May 12 – 16

Course Design Institute

Presenters: Hannah Jardine (Teaching & Learning Specialist, CTRL), Shed Siliman (Teaching & Learning Specialist, CTRL) & Mary Catherine Stoumbos (Teaching & Learning Specialist, CTRL)

CTRL’s Course Design Institute (CDI) is a series of 4 workshops and additional materials to support faculty and staff in designing courses and learning environments optimized for equity, engagement, and deep learning.

Monday, May 12

Teaching Portfolio Retreat

Presenters: Shed Siliman (Teaching & Learning Specialist, CTRL) & Mary Catherine Stoumbos (Teaching & Learning Specialist, CTRL)

Join us to learn about the components of a teaching portfolio and workshop your materials with CTRL support! The session will begin with approximately one hour of interactive presentation describing each teaching portfolio component and how they all fit together. We will then have approximately two hours of structured time for you to work on your teaching portfolio materials with the support of CTRL Teaching & Learning Specialists. 

Tuesday, May 13 

Forging Cross-Cultural and Global Connections With Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) 

Presenters: Angela Pashayan (Professorial Lecturer, SIS); Gorky Cruz (Director of the Center for Language Learning); Shed Siliman (Teaching & Learning Specialist, CTRL); Nick DeMayo (Senior Instructional Designer, OGPS)

COIL, or Collaborative Online International Learning, is a form of virtual exchange that pairs instructors and students with another course usually located in other countries to work together to complete a project. In this panel discussion, some of our COIL faculty will share their experiences and insights. We are excited to share the parameters and possibilities of COIL with AU’s faculty and invite them to envision incorporating COIL in their teaching. 

Watch the recording of this workshop

Wednesday, May 14

The Value of Experiential Learning and Co-Curricular Activities: Research from the AU Core

Presenter: Kurt Braddock (Assistant Professor, SOC; AU Core Faculty Fellow)

This session will explore how experiential learning and co-curricular activities enhance student satisfaction, academic success, and retention—three key outcomes tied to AU’s educational mission. Dr. Braddock, a CTRL AU Core Faculty Fellow, will present recent research findings on the impact of these engaged learning experiences and discuss practical ways to integrate them into your teaching. A Q&A session will follow the presentation, offering participants the opportunity to reflect on how these approaches can improve student engagement and institutional goals. This session will be especially valuable for faculty seeking to strengthen student learning through innovative teaching methods. 

Watch the recording of this workshop

Thursday, May 15

Taking Your Research Abroad: Get the Inside Scoop on the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program

Presenters: Boaz Atzili (SIS | Foreign Policy & Global Security and 2022-2023 Fulbright Scholar in India), C. Anne Claus (CAS | Anthropology and 2022-2023 Fulbright Scholar in Japan), Priya Doshi (Associate Dean for Faculty and Inclusive Excellence and AU Fulbright Scholar Liaison), Rebecca Hamilton (Washington College of Law and 2022-2023 Fulbright Scholar in Malta) & Anna Olsson (Assistant Vice Provost, CTRL and AU Fulbright Scholar Liaison)

Are you thinking about doing research abroad? The application window for 2026-27 Fulbright U.S. Scholar Awards is open, and although applications are not due until September 15, now is a good time to begin thinking about and planning for your application. Join us for a quick introduction to the program and application process, followed by presentations by three recent AU faculty Fulbright Scholar Alumni, telling their stories about their processes of preparing for and applying for their years abroad. The session will end with a networking reception. 

Friday, May 16

Welcome to Taguette! (An open source platform)

Presenter: Tiffany Monique Quash, (Qualitative/Survey Research Methodologist, CTRL)

Learn how to you an open-source Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis program (CAQDAS) called Taguette. This program is a text tagging program that is available on desktops or through the server. Taguette is available on all operating systems, can offer real-time collaboration, and it’s easy to use. 

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Kick-Starting Your Summer Writing Project

Presenters: Chelsea Butkowski (SOC | Communication Studies), Megan Finn (SOC | Communication Studies), Anna Olsson (Assistant Vice Provost, CTRL) & Shari Watkins (Senior Research Fellow, CTRL)

Finding uninterrupted time to work on a writing project is often a challenge. Whether we are drafting a book proposal, an article, an op-ed, or a fellowship proposal, distractions tend to chip away at our best-laid writing plans. Make the beginning of summer an opportunity to focus on your writing project by joining colleagues for a 1.5-day “write-on-site.” The first half-day session includes a presentation by two faculty colleagues who launched a writing group two years ago, sharing their tips for how to do so successfully; a presentation on the benefits of writing with colleagues (especially in times like these); followed by brainstorming to discuss and collect your ideas for how CTRL and its partners can support you in your various writing endeavors. 

On the second day we will provide lunch, drinks, snacks, and a place for quiet, individual work. You bring your writing projects and emerging ideas.  

This workshop is part of a re-launch of CTRL’s Partners in Writing Program (co-sponsored by the University Library, the Faculty Senate Committee on Scholarship, and the Humanities Lab), which will include the launch of writing groups and weekly ad hoc writing spaces for faculty to work on individual writing projects, as well as workshops and presentations related to writing and networking spaces for faculty. 

Monday, May 19

Faculty Institute on Artificial Intelligence in Teaching & Research

Session 1: Student Perspectives on AI in Teaching & Learning

Presenters: Nasaiah Algarin (Undergraduate Class of 2027, SOC & SOE), Katelyn Lewicky (Undergraduate Class of 2025, KSB), Gabriela Rupp (Undergraduate Class of 2026, SOE, SPA & CAS), Zo Wofford (Undergraduate Class of 2026, CAS) & Ayah Morsy (Masters Class of 2026, SIS)

Students’ experiences are central to how we address the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in our learning spaces. How do students use and think about generative AI? This session offers insights from students in a variety of disciplines as they reflect on the role of generative AI in their educational experiences – where it might be useful, where it might get in the way of their learning goals, the pressures of career-seeking in the age of AI, and the meaning of “responsible” use. What insights can faculty gain from these nuanced perspectives, and how might we revise or rethink our course materials accordingly?

Session 2: Understanding and Using Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) AI for Teaching and Research

Presenter: Derrick Cogburn (CTRL AI in Teaching & Research Faculty Fellow and Professor, SIS | Environment, Development & Health and KSB | Information Technology & Analytics)

In this session, we will focus on leveraging a category of GenAI tools called Retrieval Augmented Generative (RAG-AI) which enables the user to build a target set of documents to use as trusted sources for your LLM-based prompts, reduce hallucinations, and customize your experience. We will introduce a range of these RAG-AI tools that enable you to harness a graphical user interface (GUI), including NotebookLM, AI Studio, and LearnLM. The session includes an interactive hands-on workshop to develop and practice effective strategies for getting the most out of these RAG-AI tools. 

Watch the recording of this workshop

Session 3: “State of the Art Performance” – AI Use/Misuse and Insights for Teaching

Presenter: Alison Thomas (Assistant Dean of Academic Integrity)

The Office of Academic Integrity (OAI) has responded to a number of AI-related concerns. What kinds of AI-use violate the Academic Integrity Code, and what can we learn from the violations we’ve seen? This session will offer insights about how and why students use generative AI inappropriately, as a substitute for work expected to be their own. Participants will be encouraged to use these insights to discuss revising teaching materials to meet this moment, AI literacy, information literacy, and the teaching of research.  

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Session 4: Integrating Artificial Intelligence and Rethinking Assessment Strategies

Presenter: Krisztina Domjan (CTRL AI in Teaching & Research Faculty Fellow and Professorial Lecturer, CAS | Literature)

In this workshop, participants will explore the pedagogical benefits of AI tools in teaching, learning, and assessment via the Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition (SAMR) model and learn strategies for incorporating AI into lesson planning and innovative assessment methods aligned with the learning sciences. After learning these approaches, faculty will implement new practices for crafting and posting their Canvas assignments to better align with AI-informed pedagogy.  

Watch the recording of this workshop

Session 5: AI Teaching and Learning Dilemmas

Presenter: Jennifer Steele (CTRL AI in Teaching & Research Faculty Fellow and Professor, School of Education)

In this interactive session, participants will discuss real-life dilemmas they’ve faced with AI in their classrooms, including questions of what is adaptive, useful, ethical, and permissible. They will discuss these dilemmas in small groups, identify common themes, and discuss strategies they’ve found useful so far. In the large group, participants will share themes and strategies for supporting students in this historical moment of technological change. Participants will leave the session with a set of strategies to apply in their classrooms that align with their own values and principles.