The COLTT 2026 program is currently being finalized. Below is a preview of the workshops and sessions that have been selected for this year's conference.

Aligned with this year's theme, Steer into the Slide, these sessions explore practical approaches to teaching and learning in a rapidly changing higher education landscape. Participants will engage with topics including artificial intelligence, instructional design, accessibility, learning analytics, student engagement, and faculty development through hands-on workshops, interactive discussions, and actionable takeaways.

 

90-Minute Applied Practice Workshops

Building AI-Native Assignments: Teaching Students to Work and Think With AI

Richard Ashmore, University of Colorado Denver

As AI becomes a routine part of student work, assignment design must evolve. Participants will explore a framework for creating AI-native assignments and leave with practical redesign strategies, sample assignment structures, and methods for assessing student thinking when AI is part of the workflow.

 

AI as a Design Partner: Iterative Assignment Redesign for Learning

Magan Calhoun, Colorado State University Pueblo

Explore how AI can support the assignment design process without replacing instructor expertise. Participants will leave with a redesigned assignment, prompt strategies, and a repeatable process for using AI as a course design collaborator.

 

Your Course Has an Accessibility Problem. Let's Fix It Right Now.

Page Durham, GCubed, Inc

Accessibility challenges can be difficult to identify and address. Participants will work directly with course materials and leave with accessibility improvements already underway, a review checklist, and AI-supported techniques for addressing common barriers.

 

Designing Interpretation with Generative AI: Structure and Variability

Shannon Leone, University of Colorado Boulder

Examine how instructions, context, and constraints influence AI-generated interpretations. Participants will examine how interpretive assumptions become embedded in AI systems and leave with assignments that position students as designers and critical evaluators of AI-generated analyses.

 

Designing for AI Literacy: Embedding Responsible Use in Higher Ed Courses

Deborah Lowe, EdD, University of Colorado Denver

Learn how to embed AI literacy into course design through clear expectations, ethical practices, and meaningful learning activities. Participants will leave with sample AI-use guidelines, assignment ideas, and strategies for helping students evaluate AI-generated content critically and responsibly.

 

Creating Custom AI Bots for Your Course with BoodleBox

Elizabeth Miller, BoodleBox

Learn how to design course-specific AI bots that align with your learning goals, disciplinary expectations, and instructional needs. Participants will build and test their own custom AI bot, leave with a reusable design template, and gain a framework for determining when custom AI tools provide value beyond generic AI applications.

 

AI for Research, Save the Human: Building Student Skills

Marina Parenti, Colorado Northwestern Community College

Explore how students can use AI to support research while maintaining critical thinking and academic integrity. Participants will leave with classroom activities, discussion prompts, and guidance for teaching source evaluation, citation practices, and effective AI-assisted research workflows.

 

Referenced, Not Generated: A Hands-On Google NotebookLM Workshop

Michael Stroup, University of Colorado Colorado Springs

Discover how source-grounded AI can support teaching and learning through trusted course materials. Participants will build a NotebookLM workspace and leave with practical workflows for creating study guides, summaries, and instructional resources.

50-Minute Extended Sessions

A Fireside Chat: CU Boulder’s AI Literacy Ambassadors Program

Susan Adams, University of Colorado Boulder

Learn how CU Boulder developed a faculty ambassador model to support AI literacy and peer learning. Participants will leave with program structures, implementation lessons, and ideas for building faculty communities around emerging technologies.

 

AI as a Learning Design Partner: Working Faster with Claude

Jacy Ashford, University of Colorado System

Explore how AI can support instructional design and online course development without replacing human expertise. Participants will examine real-world examples of AI-assisted course redesign and leave with practical workflows, prompt strategies, and guidelines for integrating AI into learning design processes while maintaining instructional quality.
 

 

Relationship Engineering: Designing Better Human-AI Collaboration

Richard Ashmore, University of Colorado Denver

Explore how trust, feedback, roles, and boundaries shape successful human-AI collaboration. Participants will leave with practical frameworks for designing more intentional and effective interactions with AI tools.

 

Accessibility Outliers: Exceptions in Course Design

Zach Clark, Metropolitan State University of Denver

Examine accessibility challenges that fall outside standard solutions and guidelines. Participants will leave with practical approaches, decision-making frameworks, and communication strategies for navigating complex accessibility situations.

 

Designing AI-Integrated Courses in a Hands-On Workshop

Trish Elley, Colorado Technical University

Explore how to intentionally integrate AI into course design while maintaining rigor, engagement, and academic integrity. Participants will leave with a draft implementation plan, assignment ideas, and practical decision-making tools for incorporating AI into their courses.

 

Steering Into the Slide: Mindful Design in Complex Learning Environments

Michelle Colarelli, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Explore how mindful design practices can help educators navigate uncertainty and complexity. Participants will leave with reflection tools, design approaches, and strategies for adapting learning experiences in rapidly changing environments.

 

Scale Up with Less: Tiered ID Support in Resource-Constrained Environments

KC Coburn, Metropolitan State University of Denver

Learn how a tiered instructional design support model can increase faculty support without increasing staffing. Participants will leave with scalable service models, implementation examples, and strategies for prioritizing limited resources.

 

Humanities in an AI World: Accommodating AI to a Human World

Mike Coste

Examine how humanistic values can inform responsible AI adoption in higher education. Participants will leave with discussion frameworks and examples for incorporating creativity, ethics, and critical inquiry into AI-related conversations.

 

Mind Meets Heart: Emotional Intelligence and the Path to Language Mastery

Ismenia de Souza, U.S. Air Force Academy

Discover how emotional intelligence can strengthen language learning, communication, and student engagement. Participants will leave with techniques for fostering self-awareness, motivation, and interpersonal skills in language-learning environments.

 

Game On: Turning Courses into Quests

Catlyn Keenan, Front Range Community College

Discover how gamification can increase motivation, engagement, and student ownership of learning. Participants will leave with examples of quest-based course structures, low-effort gamification techniques, and ideas for incorporating progression, choice, and achievement into their courses.

 

Designing for AI: Turning Knowledge and Values into AI-Responsive Outcomes

Heather Lang, Community College of Aurora

Explore how learning outcomes and assessments can evolve in response to widespread AI use. Participants will leave with strategies for aligning course objectives, assignments, and assessment practices with both AI capabilities and human-centered skills.

 

Cheating Required: Faculty as Students in the Age of Generative AI

Jeff Loats, Metropolitan State University of Denver

Step into the student role and experience how generative AI is changing learning and assessment. Participants will leave with conversation starters, classroom activities, and practical approaches for revisiting academic integrity and assessment design.

 

Lessons Learned from Faculty Opting Out of AI Use in the Classroom

Patrick McGuire, University of Colorado Colorado Springs
Bob Cook, University of Colorado Colorado Springs

Explore faculty perspectives on choosing not to adopt AI and what those decisions reveal about teaching and learning. Participants will leave with policy considerations, reflective questions, and design insights that can inform their own AI-related decisions.

 

Exploring the AI Grief Cycle: Finding a Path Forward for Faculty

Christopher Ostro, University of Colorado Boulder

As AI continues to disrupt higher education, many faculty are grappling with uncertainty, frustration, and change. Participants will explore the emotional and professional impact of AI on teaching and leave with reflection tools, discussion strategies, and practical approaches for navigating their own path forward.

 

The AI Equity Gap: Student Access, Confidence, and Institutional Action

Rori Romero, University of Colorado Boulder

Explore how differences in access, confidence, and support shape student experiences with AI. Participants will leave with equity-focused questions, intervention strategies, and recommendations for fostering more inclusive AI adoption.

 

Using LMS Data to Improve Online Teaching and Learning Practices

Lexi Schlosser, University of Denver           

Learn how LMS analytics can reveal opportunities to improve student engagement and course effectiveness. Participants will leave with specific metrics to monitor, questions to ask of their data, and practical interventions that can be implemented immediately.

 

Who Does the Thinking? Course Design Principles for the AI Classroom

Diane Sieber, University of Colorado Boulder

Explore how course design can promote student thinking and agency in an AI-rich learning environment. Participants will leave with practical design principles, reflection questions, and assignment strategies that make student learning visible.

 

Building a Library of Online Course Shells for Community College Faculty

Kathy Sindt, Colorado Community College System

Learn how the Colorado Community College System developed a shared library of online course shells to support faculty across multiple institutions. Participants will leave with implementation insights, course development standards, and ideas for creating scalable, collaborative course design initiatives.

 

30-Minute Action Snapshots

Five Accessibility Mistakes Faculty Make (And How AI Fixes Them)

Page Durham, GCubed, Inc.

Discover five common accessibility barriers that appear in higher education courses and learn how AI can help address them quickly and effectively. Participants will leave with an accessibility checklist, AI-assisted remediation techniques, and practical strategies they can apply immediately in their own courses.

 

The Implications of Gamification as a Tool in the Classroom

Anastasia Biggs, Colorado Technical University

Explore how gamification can increase student motivation, engagement, and knowledge retention across online, hybrid, and in-person learning environments. Participants will experience examples of gamified activities and leave with tools, resources, and strategies for incorporating game mechanics into their own teaching.

 

Translating AI and Human Competencies into Future-Ready Skills

Artemis Preeshl, Adams State University

Examine how AI is reshaping workforce expectations and the skills students need to succeed. Participants will leave with competency-mapping strategies, examples of future-ready learning outcomes, and ideas for connecting coursework to career readiness.

 

Building Science Culture, Community Engagement, and Library as Laboratory

Mozhdeh Saffari-Parizi, University of Colorado Denver

Discover how academic libraries can serve as community laboratories that promote scientific learning, collaboration, and public engagement. Participants will leave with a practical framework for developing community-centered initiatives and examples of how technology can support inclusive, inquiry-driven learning experiences.

 

Evaluating Experience: Generative AI for Authentic Online Learning

Michael Rupert, Metropolitan State University of Denver

Explore how generative AI can support more authentic and engaging online learning experiences. Participants will leave with examples, evaluation criteria, and practical ideas for incorporating AI into online course activities.