WCET's 28th Annual Meeting
 
Friday
10/14/2016
7:00 am - 9:00 amNetworking Breakfast
Ballrooms 1-2

Enjoy breakfast with new and old friends on the final day of the meeting. Full breakfast provided and included with conference registration.
7:00 am - 9:00 amSteering Committee Working Meeting
Lake Calhoun

Steering committee working meeting to discuss WCET's programs and activities and work plan for 2017. Full breakfast will be provided.
7:15 am - 8:15 amRelax and Reenergize Yoga Session
Lake Harriet

Join us for free flow yoga to start the final day of the Annual Meeting. Towels will be provided to be used as mats but bring your own if you have one.
7:30 am - 12:00 pmWCET Registration and Information
Registration, 4th Floor
9:15 am - 10:15 amA Credential Mashup: Creating Value and Cultivating College Completers
Deer Lake
Moderator: Jesse Rosel, Manager of Course Media, Capella University
Speaker: Richard Nelson, President, Nicolet College
Speaker: Adrienne Salentiny, Director, University of North Dakota Environmental Training Institute


The vast majority of Americans believe a college education is a good investment and the data shows they are right. But what kind of college education? For those with modest means or demanding work-life responsibilities, a traditional 4-year residential college experience may not be the best choice – or even a viable choice. At the same time, employers find that too few college graduates are ready for work and the age-old debate between advocates for liberal education and career-focused college muddles along. If liberal education “empowers individuals and prepares them to deal with complexity, diversity, and change” (AAC&U), and if professional and technical certification demonstrates command of specific knowledge and proficiencies, then is seems reasonable that both can create real value for individuals and to employers. Does steering learners toward one path or the other not reinforce a false dichotomy? Is there not a third way?

This session will look at the advantages of combining academic coursework with professional certifications. Examples of and possibilities for stacking and/or blending credit and non-credit programming will be discussed. Some of the challenges to more rapid innovation in this area will be reviewed, along with potential answers to these challenges, such as degree-inclusive certifications; creative use of educational technology; competency-based assessment; and flexible scheduling.

Presentation Slides

9:15 am - 10:15 amAccessibility by Design Now and in the Near Future
Pine/Cedar/Birch/Maple
Moderator: Andy Black, Executive Director of Educational Technologies, College of Nursing, University of Utah
Speaker: Martin LaGrow, Academic Systems Consultant, Ellucian

Several colleges and universities have been successfully sued for issues related to noncompliance with ADA standards. By examining the past cases, the failures to comply that have led to discipline, and studying the new standards as they are set to be released in 2016, institutions can not only better serve all students with proactive plans for accessibility and accommodations, but reduce the risk of enduring a costly lawsuit and disciplinary actions from the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division and the Education Department's Office for Civil Rights. This session will familiarize participants with new requirements of ADA section 503 and section 508, along with the role of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. In groups, participants will analyze case studies and examples and practice determining what the institutional responsibility is for addressing and adhering to compliance standards.

Presentation slides.
9:15 am - 10:15 amAsk an Accreditor Roundtable: The Future of Quality
Ballroom 3-4
Moderator: Russ Poulin, Director, Policy and Analysis, WCET
Speaker: Ellie Fogarty, Vice President, Middle States Commission on Higher Education
Speaker: Leah Matthews, Executive Director, DEAC
Speaker: Karen Solomon, Vice President for Accreditation Relations and Director, Standard Pathway, Higher Learning Commission

"Accreditation is a process of external quality review created and used by higher education to scrutinize colleges, universities and programs for quality assurance and quality improvement," according to the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. We reprise this interactive session to answer your questions, whether they be practical or philosophical. This is a unique opportunity to obtain deep insights from three accrediting professional on the front line of quality assurance in higher education. The panel begins by briefly giving their views on emerging issues, such as CBE, quality of distance education, regular and substantive interaction, and other emerging developments. Learn how changes in the expectations for these oversight agencies might change your daily operations. Come prepared with questions and receive frank answers.
9:15 am - 10:15 amAnalyze This! Using Content Metrics to Evaluate Student Engagement
Minnesota
Moderator: David Kim, Founder and CEO, Intellus Learning
Speaker: Chris Hayes, Associate Director, Program Development, InsideTrack
Speaker: Whitney Kilgore, Chief Academic Officer, iDesignEDU
Speaker: Nick White, Director of Competency Based Learning Solutions, Capella University
Speaker: Dale Johnson, Adaptive Program Manager, Arizona State University


Ever wonder how Amazon, Netflix, and Google always seem to recommend the right content at the right moment? They use analytics and predictive modeling based on data from millions of user interactions and searches, providing the optimal recommendation, personalized to each user. What if higher education faculty and instructional designers had the same capability to comb through the vast array of digital academic resources available to them today? This panel session will explore how instructional designers, faculty, and student support professionals can use content metrics to understand and drive student engagement while optimizing course content and design to best meet students’ needs.

With thousands of online students accessing their academic resources through OER, library, commercial, and other digital content, the very materials that students are using provide a critical window into the factors influencing student experience, satisfaction, and learning. Drawing on innovations in adtech and digital marketing and tapping into analytics to measure student engagement through content utilization, instructional designers can now use new technologies to quickly discover content and track its use to accelerate and improve course development and enhance the overall learner experience.

9:15 am - 10:15 amResearch in Distance Education and Technological Advancements (DETA) (Part 1/2)
St. Croix 2
Facilitator: Rachel Cusatis, Instrumentation Innovator - Research, National Research Center for Distance Education and Technological Advancements (DETA)
Facilitator: Tanya Joosten, Director, eLearning Research and Development, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Interested in hearing about research in blended, online, and competency-based education? Looking to find a support network and resources to help you design and administer high-quality research studies? Desire to collaborate with other institutions on funding opportunities and research? Come join our community! Part 1: Research Project Lightning Round Through rigorous, cross-institutional research, the National Research Center for Distance Education and Technological Advancements (DETA, pronounced data) strives to improve student access and success in distance education, in particular for underrepresented students. Launched at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee and funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), we released the DETA Research Toolkit in October of 2015, which contains research guides, pertinent survey instruments, data codebooks, shared definitions, and operationalizations of variables. Alongside the release of the toolkit was a request for research proposals that align with DETA’s goals. Through a competitive process, institutions and faculty across the country were awarded grants to conduct quasi-experimental, survey, and meta-analytic studies. The objective of this session is to hear from awardees and other collaborators who are conducting research in distance education at their respective institutions. Each researcher will briefly describe their study in a lightning round format of 5 minutes and 5 slides per presenter. If you are interested in presenting, please contact DETA via email: deta-staff@uwm.edu by September 9.
9:15 am - 10:15 amResponsible Borrowing Initiatives (RBI), Among other Things…
Crystal Lake
Moderator: Justin Louder, Associate Vice Provost, Texas Tech University
Speaker: Bob Collins, Vice President, Financial Aid, Western Governors University


In July 2013, Western Governors University (WGU) developed a personalized Financial Aid Plan for students. By simply shifting emphasis and providing better information, WGU was able to significantly change student behavior and reduce borrowing. Learn about the simple policy and procedure changes and discover more on the next technology enhancement for continual improvement. The session will also provide insight on how to automate tracking of student educational activity in distance learning.

Presentation slides.

9:15 am - 10:15 amScaling Solutions to Higher Ed's Biggest Challenges
Elk Lake
Moderator: Ritchie Boyd, Principal Strategist, Enterprise Consulting, Blackboard, Inc
Speaker: Alex Freeman, Senior Director of Membership and Special Projects, New Media Consortium

Are you part of the solution? Promoting student success at higher education institutions requires visionary leadership and a culture dedicated to transformative innovation. Even with these elements in place, however, many promising ideas fail to cross over into broad use. How can institutions best meet student needs, turning challenges into triumphs? In this session participants will discuss eight significant barriers to student success as defined by a forthcoming New Media Consortium publication.
9:15 am - 10:15 am"Speed Date" Competency-based Education Programs
St. Croix 1
Moderator: Judith Sebesta, Executive Director, Institute for Competency-Based Education, Texas A&M University-Commerce
Speaker: Jeannie Copley, Assistant Clinical Professor, Northern Arizona University-Extended Campuses-Personalized Learning
Speaker: Dora Donovan, Assistant Clinical Professor, Northern Arizona University
Speaker: Kris Luopa, Manager of Design, Capella University
Speaker: Connie Wacloff, Instructional Designer, Capella University

Unlike typical speed dating, you won't be stuck across from a dud! Join three institutions who have implemented competency-based education programs for a round of 'speed dating' in which you'll get time to ask the questions important to you in your CBE journey before moving on to the next program. Don't forget to check out the videos produced by each program before attending to make the most of your Q&A time with each program.

Capella's Video.
NAU Slides
9:15 am - 10:15 amThe Risks of Non-Compliance
Prefunction Terrace
Moderator: Sharyl Thompson, CEO, Higher Education Regulatory (HER) Consulting
Speaker: Jennifer Lewis, Compliance Coordinator, University of Southern Mississippi
Speaker: Terrence Scarborough, Director of Licensure, The University of North Carolina General Administration
Speaker: Jeannie Yockey-Fine, State Regulatory Services Advisor, Cooley, LLP

Often institutional leaders are still heard saying there is no urgency to comply with state authorization regulations because the states are not enforcing their regulations anyway. This presentation will provide different perspectives on what has or is being done – from a former student’s experience, a state regulator, an attorney, and a consultant. You will learn of some of the actions being taken by state regulators and how students can be impacted by non-compliance. With this as a background, you will also gain insights on how to obtain buy-in from institutional leaders to the need and the resources it takes to be in compliance.

Presentation slides.
10:30 am - 11:15 am Adaptive Technology to Increase Recruitment, Readiness, and Retention
Deer Lake
Moderator: Deborah White, Director of Distance Education, The University of Michigan-Flint
Speaker: Scott Beckett, Distinguished Lecturer, Jacksonville State University
Speaker: Ahrash Bissell, EdReady Project Director, The NROC Project
Speaker: Courtney Peppers-Owen, Director of Learning Services, Jacksonville State University


Income inequality aggravated by unequal educational opportunity directs minorities and students from impoverished backgrounds into remedial math courses, costing them time and money and contributing to attrition. Partnering with The NROC Project, Jacksonville State University has developed a new approach to address math readiness for these students.

Students take JSU EdReady Math Placement upon acceptance and receive individualized study resources.  Once students practice all topics to mastery, they place directly into college-level math. In fall 2015, students who were placed into MS 112 College Algebra using EdReady had a 91% (n=336) pass rate vs a 71% (n=334) pass rate for students who were placed using traditional means.
 
Students unable to master all topics take Fast Forward Algebra, which combines basic and intermediate algebra into one semester and flips the classroom using EdReady. Students watch lectures online before class and spend class time practicing topics to mastery. Accelerating the time frame for remediation places students into college-level math more quickly, saving time and financial aid. In 2014-2015, students passed Fast Forward Algebra at higher rates (64-77%) compared to students in previous years (44-48%).

This session will focus on adaptive online learning with students who are entering a university setting as well as the best practices for blended learning in a remedial math classroom. Results from this scalable, integrated model will be shared.


Presentation case study.


10:30 am - 11:15 amBuilding for Tomorrowland: Open Standards to Support Digital Innovation
Minnesota
Moderator: Samantha Birk, Program Manager, Communities of Practice, IMS Global Learning Consortium
Speaker: Jeff Grann, Academic Director of Assessment and Learning Analytics, Capella University
Speaker: Rick Johnson, Vice President of Product Strategy, VitalSource
Speaker: Joel Hernandez, CEO, eLumen, Inc


Is your institution ready for next generation digital learning environments, featuring plug and play digital resources, learning tools, real-time analytics, competencies? IMS Global Learning Consortium along with its institutional members and partners, such as WCET, are collaborating to create an open ecosystem that will help institutions build flexible and sustainable learning environments that are needed to foster digital innovation. This session will look at some of the specific interoperability pain-points that get in the way of innovation and how IMS standards can help address these challenges. We will also explore some of the gaps that often sit at the intersection between the campus leadership, the curriculum, and technology standards and how the IMS Communities of Practice are helping to fill these by developing resources to help colleges and universities shape tomorrow’s ed-tech ecosystem.

10:30 am - 11:15 amFocused Discussions on Competency-based Education
St. Croix 1
Moderator: Judith Sebesta, Executive Director, Institute for Competency-Based Education, Texas A&M University-Commerce
Speaker: Jeannie Copley, Assistant Clinical Professor, Northern Arizona University-Extended Campuses-Personalized Learning
Speaker: Dora Donovan, Assistant Clinical Professor, Northern Arizona University
Speaker: Kris Luopa, Manager of Design, Capella University
Speaker: Connie Wacloff, Instructional Designer, Capella University

Continue the conversations you started during the speed dating session, or hop in fresh. In this session we will break out of our programs and circle up around topics important to developing CBE programs such as academic resources, administrative requirements and student supports necessary to support successful students. Each circle will have one or more veteran CBE leaders, but come prepared to discuss the issues you face back on campus as well.
10:30 am - 11:15 amResearch in Distance Education and Technological Advancements (DETA) (Part 2/2)
St. Croix 2
Facilitator: Rachel Cusatis, Instrumentation Innovator - Research, National Research Center for Distance Education and Technological Advancements (DETA)
Facilitator: Tanya Joosten, Director, eLearning Research and Development, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Interested in hearing about research in blended, online, and competency-based education? Looking to find a support network and resources to help you design and administer high-quality research studies? Desire to collaborate with other institutions on funding opportunities and research? Come join our community! The DETA Research Center seeks to engage a community of individuals interested in or currently conducting research on distance education. After the presentation of research studies, participants will gather in small groups to discuss a.) challenges in conducting research and needs of the research community, b.) possible solutions or resources to meet needs and overcome challenges, and c.) opportunities for funding and collaboration. In previous DETA community discussions, we identified some of the top challenges in conducting research; these included a lack of standardization in the research process, difficulty with adequately incentivizing participation, reliance on self-reported data, absence of a collaborative culture despite the necessity of a team-based approach, and problems accessing individual level data. One key recommendation was to build a community to proffer and provide support. We hope to expand on previous efforts to increase each individual’s and institution’s capacity to carry out DETA Research by building community and implementing solutions. For more, view these posts: Challenges in Conducting DETA Research http://uwm.edu/deta/top-5-challenges-in-conducting-deta-research/ Recommendations for DETA Research Support http://uwm.edu/deta/two-recommendations-for-supporting-deta-research/
10:30 am - 11:15 amSTLR: Tool and Process to Develop, Track, Assess, and Document Student “Non-Cognitive” Skills
Elk Lake
Moderator: Diane Goldsmith, Director, Learning, Assessment, and Online Education, University of Rhode Island
Speaker: Jeff King, Executive Director, University of Central Oklahoma

University of Central Oklahoma's Student Transformative Learning Record (STLR) is a tool and process whereby students develop beyond-disciplinary skills employers are crying for but which don’t show up on the academic transcript. STLR experiences are designed into the curriculum and the co-curriculum in ways that allow for authentic assessment using quality rubrics, and student achievement of these skills is tracked and displayed on a student mobile app as well as in students’ comprehensive student records. Crucially, STLR is a formative process, with students able to track their development of beyond-disciplinary competencies and to select upcoming opportunities that associate to their particular future career and life ambitions. STLR also includes an eportfolio. A wide-ranging initiative that involves the entire campus, STLR works — we’re in our third year with thousands of students, hundreds of faculty, and hundreds of STLR curricular and co-curricular learning opportunities now in place.

Presentation slides.

11:30 am - 12:30 pmClosing Session: Innovation Hubs and Labs: Driving Change and Creativity
Ballrooms 1-2
Moderator: Vernon Smith, Vice Provost for Distributed Learning, University of the Pacific
Speaker: Missy Bye, Professor and Department Head, Design, Housing, and Apparel, University of Minnesota
Speaker: Jeff Grabill, Associate Provost for Teaching, Learning, and Technology, Michigan State University
Speaker: Thomas Yen, IoT Lab Technical Director and Instrumentation Innovator-Instructor, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Speaker: Julie Legault, Creative Director, Founder, and CEO, Amino Labs

Higher education and innovation converge to create a unique ecosystem where change is constant and new technologies and applications emerge. Innovation labs located within our institutions cultivate innovation, technology in education, and foster creativity and exploration. Hear from four labs that are driving innovation during this moderated conversation. The University of Wisconsin-Madison IoT Lab engages multidisciplinary student teams in design and innovation projects using IoT technologies. The University of Minnesota Wearable Product Design Center focuses on the intersection between apparel and new technology and improving the way we use, manage, and consume clothing. The Hub for Innovation at Michigan State University leverages the institution's energy and inventiveness by connecting people, designing opportunities, and facilitating innovation. A former student from the MIT Media Lab will share her experience developing and launching Amino Labs, a design driven mini-lab that allows users to carry out a bacterial transformation. Join us for this interactive conversation and be inspired to bring innovation back to your institution.

View the recorded presentation.
2:45 pm - 5:00 pmPost Conference Activity- Tour and Tasting at a MN Brewery
Registration, 4th Floor
Staying over in Minneapolis? Join us for a tour and tasting at a local brewery. The tour will conclude with a stop at the famous Angel Food bakery.