Fall 2024 NEFDC Conference
Innovative Connections for Learning

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Conference date:

Friday, October 18, 2024
8:30 AM – 4:00 PM

Conference location:

Hogan Campus Center
College of the Holy Cross
Worcester, MA

Conference Fee

Important notes: Check to be sure your institution is a current member of NEFDC before registering.

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Keynote Speaker: Lance Eaton

Lance is a writer, instructional designer, and PhD candidate in Higher Education at UMass Boston. Lance is the Director of Faculty Development and Innovation at College Unbound. Located in Providence, Rhode Island, College Unbound is an innovative model of higher education focused on adult learners who have faced significant barriers to attending college.

We will spend the day grappling with the complex relationship between technology and teaching and learning; specifically, the importance that technology, and most recently AI, plays in our work with learners – be it in classroom spaces or educational development, and the importance of tending to relationships in higher education that have become fragile because of myriad social and political forces, and constant change in higher education.

Since 2020, educators have had to face a steady stream of socio-political, economic, and technological forces that have catalyzed seismic shifts in how faculty teach and their students learn. What has become clear is that these changes have had an impact on the sense of belonging and community that faculty, staff, and students feel at higher education institutions across the US. Faculty often report feeling less connected to their colleagues and students; students may seem more difficult to engage, and because of tense national and geopolitical events, many college campuses are experiencing fractured relationships. As faculty and educational developers, our work is predicated upon building and sustaining relationships that support learning and wellbeing. Within the last year, there has been a necessary focus on the impact of AI on teaching and learning. Although it is incumbent upon us to teach our students to ethically and productively use AI as a skill that will prepare them for real world applications, it cannot replace learning that occurs through deep human connections.

Conference At-A-Glance

Conference Sessions:

At this conference, the sessions include the following:

• 50-minute interactive workshops where participants will leave with new knowledge and skills that they can use in their teaching and faculty development initiatives;
• 15-minute sessions that teach practical tips for teaching or research;
• 50-minute facilitated roundtable discussions where participants can engage in conversations about complex and often difficult topics related to teaching and educational development with their peers.

The sessions will provide conference attendees with innovative, creative, and effective approaches to teaching and faculty development that center relationships. Further, the sessions will also be sharing pedagogies that enable faculty to cultivate and nurture relationships with their students so they thrive in their learning, and as human beings in and out of the classroom. We also have sessions cultivate connections with and among faculty, enabling them to create meaningful and impactful learning experiences. These approaches can build on the use of AI and other technologies, as well as active, experiential, and dynamic didactic teaching practices.

Refund Policy for All NEFDC Events

Your full participation in our events is important to us and we know that from time to time, your plans may change. Our refund policy reflects our interest in furthering our mission as well as our planning needs and the expenses incurred based on your enrollment. If you are unable to participate, you may request to substitute someone in your place. We do not provide refunds.