Penn State University

Events


Schreyer Institute programs are for anyone at Penn State who has an instructional role or is preparing for a future one. Our participants are typically faculty, graduate students, and postdocs. Academic administrators, instructional designers, staff members, and undergraduates in instructional roles are also welcome.

Leveraging Top Hat to Promote Student Engagement from the Start of the Term
Facilitated by Deena Levy, Associate Research Professor and Sherry Rice, Faculty Engagement Specialist, University Libraries, and Teaching & Learning with Technology and Sumi Voora, Top Hat and Susie Liebschner, Top Hat
Tuesday, 8/11/2026, 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Deena Levy Portrait Sherry Rice

Join Teaching and Learning with Technology, the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence, and Top Hat for an interactive session on driving student engagement from day one. Faculty will explore practical Classroom Assessment Techniques (CATs) and collaborative learning strategies, then discover how to easily execute them using Top Hat’s polling and interactive features. Through faculty examples and hands-on design time, faculty will leave with actionable ideas, an engagement strategy tailored to achieving student learning goals. Participants will also leave with a clear understanding of the resources available to support engaging, student-centered teaching.

Registration Link

Registration will close and applicants will receive a Zoom link approximately 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Put It Into Practice
Facilitated by Jonathan Aragon, Research Faculty
Tuesday, 8/11/2026, 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Rider Building Room 315
Portrait Jonathan Aragon

Put It Into Practice is a three-touchpoint faculty development experience focused on how teaching unfolds in real time, not just how it is planned on paper. Rather than redesigning an entire course, the program centers on a single, manageable class session from the first two weeks of the Fall semester. Faculty workshop that session with peers in a supportive environment, implement it in their own classroom, and return to reflect on what happened.

The Three-Touchpoint Arc:

1. Pre-semester workshop 

2. Classroom implementation 

3. Follow-up session to reflect on how it went 

Registration Link

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Designing Teaching to Navigate Challenging Topics
Facilitated by Beate Brunow, Associate Director and Associate Research Professor and Chas Brua, Associate Research Professor
Wednesday, 8/12/2026, 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Via Zoom

Portrait Beate BrunowPortrait Chas Brua

In this interactive session, we'll explore how to design effective teaching proactively for challenging topics. We’ll focus on the level of structure that is needed to decrease the likelihood of hot moments in our learning environments. Despite all planning, we might still experience unanticipated tensions, and we'll also examine concrete language for responding to disruptions in the moment.  

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Teaching Large Classes
Facilitated by Logan Harvey, Research Faculty
Monday, 8/17/2026, 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Logan Harvey

Teaching a large class can make it harder to communicate clearly, build relationships, manage feedback, and maintain a sense of instructor presence. In this workshop, participants will explore practical strategies for designing larger classes that are structured, manageable, and still human-centered. We will discuss ways to reduce friction before class, build connection and student voice during class, and use scalable feedback and assessment systems after class. Participants will leave with concrete approaches they can adapt immediately, such as predictable course structures, small-group learning strategies, whole-class feedback, and intentional uses of technology.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Building Your Classroom Discussion Repertoire: Writing as a Tool for Dialogue
Facilitated by Beate Brunow, Associate Director and Associate Research Professor
Monday, 8/17/2026, 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Rider Building Room 315
Portrait Beate Brunow

When writing precedes or structures conversation, it can lower the barriers to participation, surface a wider range of perspectives, and give students time to think before they speak. In this session of our workshop series on “Building your Classroom Discussion Repertoire”, participants will explore how writing-based strategies, ranging from brief reflective prompts to structured written exchanges, can serve as powerful on-ramps to richer classroom dialogue. Participants will experience several techniques, examine the pedagogical intentions behind each, and leave with strategies ready to adapt for their own courses and disciplines.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

“How do I know they get it?: Assessing student learning”
Facilitated by Deena Levy, Associate Research Professor and Heidi Watson-Held, Instructional Designer
Monday, 8/17/2026, 01:00 p.m. - 01:45 p.m.
Portrait Deena Levy Portrait Heidi A. Watson-Held

This is a closed event customized for the requesting department. If you would like a similar event for your department/program or graduate student group, please contact SITE@psu.edu.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Provost Endorsement: Inclusive and Equitable Teaching
Facilitated by Beate Brunow, Associate Director and Associate Research Professor
Tuesday, 8/18/2026 to Tuesday, 10/27/2026, Asynchronous
Canvas
Portrait Beate Brunow

This endorsement engages experienced instructors in implementing inclusive and equitable teaching in their current or upcoming course(s). This program assumes participants already understand the need for inclusive and equitable practices. Eligible participants must have teaching responsibilities in the current or upcoming academic year so that they can most immediately benefit from the content of the program by applying program concepts to their teaching. Participants will revise a syllabus or assignments for future use, reflect on their teaching based on student feedback and peer interactions, and consider how they might cultivate belonging in their courses. Once participants have registered, they will be added to a Canvas course and connected with a SITE faculty consultant.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Preparing your Penn State Syllabus
Facilitated by Deena Levy, Associate Research Professor and Sherry Rice, Faculty Engagement Specialist, University Libraries, and Teaching & Learning with Technology
Tuesday, 8/18/2026, 10:30 p.m. - 11:45 p.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Deena Levy Portrait Sherry Rice
TLT and the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence (SITE) are hosting a session focused on supporting faculty in the preparation of their Penn State Syllabus. It will review PSU syllabus requirements and recommendations, best practices for communicating course content on syllabi, and example syllabus language. We will also discuss strategies for leveraging Canvas to share your syllabus.

Registration Link.

Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.
Developing AI Literacy in Students + Optional 30-Minute Design Sprint
Facilitated by Logan Harvey, Research Faculty and Chas Brua, Associate Research Professor
Tuesday, 8/18/2026, 11:00 p.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Logan Harvey Portrait Chas Brua

As generative AI tools like ChatGPT become increasingly available, students need a critical understanding of how these tools shape thinking, creativity, and scholarship. In this workshop, we will use Penn State’s AI Literacy Framework to identify ways to introduce AI concepts in your courses and intentionally design learning activities that support students in evaluating when, how, and why to use AI responsibly. Includes an optional 30-minute design sprint at the end.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Preparing your Penn State Syllabus
Facilitated by Deena Levy, Associate Research Professor and Sherry Rice, Faculty Engagement Specialist, University Libraries, and Teaching & Learning with Technology
Tuesday, 8/18/2026, 01:30 p.m. - 2:45 p.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Deena Levy Portrait Sherry Rice
TLT and the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence (SITE) are hosting a session focused on supporting faculty in the preparation of their Penn State Syllabus. It will review PSU syllabus requirements and recommendations, best practices for communicating course content on syllabi, and example syllabus language. We will also discuss strategies for leveraging Canvas to share your syllabus.

Registration Link.

Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.
Provost Endorsement: Universal Design for Learning
Facilitated by Mary Ann Tobin, Associate Research Professor
Wednesday, 8/19/2026 to Friday, 4/30/2027
Canvas - OL 3600 and Teach to Reach with Universal Design for Learning

 Mary Ann Tobin (Portrait)

This Provost Endorsement is a partnership between The Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence (SITE) and World Campus Online Faculty Development (WCOFD).
   
It begins with an asynchronous self-guided course, OL 3600: Universal Design for Learning (UDL), in which participants explore the rationale and research that supports designing learning experiences with UDL, read scenarios about UDL applications, and reflect on ways to apply UDL to their own instructional practices. OL 3600 is available throughout the calendar year.
   
Those who complete OL 3600 will be invited to enroll in Teach to Reach with UDL, a four-week, asynchronous, instructor-led online course offered by SITE, where participants draw upon their own teaching or learning design experience and their existing understanding of UDL to generate and respond to discussions, create a UDL-inspired instructional activity, and provide feedback on their peers’ activities. Teach to Reach is offered in spring and fall semesters.
   
Current Penn State faculty and postdocs can earn Provost Endorsements. Provost Endorsements are not available to Penn State graduate students.
   
Completion of both OL 3600 and Teach to Reach within one year are required to earn this endorsement.
   
Email Mary Ann Tobin at matobin@psu.edu with questions about this endorsement or our UDL courses.
   

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Course
Facilitated by Mary Ann Tobin, Associate Research Professor
Wednesday, 8/19/2026 to Thursday, 12/31/2026, Asychronous
Canvas -- World Campus Faculty Development Canvas Course
Portrait Mary Ann Tobin

In this free, non-credit, self-directed, and entirely asynchronous course, participants explore the rationale and research that supports designing learning experiences with UDL, read scenarios about UDL applications, and reflect on ways to apply UDL to their own instructional practices. This course is open to faculty of any rank or status, teaching assistants, and post-doctoral instructors and members of the learning design community.

Register anytime at the following link: https://psu.catalog.instructure.com/browse/wcfd/courses/ol-360001-universal-design-for-learning-2026 . You will have 90 days to complete the course.

This course is a collaboration between the Schreyer Institute and World Campus Online Faculty Development.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Assessing Student Learning
Facilitated by Mary Ann Tobin, Associate Research Professor
Wednesday, 8/19/2026, 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Mary Ann Tobin

In this webinar, participants will discover the types of student learning assessments and begin to consider how they might effectively measure learning in their courses.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Rethinking Assessment in the Age of AI + Optional 30-Minute Design Sprint
Facilitated by Logan Harvey, Research Faculty and Chas Brua, Associate Research Professor
Wednesday, 8/19/2026, 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Logan Harvey Portrait Chas Brua

The rise of generative AI is challenging traditional models of assessment. In this workshop, we will explore a framework of practical strategies for building resilient assessments that withstand evolving AI capabilities as well as assessments that integrate AI in ways that support learning. Includes an optional 30-minute design sprint at the end.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Teaching AI Literacy Without Using AI
Facilitated by Logan Harvey, Research Faculty
Thursday, 8/20/2026, 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Logan Harvey

AI literacy does not have to begin with a chatbot. In this workshop, participants will use Penn State’s AI Literacy Framework as a guide to explore how to teach foundational AI literacy concepts without requiring students to use generative AI tools directly. We will consider activities that help students examine how AI systems work, where they show up in everyday life, how they shape knowledge and decision-making, and what ethical questions they raise. Participants will leave with practical strategies for helping students develop the critical judgment needed to evaluate AI tools, whether or not those tools are used in the course.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Assessing Student Learning
Facilitated by Mary Ann Tobin, Associate Research Professor
Thursday, 8/20/2026, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Mary Ann Tobin

In this webinar, participants will discover the types of student learning assessments and begin to consider how they might effectively measure learning in their courses.

Registration will close 1 hour before the event starts. Registrants will receive a Zoom link at least 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

TA 101: Survive and Thrive
Facilitated by Chas Brua, Associate Research Professor
Friday, 8/21/2026, 1:15 p.m. - 2:15 p.m.
Portrait Chas Brua

Teaching assistants have a crucial role—and one that can be challenging. In this interactive workshop, we’ll explore ways that TAs can navigate their roles to meet the needs of undergraduate learners, faculty, and TAs’ own professional development.

This is a closed event customized for the requesting department. If you would like a similar event for your department/program or graduate student group, please contact SITE@psu.edu.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Building Your Classroom Discussion Repertoire: Student-Centered Discussions
Facilitated by Beate Brunow, Associate Director and Associate Research Professor
Monday, 8/24/2026, 2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Rider Building Room 315
Portrait Beate Brunow
What would it look like if students, not the instructor, drove the conversation? Student-Centered Discussion© (SCD) is a structured, flexible model that helps students engage in productive, generative dialogue about course content. In this session of our series on “Building your Classroom Discussion Repertoire”, participants will explore the three foundational components of the SCD model: creating a classroom climate where students feel safe to participate and take intellectual risks; developing the discussion skills students need and implementing the practical tools and processes that make student-led discussion work. Participants will experience SCD, examine the pedagogical intentions, and leave with strategies ready to adapt for their own courses and disciplines.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.
TA 101: Survive and Thrive
Facilitated by Chas Brua, Associate Research Professor and Linh Le, Graduate Instructional Consultant
Wednesday, 8/26/2026, 10:10 p.m. - 11:10 p.m.
Via Zoom
Portrait Chas Brua

Teaching assistants have a crucial role—and one that can be challenging. In this interactive workshop, we’ll share advice to help TAs navigate their role to meet the needs of undergraduate learners, faculty, and TAs’ own professional development.

Registration will close and applicants will receive a Zoom link approximately 1 hour before the event.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.

Building Your Classroom Discussion Repertoire: Structured Discussion Activities
Facilitated by Beate Brunow, Associate Director and Associate Research Professor
Monday, 8/31/2026, 2:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Rider Building Room 315
Portrait Beate Brunow
Structured discussion activities can create more equitable participation, surface richer ideas, and help students develop discussion as a transferable skill. In this session of our workshop series on “Building your Classroom Discussion Repertoire”, participants will experience and examine several structured formats, including activities that use sequential turn-taking, perspective taking, and collaborative questioning to move conversations beyond surface-level exchange. We will also explore how to help students reflect on their own participation and become more intentional contributors to classroom dialogue. Participants will experience several techniques, examine the pedagogical intentions behind each, and leave with strategies ready to adapt for their own courses and disciplines.

Penn State encourages persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the access provided, please contact the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at SITE@psu.edu or call 814-863-2599 at least 2 weeks prior to the start of the program to allow sufficient time to effectively meet your access needs.
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