2019 FALCON

The 24th annual Facet Associate Faculty and Lecturer Conference (FALCON)

November 15-16, 2019

Crowne Plaza Indianapolis

Maximizing Opportunity: Helping Students Where They Are

In higher education, we want the entry to the classroom to be democratic and the exit to lead to meaningful lives. And in alignment with the former, our classes are filled with a wide variety of students, coming to us with successes and failures, trials and tribulations, moods, longer and shorter attention spans, differing limits on working memory, large support systems, isolated, living with privilege, overcoming poverty, mainstream, marginalized, healthy, ill, and on and on. This diversity is what we want, and it presents great challenges and great opportunity for learning.

Register for FALCON

IU Rate* $50 Non-IU Rate Individual $200

*IU rate is limited to the first 120 registrants. Once reached - option to pay group rate of $125.

Online registration will close on November 11. After which onsite registration will be available.

Group Rate

For Group Rate information please contact Jon Bingham, FALCON Planning Committee Chair.

Contact

Reserve a Hotel Room

FALCON room rates start at $179. Click below book online or call 317-631-2221.

Group rate cannot be guaranteed after October 25.

For reservations outside of November 15, please call hotel to ensure conference rate.

Hotel

Review the Schedule

Check the keynote speakers and session presenters!

Schedule

Directions and Parking

Parking will not be provided by the conference. Self-parking is located directly across the street from the hotel at Pan Am Plaza’s underground parking garage; rate is $28 for overnight parking. Valet service is available at the hotel: $30 for day parking and $40 for overnight guests. Alternatively, you may park in other nearby lots/garages or IUPUI permit lots are a mile away.

The Crown Plaza Indianapolis-Downtown-Union Station is adjacent to the convention center and one block from Lucas Oil Stadium. The hotel has a rich history, as it was orginilaly a train station built in 1888.

123 West Louisiana St., Indianapolis, Indiana 46225

Directions

Mike Polites, Senior Lecturer of Communication Studies, IUPUI

Friday Evening Plenary

All Aboard the Truth Train! Your Station-to-Destination Ticket for Student Success
As educators, there are certain inevitable “teaching truths” in our profession. The good truths, we can ace them and embrace them. The not-so-good truths, we can face them and erase them. If we ignore them, our train will never leave the station. What are your “teaching truths”? Do not get derailed; stay on the right track by attending this opening session!

Mike Polites earned both his BS and MA in Speech Communication from Ball State University, along with a Certified Training Certificate. Prior to his academic career, he worked in sales and consulting. Since 2004 he has been teaching classes on Public Speaking, Interpersonal Communication, and Interviewing Skills in the Department of Communication Studies at IUPUI. In 2012 he received the “IU School of Liberal Arts Outstanding Lecturer Award” and was also promoted to Senior Lecturer. He is a 2014 and 2016 “Trustees Teaching Award” recipient. His academic interests include first year experience, humor in the classroom, methodologies for student engagement, service learning, and classroom civility. His desire to help students succeed in the classroom and after they graduate is a passion that drives him. As a former college recruiter, he has spoken to hundreds of high school classrooms and thousands of students, encouraging them to continue their education. Teachers frequently requested his engaging presentations year after year. He is a professional speaker, standup comedian, and corporate trainer for Training Group Inc.

George Mehaffy, Vice President for Academic Leadership and Change, American Association of State Colleges and Universities

Robin Hass-Birky Keynote Speaker and Session Presenter

Student Success: The Rapidly Changing Landscape of an Emerging Field
Student success was a passion for Dr. Robin Hass-Birky, who is honored by this lecture series in her name. Student success has become an emerging field of practice which is growing rapidly, with new research, nuanced insights and evidence-based practices. This presentation will trace the development of the field, report on its current state, and identify the challenges that remain.

George Mehaffy has served for 20 years as AASCU’s Vice President for Academic Leadership and Change. His division is responsible for developing programs in leadership development, undergraduate education, technology, international education and teacher education. Each year, his division organizes a number of conferences and meetings, including two national academic affairs conferences and a major civic engagement national conference. He has directed many innovative projects, including programs with China; a technology transformation conference; a transfer articulation project with community colleges; two major national studies of student success, and a number of other national initiatives. His most important work has been in civic engagement and student success. Before coming to AASCU, he had more than twenty years of teaching and administrative experience in higher education in Texas, New Mexico, and California. In addition, he served for 33 years in the United States Coast Guard Reserve, retiring as a Captain in 2000.

Learn More About the Hass-Birky Keynote