, and Planner. Watch Microsoft To Do | Getting Things Done – 05:08 to get a quick overview.
Create Tasks in Teams
Did you know you can create To Do tasks from any post or message in Teams? Find out how to create tasks quickly and easily in Teams (watch Create Tasks From Microsoft Teams Chats – 03:40).
Create Tasks in Outlook
You can create To Do tasks from Outlook and Outlook online. Find out how to create tasks quickly and easily in Outlook (watch How to Use Microsoft To Do With Outlook, Teams & Planner – 11:14 starting at 01:09).
Record in M365: Find a complete guide to recording in Teams, Stream, and PowerPoint and sharing with OneDrive.
Base Camp- Find step-by-step guidance on what to learn first if you’re just starting to use technology.
Accessibility- Find resources and tools to help you create accessible content and courses.
Professional Development- Submit this form to request a specific PD session or to volunteer to deliver a session.
Brightspace- Find How-to guides and resources on Brightspace (used to deliver course content and instruction).
Mission & Goals
The mission and goals of each administrative unit have been compiled into one document. View Mission & Goals (PDF).