Fostering Community in the Classroom: Strategies and Reflections (Session 2)

Join faculty members from varied disciplines as they share insights, experiences, and strategies on cultivating a sense of community within the classroom environment. Through this panel discussion, explore the importance of building connections among students and between students and instructors, and how a sense of community enhances learning outcomes, student engagement, and overall classroom dynamics.

Romy Ruukel (Moderator), Director of the Shipley Center, Digital Learning & Innovation

As the Director of the Shipley Center, Romy supports BU faculty and staff with cultivating and implementing innovative ideas that improve the BU student experience. Inspired by human-centered design, adaptability and continuous improvement, she leads a team of project managers, multimedia producers and digital learning designers to accelerate the University’s educational transformation through purposeful and novel uses of technology. She holds an M.Ed degree in human development and psychology (Harvard GSE), an MA in humanities and leadership (New College of California), and a BA in English Language and Literature (Whitman College). Throughout her career, Romy’s work and research have focused on the sociology of education, universal design for learning, and 20th-century social movements.

Stephanie Byttebier, Chair and Senior Lecturer of Rhetoric, College of General Studies

Stephanie Byttebier received her PhD in English from Boston University in 2012. She is a Senior Lecturer in and currently also Chair of the Rhetoric department at the College of General Studies where she has been teaching for the past ten years. She has publications in The Henry James Review, Modern Drama and Legacy and is currently doing pedagogical research on service learning based on her long-standing relationship with the Boston Debate League.

Eunil David Cho, Assistant Professor of Spiritual Care and Counseling, School of Theology

Dr. Eunil David Cho is Assistant Professor of Spiritual Care and Counseling and Co-Director of the Center for Practical Theology at Boston University School of Theology. His research focuses on religious and spiritual practices of caregiving, especially among immigrant and refugee communities by engaging the fields of narrative theories and therapy, psychology of religion, sociology of religion, and intercultural studies. His first monograph, Undocumented Migration as a Theologizing Experience (Brill) will be published in late 2024. Formerly trained as a chaplain, a minister, and a secondary school teacher, Dr. Cho is committed to teaching out of his personal and academic expertise in a way that contributes to the transformation of personal, communal, and public life.

Leslie Dietiker, Associate Dean for Research and Associate Professor of Math Education, Wheelock College of Education & Human Development

Leslie Dietiker is the Associate Dean for Research and Associate Professor in Mathematics Education at BU Wheelock. She is a researcher, mathematics teacher educator, and lead author of seven inquiry-based HS mathematics textbooks. In 2022, Dr. Dietiker was awarded Boston University’s Metcalf Award, one of its highest distinctions. She is a National Board Certified Teacher and taught high school mathematics for 17 years. Her research examines how to improve the quality and structure of mathematics curriculum as found in textbooks, lesson plans, and enacted in classrooms. She is also a Fellow of the International Society for the Design and Development of Education (ISDDE), an organization focused on design and research of mathematics and science curriculum.

Sue Griffin, Master Lecturer of Romance Studies, College of Arts & Sciences

Sue Griffin first encountered Spanish fresh out of high school when, as an exchange student, she spent a year living with a family in A Coruña, Spain. Having fallen in love with both the language and culture, Sue returned to South Africa and continued her studies at the University of KwaZulu Natal, where she earned an MA in Spanish. The experience of living in an entirely Spanish-speaking environment for a year and then later studying the language in a more formal setting has positively informed many of the eclectic approaches Sue employs when teaching. Now a Master Lecturer, Sue served as the Overall Coordinator of the Spanish Language Program for many years and currently coordinates first-semester (elementary) Spanish. Sue has done a stint as Acting Assistant Dean and Director of Language Instruction (Spring 2020) and moving forward will be one of two Language Liaisons, working with CAS Advising and various departments to advise students on their options for meeting the CAS Language Requirement. The recipient of an LfA coaching award, Sue enjoys experimenting with technology as a means to enhance teaching and learning. When not working, Sue likes to commune with nature while gardening or kayaking on the many rivers near Boston.