Author: Lynch, Caroline

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Political Science Workshop

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On Monday, March 30th, our current cohort of Political Science instructors connected virtually for their annual professional development experience! Attendees were given the opportunity to hear about newly emerging research in the field from four junior Political Science faculty members, and later got to engage in a tutorial for utilizing UConn Library resources to support their ECE students with a representative from the UConn Library staff. We extend our thanks to co-faculty coordinators Oksan Bayulgen, Ph.D. and Evan Perkoski, Ph.D., for their continued collaboration with ECE, and their hard work to provide such engaging professional development experiences for our instructors!

UConn POLS courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE English Workshop

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On Friday, March 27th, ECE welcomed our English instructors to the UConn Stamford campus for our second professional development conference for the discipline this school year! Around 40 instructors convened for a packed day which included three workshops: a syllabus renovation session, a text lab, and a student work diagnostic. This allowed them ample opportunity to work collaboratively with one another, as well as to coordinate with our ECE English faculty coordinators, to share teaching strategies and discuss challenges and opportunities for future success! Many thanks as always to our ECE English team, Scott Campbell, Ph.D., Tom Doran, Ph.D., and Jackie Donaldson, for their tireless work to support one of our largest ECE disciplines! We can’t wait for our next English event.

UConn ENGL courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Library Media Specialists Training

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On Thursday, March 26th, UConn ECE and our partners from the UConn Library welcomed our ECE library media specialists for their annual spring training session. A team of UConn librarians joined us for a variety of engaging sessions, a summary of which can be found below!

Accessing Newspapers and News Resources through the UConn Library John Rendeiro, Student Success and Engagement Librarian
Engaged by Design: Thoughts on Creating High-Impact Library Instruction Erica Charis-Molling, Instructional Design and Learning Librarian
Research and Subject Specialists at the UConn Library: an Overview Richard Bleiler, Collections and Humanities Librarian
Open Forum for ECE Library Media Specialists Anna Twiddy, Student Success and Engagement Librarian, and Kate Fuller, Head of Reference and Student Success Services

For those who missed this semester’s event, all training resources and recordings will be uploaded to the ECE LibGuide on the UConn Library website (which we have linked below for your easy access). These trainings are always meaningful and successful thanks to the tireless efforts of Student Success and Engagement Librarian Anna Twiddy. Thank you, Anna, for your continued support for our program and its members. We look forward to our in-person LMS retreat coming up this summer!

UConn Library resources offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE American Studies & Maritime Studies Workshop

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On Thursday, March 26th, a group of our ECE American Studies and Maritime Studies instructors joined together at the New Britain Museum of American Art for an exciting and collaborative professional development experience! Through a variety of group activities, a guided tour of the museum, and organic conversations, instructors were asked to ponder the ways that they might integrate the exploration of art into their existing teaching strategies. How does the construction of an image reflect an artist’s social environment? How do maps reflect politics and social conditions, depicting the complex journey an individual undergoes to find a place to call home?

All in all, this was a transformative and hands-on day for all involved, and we extend our sincerest thanks to the staff at the NBMAA, as well as faculty coordinators Karon McGovern (AMST) and Matthew Cieslowski (MAST) for their efforts to create this experience! We are happy to share some photos from Thursday in this post as well.

UConn AMST & MAST courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Biology Workshop

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On Tuesday, March 24th, UConn ECE hosted three professional development experiences for our instructors, including an event which welcomed nearly 50 ECE Biology instructors to the UConn Storrs Campus! The keynote address for the day was entitled “Same as it Ever was, prior to Biomineralization”. Additionally, instructors got to experience a presentation from third year Biomedical Engineering undergraduate student Tyrone Kennedy, who has conducted fascinating research while at UConn! We thank faculty coordinator Tom Abbott, Ph.D. for his efforts to make this event happen, and for his continued support of our ECE Biology community!

UConn BIOL courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE German Workshop

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On Tuesday, March 24th, UConn ECE hosted three professional development experiences for our instructors, including an event geared towards supporting our German instructors. Faculty coordinator Anke Finger, Ph.D. developed an engaging session for attendees, which included a discussion surrounding the ongoing process in the CT State Senate to enact SB 132, a bill intended to establish the Connecticut-Germany Trade Commission. As a component of this discussion, instructors were informed of a number of German companies based in CT that would benefit from such legislation. Additionally, attendees were given the opportunity to learn more about the Seal of Bilingualism, through discussion and a Q&A session. Thank you, Anke, for your continued work to support our ECE German community, and thanks to all instructors for your thoughtful engagement with this event!

UConn GERM courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Digital Media & Design Workshop

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On Tuesday, March 24th, UConn ECE hosted three professional development experiences for our instructors, including a virtual session for our Digital Media and Design (DMD) group. Thanks to the work of faculty coordinator Kenneth Thompson, M.S., our instructors were given the opportunity to engage with two exciting sessions! First, a workshop surrounding generative AI literacy was facilitated by Zhenzhen Qi, EdD, where instructors engaged in the process of building a “Tamagotchi”-style virtual pet through AI Large Language Models; next, Kelly Dennis, Ph.D. from UConn’s DMD & American Studies departments conducted a session surrounding Cinematic Storytelling, a history of film through filmmaking techniques like editing, cinematography, and mise-en-scène. We extend our sincere thanks to both guest contributors, as well as our attendees, for their willingness to learn and engage with one another during this event! We look forward to next year’s session.

UConn DMD courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Educational Psychology Workshop

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Thursday, March 19th was an exciting day for our ECE Educational Psychology instructors, who met virtually for their annual professional development experience. Attendees of the event got to hear from Patricia Wood, author of Lottery (2008) and Cupidity (2014). Wood’s Ph.D. research delved into diversity and access for disabled individuals, themes which also emerge in her fictional work. Following her presentation, instructors were given time to engage in open discussion with one another, about their own classroom experiences as well as Wood’s work. This was an incredibly meaningful opportunity for our ECE EPSY community, and we sincerely thank faculty coordinator Joseph Madaus, Ph.D. for his work to support this group of instructors.

UConn EPSY and other education courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Allied Health Workshop

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Our ECE Allied Health Instructors met for their annual professional development conference on Monday, March 16th. Attendees were welcomed by the Department Head for UConn Allied Health Sciences, Justin Nash, Ph.D., before engaging in a discussion surrounding key challenges in their ECE courses, sharing teaching strategies and favorite classroom activities to foster a culture of collaboration and peer support. Many thanks to faculty coordinator Bruce Blanchard, Ph.D. for his commitment to creating valuable professional development opportunities for our Allied Health Instructors.

UConn AH courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Animal Sciences Workshop

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ECE Animal Science Instructors convened on the Storrs campus on Thursday, March 12th. Instructors heard a presentation entitled “Artificial Intelligence, not Augmented Intelligence”, from UConn Engineering professor Arash Zaghi, Ph.D., then engaged in discussions surrounding the role of AI in their own teaching environments, before ending the day with a trip to the UConn Dairy Bar! Many thanks to ECE Faculty Coordinators Amy Safran, Ph.D., and Jenifer Nadeau, Ph.D., for their continued support for this group of ECE instructors!

UConn ANSC courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Earth Sciences Workshop

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Wednesday, March 11 was a busy day in ECE! We hosted three professional development conferences, including a virtual session for our Earth Sciences instructors. Hosted by ECE faculty coordinator Robert Thorson, Ph.D., the event gave instructors the opportunity to discuss geoscience communications, through engagement with three recent nationally published articles that illustrate how Earth Science Education topics are communicated in the media. The articles are linked below, along with some context from Dr. Thorson, for those interested in reading them for yourselves!

Determinism – The Atlantic. November 2025. Invited essay Why Concord? by Robert A Gross and Robert M. Thorson for the Special Edition, The Unfinished Revolution. The key idea for discussion is environmental determinism; the extent to which the landscape controls outcomes that become history.

Language – The Washington Post. February 9, 2026. Column by Andrew Van Dam titled What separates a lake from a pond? What about creeks and rivers? He quotes me as an expert and links to my work. The key idea for discussion is that the words we use for the same thing depend on our mélange of vernacular cultures, in this case bodies of water that are flowing (fluvial) and stationary or slowly moving (lentic) water.

Spirit – The Wall Street Journal. January 16, 2026. Mineral Wisdom, an essay-review of the book The Whispers of Rock: The Stories that Stone Tells About Our World and Our Lives by Anjana Khatwa. The key ideas for earth science educators are to engage the non-cognitive feelings students have about rocks and fossils in order to enhance the cognitive learning of Earth Science.

Thank you to all who attended, and to Dr. Thorson for his continued support of our ECE instructors! We are excited for the next event!

UConn ERTH courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Spanish Workshop

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Wednesday, March 11 was a busy day in ECE! We hosted three professional development conferences, including one for our Spanish instructors. A group of 75 instructors convened in the Student Union, for a keynote address from Dolores Juan-Moreno, Associate Teaching Professor of Spanish at Clark University. The talk centered around an intergenerational story of community engagement and experiential learning. This was a welcome opportunity to bring many of our Spanish instructors together to learn and talk together, and we extend our thanks to faculty coordinators Eduardo Urios-Aparisi, Ph.D. and Celines Villalba Rosado, Ph.D., for the work they did to make this experience a memorable one! We look forward to next year’s event.

UConn SPAN courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE American Sign Language Workshop

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Wednesday, March 11 was a busy day in ECE! We hosted three professional development conferences, including one for our American Sign Language instructors. The day was jam-packed with content, beginning with an overview of UConn’s ASL opportunities and resources. Additionally, instructors had the opportunity to engage in a Teacher Talk hosted by Mike Schlang from the UConn ASL faculty, and a student panel surrounding former ASL experiences in their high schools. Finally, Kristine Hall from Los Angeles’ Pierce College delivered a keynote address surrounding the Signing Naturally curriculum.

Thank you, as always, to faculty coordinator Linda Pelletier, Ph.D., as well as all guest contributors, for making this session a day to remember! We look forward to next year’s event already.

UConn ASLN courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE French Workshop

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On March 9th, 2026, ECE held its annual professional development conference for certified French instructors. The event included discussions on Kettly Mars’ “Laquelle de nous était Eurydice”. Additionally, attendees conversed about the role of artificial intelligence in the service of education. A full day’s agenda is available in French below:

9h Mohamedou Moustapha: L’éducation en Mauritanie.

9h30 Fadi A. Elsaid: L’héritage visuel de l’Encyclopédie : La représentation des arts et métiers dans la Description de l’Égypte entre empirisme et impérialisme

10h10 Emmanuel Buzay: L’IA au service de l’enseignement : outils, pratiques et retours d’expérience

11h30 Ambassadeurs husky, updates and feedback.

Many thanks to Faculty Coordinator Florence Marsal, Ph. D. for her continued support for our ECE French community, and to all attendees for their engagement at the event. We look forward to connecting with many of you at the next event as well!

UConn FREN courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE History 1400 Workshop

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On Wednesday, February 25th, our ECE History 1400 instructors gathered for their annual professional development experience under the guidance of ECE Faculty Coordinator Thomas Maulucci, Ph.D. Discussions were lively, covering topics including Marxist critiques of political economy, the Protestant ethic and spirit of Capitalism, the British Industrial Revolution, and economic divergence between Europe and Asia.

Many thanks to Dr. Maulucci and all of the workshop attendees for making this a fulfilling day! We look forward to the next time our History 1400 instructors join us on campus.

UConn HIST courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Asian & Asian American Studies Workshop

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On Wednesday, February 11th, our ECE Asian and Asian American Studies instructors convened virtually for an enriching and topical discussion surrounding birthright citizenship in the United States. Please engage with the event overview below:

Teaching the 14th Amendment & Birthright Citizenship: Making Sense of the Political Moment Through Asian American Histories

Birthright citizenship—a cornerstone of the 14th Amendment—is once again under attack. In partnership with Asian Law Caucus, this workshop delved into the history and ongoing relevance of the 14th Amendment, exploring how Asian Americans have played a pivotal role in shaping its legacy. Together, we examined landmark moments including the Chinese Exclusion Act, United States v. Wong Kim Ark, and Executive Order 14160, and reflected on the broader question: Who gets to be an American citizen? Educators left with historical context, up-to-date legal insights, and ready-to-use resources to teach this critical topic in their classrooms.

Guest Contributor Bios

Sulynn Miao, Teach Asian American Stories

Sulynn Miao has a background in education and mental health, with a focus on youth, identity, and intergenerational healing. As Curriculum & Program Manager at AAPI New Jersey, she develops educational resources, community programs, and professional development centered on Asian and Pacific Islander histories. She is currently pursuing an M.A. in Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University.

Kimberly Leung, Asian Law Caucus

Kim Leung is a civil rights attorney with experience in both state and federal courts. She is part of the legal team challenging Executive Order 14160 in New Hampshire Indonesian Community Support v. Donald J. Trump, a case defending birthright citizenship. Kim is a staff attorney at the Asian Law Caucus, where she works with community partners on voting rights, civic engagement, and language access. Previously, she served as an Assistant Attorney General in Illinois. Based in Chicago, Kim also serves on the boards of the Asian American Bar Association of Greater Chicago and the Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community.

All of us at ECE extend our sincere thanks to the workshop’s attendees, guest contributors, and faculty coordinator Jason Chang, Ph.D. for their tireless commitment to providing enriching educational opportunities to ECE instructors and students alike.

We look forward to the next workshop already!

UConn AAAS courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Kinesiology Workshop

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On Wednesday, January 28th, we hosted our annual ECE Kinesiology professional development workshop, in collaboration with faculty coordinator Allison MacKenzie, MS. The event was focused on providing instructors an opportunity to give feedback on the course, and share strategies to make improvements for future semesters. Additionally, they discussed a variety of fitness and addiction resources, including ideas for research and activities to integrate into the learning module. This was a welcome opportunity for our instructors to be in community with one another, and share strategies for each others’ classroom concerns. We can’t wait for the next one!

UConn KINS courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Civil Engineering Workshop

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On Thursday, January 15th, our ECE Civil Engineering instructors met for a virtual professional development discussion, facilitated by faculty coordinator Sarira Motaref, P.E.. Attendees engaged in two discussion sessions, focusing on AI integration into Engineering courses and Neuroinclusive teaching practices, respectively. We are grateful to all who attended, and look forward to the next opportunity to connect with our CE instructors!

UConn Civil Engineering courses offered through Early College Experience.

Spring 2026 UConn ECE Plant Science and Landscape Architecture Workshop

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Welcome to 2026, ECE Family! We kicked off the new year with our annual Plant Science and Landscape Architecture professional development experience. This year, PSLA instructors were graciously invited to attend the 2026 UConn Extension Vegetable and Small Fruit Grower’s Conference, where they were able to attend a variety of learning sessions, observe research poster presentations, and network with other educators and individuals from the agricultural services industry. We extend our thanks to the UConn College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources, and ECE Faculty Coordinator Julia Kuzovkina, Ph.D., for their efforts to share this experience with our certified instructors!

UConn PSLA (formerly SPSS) courses offered through Early College Experience.

Fall 2025 UConn ECE Math Workshop

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Our final professional development workshop for 2025 was our virtual ECE Math event, held on December 15th. As has become a tradition of sorts for our math team, instructors convened for a morning meeting which allowed them the chance to break into groups (organized by the primary math course that they teach) and discuss the current state of affairs for their classrooms and the course as a whole. We extend our thanks to faculty coordinator Anthony Rizzie, Ph.D. and assistant Andrew Jaramillo, Ph.D. for their continued support for our ECE Math instructors and students.

Happy New Year, ECE family! We are excited to continue to collaborate with you throughout 2026.

UConn MATH courses offered through Early College Experience.

Fall 2025 UConn ECE Human Development & Family Sciences Workshop

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Tuesday, December 9th marked our final in-person professional development workshop for 2025! 25 certified Human Development & Family Sciences instructors convened on the UConn Storrs campus to hear guest addresses and engage in roundtable discussions surrounding issues of Artifical Intelligence usage in the classroom. We were joined in the morning by Erica Charis-Molling, an Instructional Design and Student Success Librarian at UConn, who presented a virtual AI literacy course that she designed for UConn students, which provides a detailed and fascinating overview of AI ethics and citation, and the impacts of various types of AI usage on learning outcomes. Later on, Tina Huey, Ph.D. and Xiaochen Liu, Ph.D. from the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning’s department of Faculty Development facilitated a conversation surrounding AI usage in the college classroom. We are grateful to all our guest contributors, as well as our attendees and faculty coordinators, Drs. Shannon Weaver and Brian Chapman, for their engagement and continued support of our ECE community!

On behalf of all of us at ECE, we wish you a happy and restful holiday season, and we will see you back on campus in 2026!

UConn HDFS courses offered through Early College Experience.

Fall 2025 UConn ECE English Conference

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Our largest event this semester was our Fall English Conference on November 21st, which boasted over 100 attendees from high schools across the state. The theme of this year’s conference was Speaking Together: Discourse as Literacy, and throughout the day instructors were encouraged to “explore activities and strategies that put students in conversation with each other, hone their critical thinking skills, and build their confidence as consumers and producers of knowledge”. There were several panel sessions throughout the day, which focused on themes including reading and revision, authentic discussion, and multi-modality. 

We extend our sincere thanks to faculty coordinator Scott Campbell, Ph.D., and Jackie Donaldson, Ph.D. student in the English Department, for their collaboration and efforts in making this a memorable experience for our instructors!

UConn English Courses available through Early College Experience.

Fall 2025 UConn ECE Music Workshop

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On Thursday, November 13th, 30 of our ECE Music instructors gathered for a virtual professional development workshop. Attendees were joined by Justin McManus, the Director of Athletic Bands at the University of California, Los Angeles, for a guest lecture and Q & A session. Many thanks to faculty coordinator Shannon McAllister for her continued support for our ECE instructors and community! We look forward to the next workshop.

UConn Music Courses available through Early College Experience.

Fall 2025 UConn ECE Library Media Specialist Training

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On Thursday of last week, ECE hosted our Library Media Specialists for their semiannual training, thanks to the organization and efforts of Anna Twiddy, Student Success & Engagement Librarian. As always, we were joined by a number of librarians from the UConn Library who shared their expertise in four unique sessions. Details are below!

Session Contributor
Student Search Success Tips: Demystifying the Library Website Ery Caswell, Student Success & Engagement Librarian
Helping Students Transition to College Writing Expectations John Rendeiro, Student Success & Engagement Librarian
Finding Primary Sources Laura Smith, Archivist
Leveraging the Library’s AI Literacy Basics Modules in HuskyCT Erica Charis-Molling, Instructional Design & Learning Librarian

Thank you to all of our contributors, and for those of you who were able to attend!

To access information from the training, as well as a number of other helpful resources, please visit the ECE LibGuide (linked here: https://guides.lib.uconn.edu/ECE)

We will see you in March 2026 for another virtual training event!

Fall 2025 UConn ECE Sociology Workshop

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On Friday, November 7th, our ECE Sociology Instructors convened on the UConn Hartford Campus for their annual professional development conference. Instructors were given the opportunity to engage in a lively discussion of current successes and challenges in their classroom, followed by a presentation of exemplar assignments by instructors Mike Barile and Karen Prager, and faculty coordinator Ingrid Semaan. We extend our thanks to our contributors, and to Ingrid for her continued efforts to support our ECE instructors and community!

Sociology (SOCI) courses available through UConn Early College Experience.