Proposing a Badge
This page is intended to assist FHSU faculty and staff as they develop and propose badges. As we introduce approved badges we will develop information for students and the public regarding the badges we offer. The sample badge on the right links to the credential page, which is where anyone seeing the badge can view information about the badge.
Badges are awarded for acquiring and demonstrating competency in a specific area of knowledge or skill. For badges awarded by FHSU, the process of acquiring requires at least four hours of specific educational experiences as outlined in the badge proposal. The badge will also require an assessment of each individual who seeks to obtain the badge. While the educational experiences could be a portion of a class, there are many additional opportunities from workshops, clubs, recitals, exhibits, lectures, or meetings. If you can articulate the specific content/skill, the learning activities, and how we will assess outcomes we can consider it for a badge.
We will also have comprehensive badges. These will be earned by completing a group of badges as outlined in the comprehensive badge proposal.
The full badging policy is available.
Highlights for proposing a Badge
Faculty or staff with an idea for a badge should discuss it with their department chair or director. The process will require attaching this form to the sharepoint minor program change approval form [available under the academic affairs section of the sharepoint forms - Login is required] and selecting the new badge option.
Major factors that will need to be addressed are; why the badge should be created, who the potential audience is, the outcomes they will gain from the learning experience, the experiences/learning that that will be offered, and how the outcomes will be assessed.
Submitters should plan for approved badges to engage in continuous review. The initial evaluation will be in three years and will include feedback from participants and any relevant external audiences. More details are noted in the badging policy.
Current students and faculty/staff will be able to earn badges and certificates without charges. Badges identified for external audiences will need to be offered in cooperation with a campus office that serves the public. Faculty interested in developing such badges are encouraged to speak to the Management Development Center if they do not have a specific office in mind.
Some ways badges could be used
- Badges can serve to highlight a specific skill or knowledge from a class.
- Badges may influence how people talk about an experience: What skill, outcome, or purpose do you want people to focus on.
- Badges provide evidence for the student holder: what specific things can we attest to that will help our students land jobs, both while in school and after they graduate?
- Badges can attest to students gaining smaller parts of knowledge. Would students who complete your core or a specialty in a sub area benefit from being able to show that? Would this attract non-degree students who want to take 1-3 classes?
- Badges can be used to provide evidence of non-credit opportunities. Does your organization have learning experiences that are not part of the transcript record? Activities such as a dealing with conflict seminar, experiencing the arts, and many other activities can be learning experiences culminating in awarding a badge.
- Do you want to organize seminars that would update your alumni? Topics addressing changes in your field might be a great badge and a way to serve your graduates and maintain connections with FHSU.
- How else can you envision using these?
Digital certificates 
Certificates, granted by FHSU, consist of at least nine hours of coursework organized into a unified program. Departments will continue to submit academic requirements for certificates as minor program changes via sharepoint. At FHSU certificates have been tracked and awarded by the department. Departments will continue to track completion, but in addition to paper certificates they may also elect to work with the badging administrator to award a digital certificate. Contact Marcus Porter to discuss what we would need to issues certificates that have been approved for your department.
The sample certificate on the right links to the credential page. Click it to open a new window and see the information you can provide for anyone who would want to know more about the certificate. *Certificate background design will be updated.
Faculty and staff with questions about the badging process should reach out to Marcus Porter at maporter3@fhsu.edu or (785) 628-4552.