{"id":1848,"date":"2025-05-12T07:50:27","date_gmt":"2025-05-12T11:50:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/?page_id=1848"},"modified":"2026-02-09T09:05:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T14:05:07","slug":"caifs-ambassadors","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/caifs-ambassadors\/","title":{"rendered":"CAIFS Ambassadors"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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CAIFS Ambassadors are faculty leaders dedicated to fostering meaningful connections between their academic departments and the Center for Academic Innovation and Faculty Support (CAIFS). Through this partnership, Ambassadors help amplify CAIFS\u2019 mission of supporting a broad, holistic approach to faculty development\u2014one that encourages and rewards academic innovation both inside and outside the classroom. <\/p>\n<\/div>

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This commitment to professional growth is more than just beneficial; it\u2019s essential. Research shows that faculty development plays a critical role in advancing student success (AAC&U<\/a>), boosting student self-efficacy (Inside Higher Ed<\/a>), and enhancing faculty satisfaction, career advancement, and overall well-being (Vela et al., 2023<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In collaboration with CAIFS, Ambassadors aim to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

+ Bridge the gap<\/strong> between departments and CAIFS
+ Share valuable resources<\/strong> and upcoming events with colleagues
+ Promote professional learning<\/strong> tailored to faculty needs
+ Champion innovation<\/strong> in teaching, learning, and faculty development
+ Recommend<\/strong> meaningful, future PD

Our inaugural 2025 Ambassadors include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Kenneth Barideaux Jr. | kbaridea@uscupstate.edu
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Chung-Yean Chiang | cchiang@uscupstate.edu
Associate Professor
George Dean Johnson, Jr. College of Business and Economics <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Kara Davis | fergus42@uscupstate.edu
Assistant Professor of Community Health
Department of Human Performance and Health<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Kathleen Ferris | kpferris@uscupsate.edu
Senior Instructor of Biology
Natural Sciences and Engineering<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Greta Freeman | freemang@uscupstate.edu
Professor of Elementary Education
College of Education, Human Performance, and Health <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Monica Shehi Herr | mfsheh10@uscupstate.edu
Professor of English and Women’s and Gender Studies
Languages, Literature, and Composition<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Carol Krolicki | krolickc@uscupstate.edu
Instructor of Nursing
Mary Black School of Nursing<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tammy Pike | piket@uscupstate.edu
Senior Instructor Of History
Civic Engagement Coordinator 
Department of History, Political Science, Philosophy and American Studies <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Laura Rikard | lrikard@uscupstate.edu
Associate Professor of Theatre
Department of Fine Arts and Communications
Theatre Program<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Elham Sohrabi | esohrabi@uscupstate.edu
Assistant Professor of Mathematics
Division of Math and Computer Science <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Reid Toth | tothr@uscusptate.edu
Associate Professor of Criminal Justice
Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice, and Women’s Studies <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"This<\/figure>
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Susan Richardson | richarsc@uscupstate.edu
Senior Instructor
Palmetto College Coordinator
Department of Informatics and Engineering Systems<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CAIFS Ambassadors are faculty leaders dedicated to fostering meaningful connections between their academic departments and the Center for Academic Innovation and Faculty Support (CAIFS). Through this partnership, Ambassadors help amplify CAIFS\u2019 mission of supporting a broad, holistic approach to faculty development\u2014one that encourages and rewards academic innovation both inside and outside the classroom. This commitment … Continue reading CAIFS Ambassadors<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1848","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","no-featured-image"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1848"}],"version-history":[{"count":24,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1848\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2327,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1848\/revisions\/2327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.uscupstate.edu\/tip\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}