31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 12/31): Vote for the Higher Education and Cross-Curricular Finalists!

Readers,

Today is the SECOND day of voting for ONE of the three finalists in the Adobe Education Exchange Educator's Choice Awards! The voting period ends October 28, 2011 and the winners will be announced November 9, 2011.


Here are the Higher Education Cross-Curricular finalists!

Take Action! (Erika Veth)

Harold B. Lee Library Virtual Tour (Rita Christensen)

CSUF - Geology 310: Earthquake Hazards in Southern California (Time Abad)

Each of these finalists' entries features a link to download the materials for their project!

Cast your vote for the BEST project - HERE.

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 11/31): Vote for the Higher Education Digital Arts & Media Finalists!

Readers,

Today is the FIRST day of voting for ONE of the three finalists in the Adobe Education Exchange Educator's Choice Awards! The voting period ends October 28, 2011 and the winners will be announced November 9, 2011.


Here are the Higher Education and Digital Arts & Media finalists!

Making a Book with Indesign - Part 1 - Planning

Dreamweaver Templates: A 6 Page Site in 10 Minutes

The Battle to Learn Adobe Flash

Each of these finalists' entries features a link to download the materials for their project!

Cast your vote for the BEST project - HERE.

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 10/31) - Integrating Adobe-Based Technology at Indiana University

Readers,

Happy Friday! I admit, I do not have Adobe Software (Indesign, Photoshop, etc.) on my office computer. I have to wait until I arrive home to create and edit Adobe documents. Interestingly enough, I have used my home computer to create and edit projects for the last five years. For some reason, I like having editing access at home. It is like a mini-stress reliever for me.

However, since I am actually editing A LOT of documents this year, I might ask my department head if I can have access to Adobe Products at work. I have always paid for Indesign and Photoshop out of my personal funds and maybe I can finally bridge the gap between work and home.

Adobe Access for Everyone! A Case Study

One university (Indiana University) provided their faculty, staff, and students with access to the Adobe software at no charge. This would be an amazing opportunity for everyone at the university to learn and use the software. Just THINK about the amazing projects that they could create!

Watch their video here:

How does your university use Adobe Software?

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Freebie Friday! - Kleenex Share a Pack & Receive a Pack Campaign!

Readers,

Everyday, it seems like I am crying (from one eye) while walking to class and working in my office. I am just overly sad about my students' academic work, my relationship with my colleagues, and my daily morning commute. ;( Ha! No, actually I am VERY excited about EVERYTHING this semester and I LOVE my commute because it helps me mentally prepare and persist through a debriefing process each evening!

However, I have HORRIBLE allergies (ragweed, etc.) and they always seem to affect one eye. :( As a result, I always carry a package of Kleenex in my Vera Bradley bag. This week, I requested a sample of the new Kleenex Brand Cool Touch products and I sent my sample package to one of my colleagues (Future) Dr. Cristi Horton. Last year, she gave me this wonderful commuter's pack (which I will have to feature later) and I have always had Kleenex for the road!

Request your sample here - https://www.kleenex.com/Softnessworthsharing/Account/LogOnOrRegister?ReturnUrl=%2fSoftnessworthsharing%2fShare%2fCreate

and remember to share a pack with a colleague!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 10/31) - Using Adobe Software to Create E-Porfolios

Readers,

Our university (and many other universities across the state of Texas) are focused on assessment and evaluation. One way that some colleges at our university are conducting program assessment is through the usage of online portfolios.

Adobe has a potentially low-cost solution for universities! College faculty and students can use Abobe projects to create their portfolios and they can distribute the portfolio via e-mail or by posting it to the web (perhaps to their blog or the department's website).

White Paper: Adobe Portfolio - Using ePortfolios to demonstrate growth and Access Learning (PDF, 103k)

http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/entitlement/index.cfm?e=edu_a9_eportfolios

Portfolio Samples

Check out the samples of these portfolios (including a portfolio examples for a high school student college professor, college administrator, biology student, and design student).

http://www.adobe.com/education/products/acrobatpro/video-portfolio.html

Do you require your students to use portfolios to showcase their work (perhaps in a capstone course)?

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 8/31) - (Wandering Wednesdays) - "UK Adobe & Higher Education" Blog

Readers,

I am excited to highlight the UK Adobe & Higher Education blog for this week's Wandering Wednesday post. Sometimes, I am guilty of missing out on some amazing ideas because I tend to just focus on American-based resources. :( However, this week I am OUT of my comfort zone and I am proud to highlight this amazing blog!

Launched this past summer, UK Adobe created a great resource for Adobe users. This resource focuses on such topics ranging from: individual Adobe Products and digital film making to Adobe Support and Training Updates.

Amazing Blog Posts:

Blog Post - Digital Publishing on Campus:

http://blogs.adobe.com/ukhighered/2011/06/30/digital-publishing-on-campus/

Blog Post - The Importance of Digital Stories:

http://blogs.adobe.com/ukhighered/2011/07/11/the-importance-of-digital-stories/

Neat (and Free) Resources:

FREE Video Production Resource Center - http://edexchange.adobe.com/pages/7b114780ef

FREE Digital Video Curriculum - http://edexchange.adobe.com/pages/0189ea5dcf

Connect with Adobe UK:

Follow Them On Twitter - http://twitter.com/#!/AdobeUKEdu

Join Them on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/adobecreativejuices

Enjoy!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

2011 Adobe Educators' Choice Awards - 1) Enter Your Project, 2) Rate Other Educator's Submissions, 3) Follow #AdobeEduAwards on Twitter!

Readers,

Remember, there are only FOUR days left in the 2011 Educators' Choice Awards. You can win prizes (and lots of recognition) by submitting projects, lesson plans, curricula, and tutorials! 

Enter the 2011 Educators' Voice Awards

Submit an entry here - LINK

Rate Other Educators' Submissions! Win a Wacom Bamboo Create Tablet

If you do not want to submit a project, then rate other educators' submissions and get a chance to get a Wacom Bamboo Create Tablet (I would LOVE one of these!)

You can vote for the best projects, lesson plans, curricula, and tutorials until Friday, October 14th. View and rate submissions here - LINK

Remember to follow the Educators' Choice Awards here!

#AdobeEduAwards

Enjoy!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 7/31) - Adobe Forms Central

Readers,

Last week, I discovered an incredible resource - Adobe FormsCentral! 

Similar to Survey Monkey (and perhaps Qualtrics), Adobe Forms enables users to create forms, distribute the forms, and export data from the website. I love how "crisp" the forms appear on the website! Every form that I examined looks very professional and user-friendly.

Check out Adobe FormsCentral!

https://www.acrobat.com/formscentral/en/home.html

Interested? They Will Answer Your Questions via a Webinar Demonstration!

Also, Randy Swineford, the FormsCentral product manager, provides an in-depth demonstration every Thursday at 10am US Pacific (1pm US Eastern). Log in details will be sent via a reminder email before the event. After the demonstration he will be available to answer any questions you might have about FormsCentral.

https://adobeformscentral.com/?f=9YDk*zu3y7s5SKD1jnnatg

Sign Up Today!

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 6/31) - Introduction to the Series!

Readers,

I teach communication courses and I am always eager to integrate fun (but informative) quizzes in the face-to-face class and also in the online classes. This activity is titled "Real or Fake" and was created by the Adobe Company. This interactive activity would be GREAT for web-editing, media writing, or photo journalism classes.

Try It Out Now!

During the past few weeks, the Adobe company has released a few "Real or Fake" activities on their website. Check them out here:

https://students-adobe.com/NA/Interactive/RealorFake/.

Submit a Real or Fake Photo!

Viewers are also invited to submit a photo to the "Real or Fake"project! 

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 5/31) - Flyer for Social Media Conference 2011

Readers,

This year, we founded the Texas Social Media Research Institute (TSMRI) at Tarleton State University! We are very excited about sponsoring the Social Media Conference in December and we have been working (in a large group) to create and edit the flyer for the conference. I love the way that Indesign users can create the flyer and easily export the file in PDF or JPEG format. These formats enable me to attach the flyer to e-mails soliciting feedback from the conference planning committee.

This was my first experience with QR codes and I think it worked out very well! I hope to use them in the future! Thanks Yvonne!

We plan to post the flyer on our conference website via a Google Docs link.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 4/31) - Environmental Communication Week Verification Form (University-Wide Initiative)

Readers,

Every fall and spring semester, our department sponsors amazing initiatives for the campus and community! To provide workshop verification forms for the students (and their professors), I created this verification form (using Adobe Indesign) for each participant. This form is the size of a regular sheet of paper (landscape). After attending each event, we used a large hole punch (a tree) to verify their attendance during the event.

The students enjoyed this format and also it was a great way for the planning committee to create the "Environmental Communication Awareness" certificates for each participant.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 3/31) - Wandering Wednesdays - Adobe Education Technologies Blog

Readers,

While I am an intermediate user of Adobe products, I am an avid user of Google and Youtube searches to find innovative videos and step-by-step instructions to discover how to use a feature (or two) on Indesign and Photoshop.

This week's blog, Adobe Education Technologies, focuses on the integration of Adobe products in K-12 and higher education. This is a valuable resource for faculty members who seek to discover how to use the innovative features on the Adobe programs and who are also eager to discover ideas focused on how they can use the programs in their classes/departments.

Their last few posts focused on the following:

Publish Photoshop 3D layers to PDF

Underserved Youth + World + Media = Adobe Youth Voices! 

Updated Adobe Acrobat X PDF Portfolio Layout

Adobe FormsCentral Skip Logic

Personally, I am particularly interested in the Adobe FormsCentral! More information to come! Enjoy!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 2/31) - Adobe Education Exchange - 2011 Educators' Choice Awards Competition

Readers,

To begin the "31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education" series with a SCARY OPPORTUNITY, I would like to introduce all of you to the 2011 Educator's Choice Awards competition!

This competition is sponsored by the Adobe Education Exchange. According to the website:

The 2011 Educators' Choice Awards will recognize and reward Adobe Education Exchange members who submit the most innovative teaching and learning materials. Your fellow members will choose the winners of the Awards by rating one another's work, so impress your colleagues and compete for valuable prizes by submitting your best projects, lesson plans, curricula, and tutorials. For inspiration and examples, join or sign in to browse the resources on the Adobe Education Exchange.

This competition has a WEALTH of prizes! The higher education prizes are listed below:

Higher Education Digital Arts and Media

Grand Prize - Apple MacBook Pro 15” 2.0 GHz or Dell XPS 15 Intel Core i7-2630QM processor 2.0 GHz and Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Master Collection (ARV: US$4,398)

Runners-up (2) - Tablet computer (BlackBerry PlayBook 32 GB or Motorola Xoom 32 GB WiFi) and Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Design, Web, or Production Premium (ARV: US$2,498/prize)

Higher Education Cross-Curricular

Grand Prize - Apple MacBook Pro 15” 2.0 GHz or Dell XPS 15 Intel Core i7-2630QM processor 2.0 GHz and Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Master Collection (ARV: US$4,398)

Runners-up (2) - Canon EOS Rebel T1i EF-S and Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Design, Web, or Production Premium (ARV: US$2,648.99/prize)

Adobe Education Exchange - THANK YOU for offering this GREAT competition! I think the higher education community will benefit from the competition and the GREAT ideas that emerge from this competition!

Register for this great opportunity TODAY! All entries are due by October 14, 2011 and voting ends October 28, 2011. Find out more information here - LINK

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education (Post 1/31) - Introduction to the Series!

Readers,

Starting this week, I am starting a NEW series (at least for the month of October). I am very excited to explore one of my favorite software packages - Adobe Software. Over the summer, I received the Adobe Master Suite 5.5 in the mail and I have been super excited to use this software during the summer and also this fall! 

I have been an active user of Adobe Products for the past seven years. In fact, my first software program was Adobe Photoshop when I started working in the Student Services Department at Sam Houston State University. When our student graphic designers were away for the holidays, I was forced to edit event flyers by myself. Through this process, I learned key elements about Adobe software and I started to integrate Adobe software in my everyday life (designing logos, t-shirts, etc.).

Every week this month, you can look forward to some GREAT ideas for the "31 Spooky Ways to Integrate Adobe Software in Higher Education" series. This series is intended for everyday faculty and student affairs professionals (non-designers) who are interested in using Adobe Software Products (i.e. - Indesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, etc.) in their classrooms, student organizations, and departments!

Wandering Wednesdays - Adobe Edition

Every Wednesday, we will feature a higher education professional who uses Adobe software in their courses. We will highlight their blog/website, etc. If you would like to be considered for our special "Wandering Wednesdays" series on Adobe Software in Higher Education, please let me know! jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Freebie Fridays - Adobe Edition

Every Friday, we will feature a neat tutorial video on Adobe products. In addition, we might have some free giveaways throughout the week. Check back frequently!

Look forward to a wealth of great activities this month! Also, PLEASE send any Adobe activity ideas to me (jennifertedwards@gmail.com) and I will feature you (and your idea) on the Millennial Professor Blog!

Enjoy!

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Tenure Revisited (5/5) - (Freebie Friday) Download a Free Song (or Two) from Amazon.com (Great for Grading and Commuting)!

Readers,

I love listening to music when I grade papers, conduct research, and organize my office. As a result, I was so excited to receive a free offer for a $2 MP3 credit for Amazon.com! For $2, you can download one (or two) songs from the website!

Click here (LINK) and enter FALLMP3S in the "enter your code" box!

Enjoy and take a SMALL break from the tenure process!

Thanks! About.com Guide Stacy Fisher!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Tenure Revisited (4/5) - The Barry B. Thompson Service Award & Texas A&M University System's Teaching Excellence Award for Teaching Excellence

Readers,

This past spring, I was very blessed to receive two wonderful awards from my university! These awards were the Barry B. Thompson Service Award (LINK) and the Texas A&M University System's Teaching Excellence Award for Teaching Excellence (LINK). 

            

I hope these awards will help me in the tenure process because I work very hard in the classroom (and on the weekends). A wealth of people supported me in this tenure track process and when I am finally awarded tenure (if I am awarded tenure), I will dedicate this process to my family, colleagues, current/former students, and friends from across the nation.

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Tenure Revisited (3/5) - (Wandering Wednesdays) - National Clearinghouse on Academic Worklife

Readers,

Before this week, I did not know that there was a "National Clearinghouse on Academic Worklife". This website is offered by the University of Michigan Center for the Education of Women" and I look forward to actively exploring this website to read each and every article that they have to offer researchers.

Here are a few of their articles focused on tenure:

http://www.academicworklife.org/search/search.php?sType=B&keyword=tenure

This website has the following pieces of information:

- Articles

- Research and Policy Reports

- Policies

- Demographics

- Additional Websites

- Narratives on Institutional Policy Change

Some of the most interesting interactive aspects of the website is the "join our community" and the "suggest resources for the clearinghouse" links.

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Tenure Revisited (2/5) - "The Faculty Lounge & Other Reasons Why You Won't Get the College Education You Paid For" by Naomi Shaefer Riley

Readers,

A few days ago, my husband and I were persisting through our normal Saturday night activities. These include cooking dinner, grabbing a laptop, preparing lesson plans for the upcoming week, reading tomorrow's Sunday School lesson, and watching TV. This night, we were focused on CSPAN. As we flipped through the channels, we heard a book author on CSPAN mention the tenure process and we immediately stopped on this program. I love the weekend programming on CSPAN and I love Book TV, but this program was slightly different.

This program focused on a recent book titled, "The Faculty Lounge & Other Reasons Why You Won't Get the College Education You Paid For" by Naomi Shaefer Riley. I would  love to read and review this book because it seemed to contain a wealth of information focused on large research universities and it ignored professors who teach at smaller public and private colleges and institutions. Typically, we do not make over $50,000 and we teach more than four courses a semester. We volunteer to advise student organizations and to involve our students in extra curricular activities. For her next book, she should focus on mid-sized institutions and community colleges to give the public a holistic perspective of the faculty experience.

Enough of my commentary, here's the video:

What do you think of the video? I plan to order the book through our library's interlibrary loan program.

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Tenure Revisited (1/5) - My Personal and Ongoing Journey...Persisting Through the Tenure Process

Readers,

During this month, I have been focused on the tenure process. Every year, I set goals for my teaching, research, and service requirements. This year, I am more focused on undergraduate research, large-scale university events, and cross-collaborative research efforts. I hope to start working with a few of the professors from the STEM fields on a grant (or two).

This week's post is focused on the tenure process. Tenure is such a topic of conversation in Texas (as well as the nation) and there are various positive and negative views focused on the tenure process. Despite the attacks to the tenure process, I revisit my tenure portfolio and the tenure requirements for my department to determine how I can exceed my own expectations regarding teaching, research, and service. I attempt to integrate all three of the requirements in every activity that I choose to pursue. 

Despite the individual nature of the tenure process, I try to make each of my research projects and service activities a collaborative process to help early career faculty in their tenure process. Sometimes it is hard for others to persist through this process and I try to help as many people as possible.

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Healthy Meals for Professors-on-the-Go (5/5) - Freebie Friday - The Sabra House Party (Intercultural Communication)

Readers,

I LOVE Hummus! This year, I am teaching Intercultural Communication and we have 23+ eager college students who are eager to try the product, integrate the product in their daily recipes, and tweet about the product! Last year, we hosted the Green Works House Party in our department's classes and it was a HUGE hit! This year, we are applying for the Sabra Hummus House Party! Here's our plan:

This year, we are learning about MANY different cultures and hummus has such a RICH history! For example, in our HOUSE PARTY we would:

I. Discovering Hummus - What IS Hummus? (Have you heard of it? Have you tried it? What is the history of Hummus?)

II. Introduction to the Sabra Website (Viewing Youtube Clips, etc.)

III. Trying the Hummus - We will have four different recipes and recipe ideas for the partygoers to try!

IV. Brainstorming about Hummus - How Can People Use Hummus in Easy, Everyday Recipes? We plan to come up with at least 20 different ways and to post these ideas on Facebook, tweet these ideas, and gather additional ideas from others through these social networking websites.

V. Distribution of Hummus Recipes AND Coupons for Sabra Hummus

Then, we will post pictures on our website, blogs, and Facebook profile. In addition, we will interact with others through the #SabraParty hashtag and the Sabra Twitterfeed - http://twitter.com/SABRA.

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Healthy Meals for Professors-on-the-Go (4/5) - Academic Travel and Cooking in Your Hotel Room/Eating Between Conference Sessions

Readers,

Every year, I present sessions for at least five to six local, regional, and national conferences. Fortunately, our university offers a slight amount of funding for academic travel, but the other sources of funding have to be either funded by external grants or our personal funds. During my first year out of graduate school, my family had to drastically reduce our personal household budget to accommodate my conference travel. As a result, I have had to adopt a very frugal lifestyle when it comes to attending academic conferences. However, this year I have to focus on living a frugal, yet healthy lifestyle when attending my conferences.

Usually, I travel with the following items:

- At least five pieces of fruit and veggies (bell pepper, avocado, bananas, grapes, etc.)

- A plastic bag filled with Planters Nut-rition goodies!
- A plastic bag filled with five or more Honey Ginseng Green Tea packets from the Republic of Tea.

- Instant soup and oatmeal packets.

- An empty reusable bottle.

- Kashi Granola Bars

- My hubby's Texas A&M Coffee Mug (great for instant soup and oatmeal)

This instant breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner kit helps me survive the long conference days and the equally long grading sessions at night for my online classes. It is very interesting how some professors stop communicating with their students and grading papers when attending academic conferences. I set boundaries with e-mail response times and I might have to alter my virtual office hours, but I never stop communicating with students (even when my schedule becomes quite hectic).

Recently, I started exploring additional ways to become more productive in my hotel room while maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Here are some great (yet extreme) videos focused on how to cook in a hotel room. Some of these might be great for you! :)

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41