Association of College and University Educators Convenes Inaugural Conference to Accelerate Student Success Through Great Teaching

“We are prepared as scholars, not instructors. This must change, for the sake of our students and American higher education.”

NEW YORK (PRWEB) March 30, 2023

The Association of College and University Educators (ACUE), the leader in student success and equity through quality instruction, believes the key to restoring public confidence in the value of higher education is to ensure student success through great teaching. To help colleges and universities provide all students with access to effective learning opportunities, ACUE today unveiled the agenda for the inaugural National Higher Education Teaching Conference (NHETC).

Hundreds of higher education leaders from across the country – ranging from presidents, academic affairs leaders and faculty to policymakers and philanthropists –will convene June 22-23 in New York City to address the policies and practices that must be advanced to center effective teaching in the nation’s success and equity agenda. Attendees will identify practical ideas they can take back to their campuses and implement immediately, as well as strategies for elevating the attention on the importance of this work.

“Decades of research demonstrate effective instruction has the greatest impact on student success,” said Penny MacCormack, Ed.D., Chief Academic Officer, ACUE. “Yet, today’s colleges and universities face a myriad challenges – ranging from decreasing enrollments, non-traditional students seeking relevance and an active role in their own learning, and the resulting public debate about the value of higher education – all pointing to the need for more attention on the quality of teaching and learning. By convening the best minds in higher ed, our inaugural national conference will further the national movement to create learning environments where all students can be successful.”

Featured plenary presenters include Harry Williams, president and CEO of Thurgood Marshall College Fund; Dame Louise Richardson, the new president of the Carnegie Corporation of New York; Félix V. Matos Rodríguez, Chancellor of the City University of New York; and Nancy L. Zimpher, Chancellor Emerita of the State University of New York and director of the Power of Systems initiative by the National Association of System Heads. In addition, more than 75 other experts, practitioners and champions of effective college instruction will lead more than four dozen concurrent sessions.

NHETC’s opening plenary, facilitated by NPR correspondent Michel Martin, will address college teaching’s past present and future with Jose Bowen, author of “Teaching Naked” and “Teaching Change,” American University’s Corbin Campbell, author of “Great College Teaching,”, DEI expert and author of “Sentipensante,” University of Texas-San Antonio’s Laura Redon and author of “Amateur Hour” University of Pennsylvania’s Jonathan Zimmerman.

“We are prepared as scholars, not instructors. This must change, for the sake of our students and American higher education,” said Jonathan Gyurko, Ph.D., ACUE President and Co-founder. “Students learn more, persist in their studies and graduate into more fulfilling lives when taught by professors who are experts in evidence-based teaching. Every student deserves the highest quality education we can provide.”

Modeling effective teaching practices, breakout sessions will include proven, active-learning pedagogies.

Attendees will learn:

• the evidence behind proven instructional approaches, innovations in teaching;
• the relationship between pedagogy and equity;
• research how to demonstrate greater learning, retention, financial ROI, and reputational benefits;
• how to best engage and recognize faculty;
• and how we can, together, restore the public’s confidence in the value of higher education.

In addition to ACUE, co-hosts for the NHETC include the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the City University of New York, the ECMC Foundation, Excelencia in Education, the National Association of System Heads, Strada Education Foundation, the Raikes Foundation, the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and the American Council on Education. Participating publishers include Corwin-Sage Publishing, Harvard Education Press, Hopkins Press, SUNY Press, West Virginia Press and Wiley.

For more information or to register for the NHETC, visit https://acue.org/national-higher-education-teaching-conference/. Media registration for NHETC is available by contacting Lisa Wolfe at lwolfe@lwolfe.com.

About ACUE
The Association of College and University Educators (ACUE) is on a mission to accelerate student success, belonging, and equity through quality instruction. In partnership with colleges, universities, higher education systems and associations, ACUE prepares and credentials faculty in the evidence-based teaching practices that lead to higher retention and achievement, deeper learning, and closed equity gaps. Numerous and independently validated studies confirm that students are more engaged, learn more, and complete courses in greater numbers—more equitably with their peers—when taught by ACUE Certified faculty. ACUE’s online, cohort-based credentialing programs are delivered through institutional partnerships and open enrollment courses endorsed by the American Council on Education.

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