Nicolet College Online Indigenous Art Class Honored with Prestigious National Award for Innovative Design

Creating innovative and inclusive online classes at the college level is no easy task.

But that didn’t stop educators from Nicolet College along with individuals from the area Native American community to redesign the college’s Native American Art class which was recently honored with a prestigious national award for online course design.

The course was recently selected for a WOW Award given by the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies (WCET). It was one of only three WOW awards given this year by the professional educational organization created to advance online education.

“The WCET Outstanding Work (WOW) Award recognizes outstanding efforts by member institutions and organizations in applying innovative solutions to a challenging educational need. And the entire award committee was WOW-ed by your submission this year,” wrote Lindsey Downs, assistant director, Communications and Community at WCET, in announcing the award.

The course design team that created the online version of the class was led by Nicolet University Transfer Art Instructor Nate Wilson; Di Wu, Nicolet instructional designer; and Ernie St. Germaine, a tribal art expert with the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.

While incorporating multiple innovative online teaching practices, the team also infused a greater level of Indigenous knowledge and culture into the course by working closely with tribal experts, primarily St. Germaine, which allowed students to have a greater level of engagement in Native American art, culture and history.

Along with WCET, many students also had high praise for the course.

“This class is beautifully designed and laid out. I've never once doubted or questioned what was required of me as a student. This is easily my favorite of all the courses I've taken at Nicolet,” wrote one student.

Another said: “I like how the course is respectful to Indigenous Americans and teaches us about their culture right along with the art. The class is put together with an immense amount of skill and care. I loved that the instructor worked with Indigenous elders to craft the course. I learned a ton.”