Ms. Katherine Rick, Director of Professional Development at the British Management University, Uzbekistan, conducted a series of faculty workshops and interactive sessions at Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB) in October 2025. The events were organized by the Outreach, Extension and Continuing Education (OECE) unit of the Office of the Pro-Vice Chancellor.

The three-day faculty development workshop, titled “Advanced Classroom Communications, Vocal Training for Teachers, and Developing Your Teaching Style and Philosophy,” was held on October 12, 14, and 19, 2025, as part of IUB’s Teaching Upskilling series. The sessions focused on enhancing teaching effectiveness, classroom engagement, and reflective practice. Faculty participants worked on vocal projection, communication techniques, and developing their individual teaching philosophy statements. The workshop also featured the “Impossible Lecture” challenge, which encouraged faculty to present without slides, relying on voice, presence, and storytelling.

The workshop concluded with remarks from Prof. Daniel W. Lund, Pro-Vice Chancellor of IUB, who commended the collaborative and practical nature of the sessions and reaffirmed the university’s commitment to continuous faculty development and academic excellence.

On October 16, 2025, Ms. Rick conducted two additional sessions at the university’s DMK Lecture Gallery. The first, “Ignite Your Mind: Where Curiosity Becomes Drive,” explored how curiosity influences creativity, confidence, and purposeful learning. It was attended by Prof. Dr. Raisul Awal Mahmood, Dean of the School of Business and Entrepreneurship; Mr. Asif Parvez, Registrar; and officials from the Office of the Pro-Vice Chancellor and the Media and Public Relations Department.

The second session, “Symphony of Minds: A New Era of Human–AI Artistic Storytelling,” jointly organized by OECE and the Department of Media and Communication, demonstrated how human creativity and artificial intelligence can merge to produce innovative knowledge-based content. Dr. Imran Firdaus, Assistant Professor and Head (In-Charge) of the Department of Media and Communication, attended along with faculty members, officials, and students.

Through these engagements, IUB advanced its initiative to enhance teaching competence, inspire creative learning, and integrate emerging technologies into academic practice.

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