UI faculty and staff recently attended the 2017 Unizin Innovations Summit: Changing for the Future of Higher Education in Denver, CO. The theme for this year’s Innovations Summit was “How we can move forward together to create better digital teaching and learning environments by implementing important organizational changes?”

Summit attendees included members from most of the 22 Unizin member schools as well as schools that are exploring what Unizin has to offer. The University of Iowa was well represented at the conference, and UI staff and faculty collaborated with colleagues from across the Unizin consortium to offer insight into how Unizin tools and activities are moving our vision for student success forward.

Faculty and staff at The University of Iowa presented the following topics:

Unizin in Action – Maggie Jesse, Senior Director, Office of Teaching, Learning & Technology, (with the University of Indiana, The Ohio State University, Penn State University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison)

Flipping & Canvas – Professor of Finance Jon Garfinkel, Tippie College of Business

Early Lessons from High-Enrollment Course Transformation – Maggie Jesse (with Sarah Miller, Leader of Faculty Engagement and Strategic Learning Technology Consulting, DoIT Academic Technology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison)

Ch.. Ch.. Ch.. Changes. You Want Me to Do What? – Annette Beck, OTLT Director of Enterprise Instructional Services (with colleagues from the University of Michigan, the University of Nebraska, Indiana University and Penn State University)

Leveraging the UDW and LTI Integrations to Meet Instructors’ Needs at the University of Iowa – Sam Van Horne, OTLT Director of Assessment, and Ross Miller, ITS Application Developer, with contributions from OTLT Assessment Research Assistant, Anna Smith

D2L to Canvas Course Migration (Speed Session) – Ross Miller, ITS Application Developer

A Digital Learning Innovation: Success at Iowa – Vicky Maloy, OTLT IT Support Consultant

Garfinkel presented his flipped classroom model to an enthusiastic Summit audience. He was an early supporter of the UI’s membership in Unizin because he views Unizin as a “who’s who of major state institutions of higher learning who, like the University of Iowa, are focused on helping students achieve the best learning outcomes.

“I truly believe that Unizin’s specific focus on data analytics is the right strategy for us to provide insight to students on how best to achieve success. I’m pleased that Iowa—as a founding member—is at the table to influence these discussions,” Garfinkel says.

Also attending the conference from The University of Iowa were Associate Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Amaury Lendasse and Expert Librarian Ericka Raber. Both Lendasse and Raber have been actively involved in our Unizin activities on campus.