Pedagogy Day
Thursday, March 12, 2026
Equity in AI
Register Now
About the Event
Welcome to Pedagogy Day 2026, a one-day conference hosted at Eastern Illinois University. The purpose of this event is to cultivate a space where faculty and instructors can explore, share, and engage with proven effective practices for teaching and learning at the university level.
As AI tools become deeply embedded in academic, professional, and everyday life, educator are increasingly called to help learners navigate this landscape with confidence, integrity, and critical awareness
The theme for Pedagogy Day 2026 is Equity in AI, which invites us to consider how we can understand and use these technologies more thoughtfully, communicate their strengths and limitations, and design learning experiencing that prepare learners equitably for a rapidly evolving future. Our keynote speaker, Dr. Kevin Hallinan, has been a leading voice on the role of AI in engineering education and on developing instructional approaches that foster ethical, equitable, and responsible technology use.
Keynote Speaker
Professor Emeritus, University of Dayton, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; and Director of Impact Mining, Saynota.io.
Dr. Hallinan's work at Synota.io is on advancing investment in solar micro-grids/coupled with AI facilitated education to enable productive use of energy in unpowered communities in sub-Saharan Africa. His background is eclectic, despite serving as professor at different levels for 36 years. In his early career, he did research for NASA which culminated in an experiment that was conducted on the Space Shuttle in 1996. He then led the development of the New Engineer Program at UD, which emphasized engineering for social impact. A core feature of this is the UD Ethos program, which for 20+ years has provided students at UD an opportunity to do real engineering in support of non-profits in Latin and South America, Africa and Asia. He also was the founding director of the UD Renewable and Clean Energy Program in 2010.
Always interested in testing new approaches to education, he has worked on experimental courses combining art and theater with engineering and in other transdisciplinary learning opportunities. Moreover, his recent teaching emphasized big data, machine learning and natural language processing; and when ChatGPT hit the pavement, he was off and running with experiments to test its place in education.
Since leaving his role as an educator at UD, his focus has been equity in AI.
Tentative Schedule
Time
|
Session
|
Location
|
| 9:00 - 9:15 a.m. |
Welcome and Overview |
Doudna Recital Hall |
| 9:10 - 10:10 a.m. |
Keynote: Equity in AI
Dr. Kevin Hallinan |
Doudna Recital Hall |
| 10:10 - 10:15 a.m. |
Break |
|
| 10:15 - 10:25 a.m. |
Exploring the Tensions Around AI in the Classroom Sandbox
Dr. Terri Fredrick and Daniel Bobie |
Doudna Recital Hall |
| 10:30 - 10:40 a.m. |
Teaching with AI Agents: How AI and Real-World Simulations are
Transforming Marketing, Sales Training, and Product Development
Evan Kubicek |
Doudna Recital Hall |
| 10:45 - 10:55 a.m. |
Durable Skills by Design: Teaching Transferable Competencies
Without Adding More Content
Dr. Gabe Grant |
Doudna Recital Hall |
| 11:00 - 11:10 a.m. |
Partnering with AI to Foster Classroom Assessment
Dr. Jeffrey Stowell |
Doudna Recital Hall |
| 11:15 - 11:25 a.m. |
Active Learning Through the Center for Student Innovation (CSI)
Dr. Devansh Saini |
Doudna Recital Hall |
| 11:25 - 11:30 a.m. |
Morning Wrap-up and Afternoon Preview |
Doudna Recital Hall |
| |
|
|
| 11:30 a.m. - 12:45 p.m. |
Lunch Break |
|
| |
|
|
| 12:45 - 1:30 p.m. |
Concurrent Session 1 |
|
| |
Paper Session: |
|
| |
Leveraging Generative AI for Assessment: Opportunities and Challenges
in Automated Essay Question Creation and Grading
Dr. Jerry Zhu and Dr. Jeffrey Stowell |
Charleston/Mattoon
MLK Jr University Union |
| |
The Faculty Reset
Dr. Misty Rhoads |
Charleston/Mattoon
MLK Jr University Union |
| |
Design Your Own Tutor
Dr. Kevin Hallinan |
Arcola/Tuscola
MLK Jr University Union |
| |
|
|
| 1:35 - 2:20 p.m. |
Concurrent Session 2 |
|
| |
Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education: Opportunities, Challenges,
and Practical Integration
Dr. Alexis Jones, Dr. Ngozi Onuora, Dr. Stephen Lucas,
Dr. Andrew Kerins, Dr. Michael Gillespie, Lexie Coartney |
Charleston/Mattoon
MLK Jr University Union |
| |
Do Research with AI Right
Dr. Kevin Hallinan |
Arcola/Tuscola
MLK Jr University Union |
| |
|
|
| 2:25 - 3:10 p.m. |
Concurrent Session 3 |
|
| |
Meeting Student Research Needs: Information Literacy
Through the Lens of Maslow's Hierarchy
Dr. Michael Gillespie, Dr. Brian Keith, Michele McDaniel, Amy Odwarka |
Charleston/Mattoon
MLK Jr University Union |
| |
Design Your Own Mentor
Dr. Kevin Hallinan |
Arcola/Tuscola
MLK Jr University Union |
A detailed PDF with session descriptions and a map will be linked here soon. A QR Code to this program will be provided on the day of the event. No print copies will be distributed.
Registration
While participation in this event is free, registration is required to ensure adequate space and resources for all attendees. Please register by Friday, March 6 to help us prepare for your participation.
Register Now
This event is hosted by the Faculty Development and Innovation Center (FDIC)
Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, Illinois 61920
Questions? Contact us at fdic@eiu.edu or call 217-581-7051
