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Call for Proposals

With the theme, Reimagining Higher Education: Centering Humanity in a Digital Age we explore how we can design higher education that prioritizes human connection, ethical engagement, and meaningful learning experiences in a time of rapid change and increased technology use. We seek presentations that challenge educators to rethink teaching, research, and student support in ways that enhance, rather than replace, the uniquely human aspects of learning and promote higher education as a compassionate, engaging, and empowering space for all learners.

The target audience for the conference includes all NSU faculty, staff, administrators, and students who play a role in educating our students (both through curricular and co-curricular courses).

Conference Tracks

We have five tracks this year as follows:

Teaching and Learning Technologies: This track focuses on innovative and effective uses of technology to enhance teaching and learning. Sessions may explore how faculty use specific digital tools or platforms to support student engagement, improve accessibility, personalize learning, and streamline instruction in face-to-face, hybrid, or online environments.

Example Topics:

• Integrating AI tools in course design
• Using learning analytics to improve student success
• Leveraging multimedia tools
• Interactive polling and real-time feedback tools (e.g., Poll Everywhere)
• Best practices for using Canvas

Evidence-Based Practice: This track highlights teaching strategies grounded in empirical research or systematic inquiry. Faculty are encouraged to share how they have applied research findings or conducted classroom-based research to improve student learning, foster engagement, and inform instructional decisions.

Example Topics:

• Applying cognitive science principles in course design
• Scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) case studies
• Evidence-based approaches to assessment and feedback
• Classroom action research results
• Using learning theories and instructional design theories to guide instructional practice

Health and Wellbeing: Sessions in this track explore strategies to support the holistic wellbeing of both students and faculty. Topics may include mental health, stress management, workload balance, resilience, and creating inclusive environments that promote wellness.

Example Topics:

• Promoting student mental health and academic resilience
• Faculty self-care strategies and burnout prevention
• Creating a culture of compassion in the classroom
• Embedding wellness activities into the curriculum

Teaching Durable Skills: This track focuses on how educators foster “durable” or transferable skills that students need for long-term personal and professional success. Sessions may feature approaches to embedding and assessing skills such as critical thinking, ethical reasoning, teamwork, and adaptability across disciplines.

Example Topics:

• Teaching and assessing collaboration in group projects
• Designing assignments that build problem-solving and critical thinking
• Integrating professionalism and leadership development into courses
• Helping students build self-awareness and emotional intelligence
• Ethics across the curriculum

Learning Design: This track emphasizes the intentional design of learning experiences that are inclusive, engaging, and aligned with learning outcomes. It includes frameworks and approaches that support diverse learners and foster meaningful learning across modalities and contexts.

Example Topics:

• Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
• Experiential Learning Design
• Simulation-based Learning Design
• Creating learning experiences that integrate theory and practice
• Backward design and course alignment strategies

Session Types

50-Minute Session: These sessions are designed to be highly interactive and engaging. Presenters should plan to involve participants through hands-on activities, group discussions, demonstrations, or practical exercises. The goal is to help attendees actively practice new skills, explore concepts in depth, or experience innovative teaching strategies they can apply in their own courses.

25-Minute Session: These shorter sessions are intended to deliver focused, information-rich presentations. Presenters may demonstrate how to use a specific application or tool (for example, AI tools, Canvas features, or Office 365 resources), share concise case studies on applying research to teaching, or provide clear, step-by-step guidance on implementing a particular strategy. These sessions are ideal for highlighting practical ideas or approaches in a succinct format.

Questions? If you have questions about this call for proposals or any aspect of the conference, please contact Marti Snyder, Ph.D., Director of Faculty Professional Development, LEC and Professor, Abraham S. Fischler College of Education and School of Criminal Justice at smithmt@nova.edu or Alfreda Francis, Assistant Director of Faculty Professional Development, LEC at calfreda@nova.edu.