Visiting Scholars
Program Vision
The Visiting Scholars Program aims to bring leading teaching and learning researchers and scholars to offer sustained programming at UTC on a given theme during an academic year. Examples may include keynote presentations, workshops, websites, podcasts, readings groups, and videos.
Visting Scholar for 2026-2027
Dr. Liz Norell
Associate Director of Instructional Support, University of Mississippi
https://olemiss.edu/profiles/eanorell.php
Campus Programming
TBA
Bio
With her background in teaching writing and political science, Liz is particularly interested in collecting and sharing evidence of the impact of effective teaching. She has substantial experience in designing, deploying, and analyzing complex data analysis projects, using both quantitative and qualitative methods.
Liz is passionate about advancing equitable and accessible education in open-access institutions. She spent more than a decade teaching in community college settings before joining the University of Mississippi. As a first-generation college student herself, Liz understands the transformational power of higher education to improve the quality of life within a community. Among the topics she writes and speaks about frequently are instructor presence, understanding disability in the context of education, and creating supportive classroom community. Currently, Liz serves as Co-Editor-in-Chief for To Improve the Academy, the peer-reviewed journal of the POD Network. She also serves as a Contributing Editor to College Teaching, the Chair of the POD Disability and Accessibility Special Interest Group (SIG), and a leader in the POD Disability Affinity Group.
Selected Publications
"Faculty Coaching to Build Authentic Relationships," in Transformative Coaching for Faculty and Staff in Higher Education, edited by Karen Gonzalez Rice, Susan Hrach, Kathryn E. Linder, and Katherine S. Maynard, published by Routledge in September 2025.
"Coaching Neurodivergent Clients on Campus," in Transformative Coaching for Faculty and Staff in Higher Education, edited by Karen Gonzalez Rice, Susan Hrach, Kathryn E. Linder, and Katherine S. Maynard, published by Routledge in September 2025.
The Present Professor: Authenticity and Transformational Teaching, published in the Unviersity of Oklahoma Press's Teaching, Engaging, and Thriving in Higher Education series, edited by Jim Lang and Michelle Miller. Published December 2024.
“Neurodivergence Welcome Here.” 2024. Journal for Research & Practice in College Teaching, 8(2).