Higher education is often encouraged to engage in student-centered teaching, but where do faculty and staff fit in that picture? In this plenary session, Dr. Liz Norell will recast our work through the complementary lenses of authenticity, presence, and trust. Drawing from literature across multiple disciplines, Liz demonstrates why each of these components builds greater psychological safety in school and at work, which in turn turbocharges learning and our shared sense of purpose. When engaged intentionally, this work supports student learning, faculty/staff well-being, and greater joy. Together, we will explore how to adapt this framework in different contexts and for those with varying intersectional identities,  and—importantly—without requiring us to work to the point of burnout.

Abstract: "Micro-management in the classroom, though often well-intended, can limit student confidence, motivation, and critical thinking, ultimately hindering long-term academic and personal growth. Overly controlling teaching methods may create dependency, reduce intrinsic motivation, and stifle creativity, preventing students from developing essential problem-solving and self-regulation skills.

This session challenges educators to transition from rigid control to an empowerment-based approach that nurtures autonomy, resilience, and deeper learning. Participants will explore practical ways to balance structure with student independence through real-world case studies, interactive discussions, and evidence-based strategies. Topics will include developing a growth mindset, encouraging student-led learning, and implementing formative assessment techniques that support autonomy while maintaining accountability.

Attendees will gain actionable tools to enhance engagement, improve student-teacher dynamics, and create a more student-centered learning environment. By the end of this session, educators will be equipped with strategies to shift from a micro-managing approach to one that builds student confidence, nurtures critical thinking, and prepares learners for success beyond the classroom."

I plan to discuss the mission of Cornell Education Program and other prison college initiatives, some of the challenges involved with bringing higher education into prisons, and talk about my experiences teaching in the program.

The sudden appearance of powerful AI creation tools has caused many concerns, but it has also provided opportunities for educators to enhance their teaching. If you have been teaching for a while, maybe it is time to get back into the learner frame of mind.  You might be thinking of ways to motivate your students about a topic.  Perhaps your assessments need a tweak. Creative prompting can help in each of these areas.

In this hands-on Demo, we’ll explore ways that you can use generative AI to supercharge your teaching and assessment.  By the end of the session, you should have some ideas to implement in your next class.

Participants can use their personal generative AI account (Gemini, ChatGPT, etc.) or blackbox.ai to try the activities suggested during the presentation.  A laptop is recommended.

Specifications grading is, generally, an effort to clearly define and assess students on specific criteria. Criteria students' will either meet or not. Implementations of specifications grading are varied. On a per assignment basis, specs grading can be a modification of the tried and true rubric. At the course level how students are graded and how that translates to a letter grade can look very different from tradition practices. My use of alternative assessment criteria was born from questioning the necessity and utility of numerical grades, wanting grades to have more meaning to both myself and my students, and to provide more clarity and accountability to assessments. I will present two different forms of specifications grading. One, currently in use, for 2nd year engineering science courses and, a second, in development, for an introductory gen-ed astronomy course. These course and the students that take them are quite different. As such, designing specifications and how those correspond to course letter grades is different. Discussion and feedback is welcome and encouraged.

We know that the population of traditional students is declining. More than ever we need to recruit and retain non-traditional students. Non-traditional students face unique challenges in balancing their educational pursuits with work, family, and other responsibilities. This presentation will explore effective strategies for creating an inclusive, supportive learning environment that caters to the diverse needs of non-traditional students. Topics will include flexible learning options, fostering a sense of community and belonging, providing academic and personal support, and addressing the barriers these students often face. Attendees will walk away with practical tools to better support non-traditional students, enhance their academic experiences, and promote their overall success.

This will explain techniques for reaching English Language Learners in regular (not ESL) classes.  It will cover such topics as the following.  How can we give instructions?  How can we outline expectations?  How do we pair students in class?

Dr. Kenny and Dr. Wiemann will briefly describe the background that led to our development of LBL 101 (Introduction to Liberal Arts), a content-rich first-year seminar course at OCC that uses an enduring questions / enduring texts pedagogy. We will then describe some of the main features of this course and how it works in the classroom. The second half of our allotted time will be a workshop, where participants will be asked to read a short excerpt from an enduring text and to develop some student-centered discussion questions. The main goal here will be to think through what kinds of questions, in our experience, tend to generate student engagement in the classroom. 

Have you ever been to a conference and almost every session was full so you settled on something that sounded super boring but then after you attended the session you thought that it was amazingly transformational?

That's this session.

Google Drawings has been around almost as long as Google Docs, Slides, and Sheets. But most people don't even know about it. It's a slick app that let's you use layers, grouping, and a modest array of tools to create images. But the power of Google Drawings is in how you can use the images to potentiate your course!. This session will cover:

• How to use Google Drawings to make basic drawings.

• How to embed a Google Drawing into multiple Google Docs so they are linked (updating the Google Drawing will allow for updating in all the Google Docs).

• Embedding a Google Drawing in your course (the drawing is updated in real-time; once you embed the Drawing, any changes you make to the Drawing automatically show in your course)! This is great for chapter thumbnails in Brightspace.

• Embedding a live Google Drawing with hyperlinks in your course. When learners click on different parts of the Drawing, they will be brought to different websites. This is great for showing sample work.

• Attendees will learn to unlock the potency of Google Drawings (and have their minds blown).

Learn to confidently leverage GenAI for academic research while upholding core values in this new information age.

The landscape of information has undergone a cosmic shift, moving from speculative science fiction to a tangible force impacting how we create, access and disseminate knowledge. This interactive session explores Generative AI's role as a research tool within the framework of information literacy. Participants will examine GenAI's influence on student research habits, address core ethical considerations like privacy and intellectual freedom, and discuss the evolving necessity of information literacy in higher education.

Attendees will gain practical tools, activities, and assignment strategies for using GenAI in research, framed by the SUNY General Education Core Competency for Information Literacy. The discussion will cover emphasizing critical thinking, evaluating information, and navigating academic integrity challenges. 

Studies show that educators who demonstrate more compassion and respect towards their students and create a caring learning environment can reduce stress and increase retention amongst students, increase confidence in their academic skills, and improve the satisfaction of college life. 

In this presentation we will discuss the strategies that have worked for our classrooms to cultivate a learning environment that is comfortable and productive for our students and ourselves.