University of Maryland

Information Design Program Committee

Committee Membership

Member Position
Jason Aston Faculty Member (voting)
Elizabeth Bonsignore Faculty Member (voting)
Tammy Clegg Faculty Chair
Daniel Greene Faculty Member (voting)
Kate Izsak Faculty Member (voting)
Ron PadronFaculty Faculty Member (voting)

Schedule

  • October 7, 2021 3-4pm
  • November TBD
  • December TBD

Committee Tasks for AY2021-2022

Immediate Practical Goals

Rolling out new courses:

  • New courses for the major (at various levels of development)
    • INST 104 Design Across Campus (Katie)
    • INST 204 Designing Fair Systems (Dan) – TLC check with Kate
    • INST 367 Prototyping and Developing Technology Studio (Caro)
    • INST 406 Cross-disciplinary Communication Lab (Jason)
    • INST 454 Modeling & Simulating Systemic Problems (Vedat?)
    • INST 491 Integrated Capstone for Tech and InfoDesign

Crafting the Story of InfoDesign:

We will work with the media team and current students to develop a set of advertising messages about what InfoDesign is that will be relatable to prospective students and other stakeholders. We also need to have the messaging situated within the larger story of all three of our undergraduate programs, so that people understand (1) how we fit within the iSchool’s suite of programs and (2) what differentiates the InfoDesign major from the others (as well as other related programs on campus).

Developing a recruitment plan:

We will develop a plan for recruiting prospective students that includes (1) identifying pools of perspective students on campus and beyond and (2) reaching those students with our advertising and (3) engaging those students in ways that help them get to know us (e.g., Ron’s workshop/panels with Freshman Connection).

Long-term Visioning

We will identify ways to incorporate experiential learning via industry and community partnerships as a core component of our program

We will identify ways to incorporate professional development into our program – i.e., helping our students develop skills and techniques beyond content understanding that will help them excel in the work environments they are placed in upon graduation

I would also really like for us to think about ways to make sure we have a strong community within our cohorts of students (though I don’t know how to write a specific goal along those lines and maybe this comes a little later – like next year?)

Committee Minutes & Agendas 2021—2022 Academic Year