Second Annual Conference on Teaching and Learning
Newman Faculty & Staff: Start your academic year with purpose at our Annual Conference: "AI-Aware Teaching" with Marc Watkins. Students are already forming relationships with AI--often without our benefit or guidance--as they are immersed in reading and writing environments in which the presence of AI is ubiquitous. How can we, as educators, stay up to date on this ever-evolving tech without it becoming overwhelming and still offer practical, trustworthy advice to our students?
About the Presenter
Marc Watkins directs the AI Institute for Teachers and serves as the Assistant Director of Academic Innovation at the University of Mississippi (Ole' Miss). As one reviewer put it: He's adept at guiding faculty through thoughtful AI integration that preserves essential human values and ensures students have access to the experiences and resources that help them thrive.
Watkins frequently writes and speaks on questions like these:
- How can teachers stay updated on evolving AI without becoming overwhelmed and still offer practical, trustworthy guidance to students?
- How can institutions ensure that they maintain their values now that AI is here?
- What will we need to change about the way we assess student learning?
- How do we ensure equitable access for all students?
The CTL Pledge
The CTL promises to take you to a world that will exist only once.
Whether you're a skeptic, enthusiast, or simply curious, this gathering is for you. Join with colleagues to think, dream, and connect in the work of supporting students entrusted to our care.
You'll walk away with
- A clearer sense of what students need from you around AI
- Confidence to face the challenges AI brings to teaching
- Practical next steps to grow your AI Awareness this year
- A sense of shared curiosity and community with fellow faculty.
Let's begin the 2025-26 year with intention, imagination, and shared purpose.
First Annual Conference on Teaching and Learning
Join Lauren Barbeau and Claudia Cornejo-Happel for an off-campus retreat at the Downtown Hyatt Regency as we inaugurate our CTL and open an ongoing campus conversation about what good teaching is and how to talk more effectively about it.
The authors will deliver a keynote and a workshop to help us identify behaviors that lead to improved student outcomes, as well as guide us in documenting and discussing our teaching challenges and achievements with colleagues.
About the Presenters
Lauren Barbeau is Assistant Director for Learning and Technology Initiatives at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Claudia Cornejo-Happel is the Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
They are the authors of the recently published Critical Teaching Behaviors; Defining, Documenting, and Discussing Good Teaching (2023), a book that has been described as "a gift to the hard work of changing the face of higher education." For more information about the Critical Teaching Behaviors Project, visit the CTB website
The Second Annual Conference in 2025, and all conferences thereafter, will showcase the experiments and innovations of CTL participants, through presentations, panels, and poster sessions, including changes made to course design and delivery and the outcomes of those changes.