Outcomes

1. Build critical awareness of how we choose to use AI influences social, racial, and economic inequities. 

2. Identify small ways to advance a human-centered approach for AI that fosters AI literacy and human connection.

Description

Human connection is central to supporting the needs of students, particularly those from minoritized backgrounds. Moving forward, how AI is used may determine who receives their "connective labor " from humans and who receives it from bots.  Drawing from the work of sociologist Allison Pugh (2024), this presentation builds awareness about how automating human connection in teaching and learning can exacerbate inequities. Together, we'll develop a mindset for taking a human-centered approach to AI that will reclaim connective labor as a core human endeavor that is central to eliminating inequities.

Outcomes

• Differentiate between inclusion and belonging in online learning environments and recognize why both are essential for student success

• Identify common pitfalls in online course design that unintentionally exclude or alienate students

• Apply culturally responsive and human-centered strategies to foster student engagement and connection in virtual spaces

• Implement at least one actionable change in their own online course or institutional practices to enhance belonging

• Use relational feedback and personalized communication techniques to make students feel seen, valued, and supported

Description

Creating an inclusive online classroom is not just about accessibility—it’s about fostering belonging. In this interactive session, we’ll explore culturally responsive teaching strategies, engagement techniques, and course design practices that move beyond compliance to create deeply human-centered online learning spaces. Through real-world scenarios, reflection exercises, and hands-on activities, participants will leave with practical strategies to make online students feel seen, heard, and valued.

Outcomes

• Articulate barriers to making all university materials compliant with Title II regulations

• Discuss initiatives & resources that have been developed at a range of different universities

Description

Updates to Title II regulations have left universities in the challenging position of ensuring all digital content meets accessibility guidelines in a relatively short time frame. Even universities that already had robust digital accessibility initiatives are struggling to scale up their efforts. Many are leaning heavily on centers for teaching and learning that may not have the capacity or expertise to lead in this area. This workshop is designed to create community around this challenge by sharing the success we’ve experienced as well as the challenges that we’ve run into. 

In this session, we will talk about the initiatives underway at the University of Nebraska Lincoln, including our robust web resources, asynchronous training course, and workshop series. We will also discuss our university-wide collaborative team that leverages the expertise of units around campus to collectively work through challenges we’ve been encountering. Most of the session will be a structured discussion so we can learn what is happening on other campuses around the country as well as identifying current roadblocks and brainstorming creative solutions for overcoming them. 

Watch pre-recorded poster, From Integration to Impact: Content Management Systems for Equitable Learning

Outcomes

• Identify features of content management systems (CMS) that enhance equity in online learning

• Explain the unique roles of instructors and CMS administrators in building equitable learning environments

• Demonstrate how CMS tools, such as captioning and embedding, improve content accessibility for diverse learners

• Evaluate best practices for integrating CMS into course design to support student success

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Watch pre-recorded poster, Visualizing Success: Adapting OERs With Interactive Elements

Outcomes

• Review an example of how existing OERs can be customized to better suit the students' needs

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Watch pre-recorded poster, Key Takeaways for Designing and Distributing Engaging Online Course Templates

Outcomes

• Identify key strategies and common challenges in distributing engaging online course templates across different LMS platforms 

• Recognize essential design considerations for course templates that support faculty with varying levels of tech proficiency

Outcomes 

• Review updates to the POCR Rubric and provide feedback and input

Description

Over the past five years, online learning has seen dramatic growth. This has led to a renewed focus on ensuring online courses have quality course design that is student-centered, supportive, and easy to navigate. Throughout Spring 2025, a California Community Colleges statewide workgroup is making recommendations to update the Peer Online Course Review (POCR) rubric, which is used by the system to help faculty develop quality online courses. The primary objectives are to ensure the revisions include artificial intelligence integration, regular and substantive interaction, privacy, security, and equity. In this session, we will review early recommendations from the workgroup regarding an updated POCR rubric, how this tool supports faculty statewide, and the benefits of ensuring we are meeting the needs of our 2.1 million students. This session will include an opportunity for participants to give critical feedback on the latest POCR rubric revisions, particularly about meeting equity needs.

Outcomes

• Discuss strategies for working with, not against, Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve student writing

Description

Just as we were finally helping our students identify “fake news,” a newer and greater threat to the student research paper looms large. While some of the strategies we developed to wean students away from the Google search box still hold, the lure of the ChatGPT chatbox is stronger and its “hallucinations“ more insidious than other forms of online fakery. In this presentation, we (an instructor and a librarian) will present some of the strategies we have developed to help our students work with AI tools in ways that support rather than hamper their critical thinking and writing skills. Our goal is not to prevent students from using AI but rather to teach them how to use these tools more effectively in various stages of the research process from topic exploration to scaffolding the paper, to revising and editing the final version. We will present strategies that we have found helpful and we will lead a discussion to encourage participants to share some of their strategies. Our goal is for everyone to leave our session with some practical suggestions to implement in their own classrooms.

Outcomes 

• Critically analyze the concept of openness in education, including its promises and challenges related to access, equity, and social justice

• Explore the intersection between open education and decolonial theory, fostering a self-reflective approach to educational practices

Description

The idea of openness in education has sparked a growing body of discussions, research, and policies. Rooted in critical pedagogy, the topic revolves around promises and challenges related to access, equity, social justice, and removing barriers, to name a few. The commitment of professional educators and activists to these goals reflects a transformative movement against restrictive (nay, closed) educational paradigms. Yet, as we keep promoting all these efforts, a necessary self-reflective question arises: is open education perpetuating colonial frameworks, or is it a decolonial movement that genuinely empowers all learning community members? This recorded presentation, rather than providing a definite answer, is a critical invitation to bridge the open education movement with decolonial theory and practice. 

Outcomes 

• Analyze the role of AI in improving or harming equity in higher education

• Share how you use AI in the classroom

• Discuss how AI is changing the job market and society

Description

In the rapidly evolving landscape of higher education, artificial intelligence emerges as a transformative force that simultaneously promises unprecedented opportunities and poses profound challenges. This discussion examines AI's complex intersection with socioeconomic dynamics, challenging simplistic narratives of technological progress by centering the experiences of marginalized communities within community colleges. 

Our exploration goes beyond surface-level technological analysis, diving deep into how AI technologies reproduce and potentially challenge existing systemic inequities. By unpacking the intricate relationships between technological innovation, economic stratification, and social identity, we will share the nuanced ways AI impacts teaching, learning, and institutional practices.

The format for this discussion will include 3 segments, each will include a 5-minute presentation followed by a prompted discussion. We will discuss how algorithmic biases reflect and reinforce existing social inequalities. Followed by what are the potential risks and opportunities of AI for students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds and how can community colleges strategically leverage AI to promote educational equity and economic mobility? Finally, we will discuss AI literacy and AI ethics as essential job skills in the emerging AI economy.

We hope to inspire and learn from each other as we discuss this revolutionary technology. Please bring your experiences, sources, and favorite prompts to use in the classroom.