Reflection from Siobhan Bell on the Adobe Faculty Development Institute | Academic Newsletter | Seneca Polytechnic

by Siobhan Bell, School of Nursing

in the September 2020 issue

Using Adobe software in my courses and administrative work made me excited to be picked to attend the Summer Adobe Creative Campus Faculty Fellow Program. I did not know what to expect but didn’t have high expectations. Not because it was Adobe, but because we were now well into our COVID-19 isolation, and while I love learning online, I couldn’t picture how they would run a conference that would produce high-quality learning with such immersive learning goals.

I was amazed by the whole experience. The Adobe Faculty group made me feel like I was part of a close-knit learning group, from even before the actual learning took place. A week or so before the conference, I received a package in the mail. It contained a water bottle, some little cookies, Adobe creative socks, a notebook, a “Creative Genius at Work” door sign, some sweets, and hand sanitizer. It also came with a laminated card with your schedule and another with a welcome letter. It was such a pleasant surprise and heart-warming the thought that was put into the package.

With my new socks warming my feet, my water bottle filled, and my creative genius sign hanging on the door, my notebook and I logged into the Welcome Session for the conference. A close group of educators/designers talked and joked and generally made the online environment feel very intimate and warm, like learning with some new friends. Looking at the goals for the portfolio, it was easy to be overwhelmed. There were programs I had never used before, and I wasn’t sure how I would be able to create what they needed in the portfolio to achieve my credential as a Faculty Fellow successfully. When someone at work invests in me, I always fear failing. The learning looked like a daunting task. I certainly did not want to let down Seneca and their investment in virtually sending me to this conference. I was pleasantly surprised by how much support was available. Between small online groups being facilitated by an expert to 1:1 support with the conference leads, all you needed to do was ask or drop-in and immediately you felt supported and encouraged.

I loved that the learning wasn’t just about how to use the software; it was also how to teach students and colleagues how to use the software or how it might be of use to them and their classes. I particularly enjoyed learning about Portfolio, InDesign, Illustrator, and Premiere Rush. My favourite is still Spark!

Seeing everyone’s creativity during the portfolio presentations was the highlight for me—so many creative ways to express and use the Adobe Creative Cloud suite. The potential is there to make our learning experiences with our students very interactive and innovative as well as using professional software that they will be able to showcase for future employers. The Adobe Creative Cloud suite also provides us with the ability to design and deliver very authentic, creative, and true-to-life evaluative assignments. To view my portfolio, visit https://professorsiobhan.myportfolio.com.

I am so grateful for the opportunity to have participated and proud to have earned my credential as an Adobe Creative Campus Faculty Fellow. Thank you, Seneca, for the support, and thank you, Adobe, for such a great learning experience.

View the September 2020 issue of the Academic Newsletter.