As community colleges work to keep pace with the rapidly evolving digital landscape, the imperative is not just to adopt new tools but to embrace a pedagogy that is inclusive, student-centered, and responsive in real time. This half-day virtual summit invites faculty, instructional designers, librarians, and academic leaders to explore what it means to teach and lead in a time shaped by intelligent technologies, open education, and learner agency. A plenary session will ground the day in big-picture thinking about the future of digital learning, followed by two focused tracks:
- Designing Authentic Assessments for AI-Enhanced Learning: Explores how to design assignments, assessments, and learning activities that authentically measure student learning when AI tools are readily available, including the evolving role of Open Educational Resources
- Building Student Agency Through Self-Directed Learning (SDL): Examines the evidenced-based strategies of belonging, planning, and self-efficacy to support students taking ownership of their learning, featuring the Postsecondary Teaching with Technology Collaborative’s SDL instructional model
Participants will come together to engage in critical discourse and inquiry while offering insights about the state of digital pedagogy in 2026. Together, these sessions will explore how we might evolve our digital pedagogy to better serve today’s students — intentionally, ethically, and for the benefit of all learners.
Session Themes
Sessions at the Teaching and Learning Summit will address how future-focused, student-centered teaching and learning practices supported by intentional technology and emerging AI tools can advance student success in community colleges. Session topics will center on four themes:
- Future-focused digital pedagogy that advances learner agency and inclusion
- Student-centered teaching that supports upward mobility in a workforce increasingly shaped by AI
- Evidence-based strategies that promote early momentum, belonging, and learning
- Implementation of high-impact pedagogies and professional learning across ATD colleges
What To Expect
- Virtual plenary and concurrent sessions on student-centered teaching and learning
- Practical strategies for digital pedagogy and teaching in an AI-influenced environment
- Interactive discussions and reflection with educators across institutions
- Teaching-with-technology insights from the Postsecondary Teaching with Technology Collaborative
Who Should Attend?
Higher education faculty and staff who want to use AI to more effectively support student engagement and learning. This includes individuals in the following roles:
- Faculty
- Instructional Designers
- Faculty Development Leaders
- Librarians
- Learning Technologists
- Academic Affairs Professionals