Event Experience

Welcome and Opening Session

Eden Dahlstrom, Vice President, Professional Development and Membership, EDUCAUSE

George Siemens, Chief Scientist of SNHU’s Human Institute, Southern New Hampshire University

Find Your People: Surfacing Shared AI Priorities

David Weil, Senior Vice President for Strategic Services and Initiatives, Ithaca College

Tawnya Means, Strategic Innovation & AI Advisor to the Provost and Dean, Bowling Green State University

Quickly get to know and connect with peers who are tackling the same challenges you are. Through structured, movement-based prompts, participants will physically cluster around shared priorities—AI strategy, workforce development, funding models, change management, and more. This fast-paced, facilitated session uses “human analytics” to quickly surface common goals, reveal patterns in the room, and spark focused conversations. You’ll finish with new contacts and connections aligned to the work you’re actively advancing on your campus.

Learn and Discuss | Anchoring AI in Institutional Priorities: Chasing Tech Isn’t Strategy

Nate Pritts, Faculty Fellow for AI Strategy | Chair, First-Year Writing, The University of Arizona

Tawnya Means, Strategic Innovation & AI Advisor to the Provost and Dean, Bowling Green State University

Michael Butcher, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students, The College of Coastal Georgia

As AI capabilities continue to evolve rapidly, institutions face growing pressure to adopt new tools—often before clearly defining the problems they aim to solve. This session focuses on leading AI efforts from a problem- and opportunity-driven perspective rather than chasing emerging technologies. Presenters discuss how grounding AI initiatives in institutional priorities, user needs, and measurable outcomes helps leaders make better investment decisions, reduce risk, and increase impact. Attendees will gain practical strategies for reframing AI conversations around “why,” enabling more intentional, mission-aligned, and sustainable AI adoption.

Refreshment Break

Expert Panel | Early Lessons in Leading AI in Higher Education

Beth Rugg, Chief Workplace AI Officer & Assistant Vice Chancellor, Client Engagement, University of North Carolina Charlotte

Ryan Low, Vice Chancellor for Finance and Strategic AI Integration, University of Maine System

George Siemens, Chief Scientist of SNHU’s Human Institute, Southern New Hampshire University

Tracy Weber, Assistant Vice President, Enterprise Solutions & Delivery, University of Notre Dame

As higher education grapples with rapid advances in generative AI, early AI officers are shaping what effective AI leadership looks like in practice. This panel explores lessons emerging from the first wave of senior and executive AI roles, including the importance of coordination over control, acting without waiting for perfect AI strategies, aligning governance with institutional processes, and embedding AI work into core academic and administrative missions.

Learn and Discuss | Enabling People-First AI: Change Management and AI Literacy in Practice

Jenny Allen, Director, Office of Wellness and Academic Support, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science

Elissa Hall, Scientific Director, Mayo Clinic Harper Family Foundation Artificial Intelligence Education in Medicine Program, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science

Karen Lokey, Associate Director, IT Innovation Services, University of Rhode Island

Successful AI adoption depends less on the technology itself and more on how people understand, trust, and apply it in their daily work. This panel focuses on people-first change management and AI literacy as foundations for sustainable AI practice. Panelists explore strategies for building shared understanding, supporting instructional design and professional practice use cases, and diffusing effective AI practices across teams and roles. Attendees will gain practical insights into how intentional change management, skill development, and community-based learning can help institutions move from isolated experimentation to confident, responsible, and scalable AI use.

Reception and Networking

Join fellow participants for an informal reception with drinks and hors d’oeuvres. A relaxed opportunity to continue conversations, exchange ideas, and build connections with peers advancing AI initiatives on their campuses.

Networking Breakfast

Start the day with fellow participants over breakfast to continue connecting, exchanging ideas, and building relationships with peers advancing AI initiatives at their institutions.

Opening

Expert Panel | Structuring AI Leadership: Models and Decision-Making Across the Institution

David Weil, Senior Vice President for Strategic Services and Initiatives, Ithaca College

Beth Rugg, Chief Workplace AI Officer & Assistant Vice Chancellor, Client Engagement, University of North Carolina Charlotte

Tracy Weber, Assistant Vice President, Enterprise Solutions & Delivery, University of Notre Dame

Jena Zangs, Chief Data & AI Officer, University of St. Thomas

As campuses scale AI integration, organizational design and leadership structures play a critical role in enabling impact and managing risk. This expert panel examines the strengths and challenges of centralized, decentralized, and hybrid models for AI governance and support, including how AI leaders and practitioners, distributed champions, and cross-functional councils align with institutional goals. Panelists share real examples of organizational design choices, decision-making workflows, and leadership strategies that balance agility and accountability.

Affinity Conversations: Shared Challenges in AI Strategy & Workforce Transformation

David Weil, Senior Vice President for Strategic Services and Initiatives, Ithaca College

Tawnya Means, Strategic Innovation & AI Advisor to the Provost and Dean, Bowling Green State University

Join small-group discussions with peers advancing similar AI priorities at institutions like yours. Focused on summit themes—AI strategy, workforce transformation and reskilling, governance and policy alignment, and leading cross-functional change—these facilitated conversations provide space to exchange practices, surface solutions, and build a network of colleagues moving this work forward together.

Break

Lightning Rounds: AI Agents in Practice: Early Applications and Findings

Tawnya Means, Strategic Innovation & AI Advisor to the Provost and Dean, Bowling Green State University

Shahid Ali, AI Engineer, Marshall University

Karen Lokey, Associate Director, IT Innovation Services, University of Rhode Island

Lori Robbins, Instructional Technologist, Denison University

As agent-based AI systems move from concept to early deployment, institutions are beginning to explore how these tools can support work across teaching, learning, and operations. This lightning-round session highlights early applications of AI agents, with brief, focused examples from campuses experimenting with agent-enabled workflows. Presenters share what they tried, what worked, what didn’t, and the early findings shaping next steps. Attendees will gain a rapid snapshot of emerging agent use cases, practical lessons learned, and questions institutions should be asking as they evaluate agent-based approaches.

Lunch and Awards Ceremony

EDUCAUSE Research Brief: The Impact of AI on Work in Higher Ed

Jenay Robert, Senior Researcher, EDUCAUSE

Hear about recent EDUCAUSE research related to the ways AI is impacting work in higher education. In this session, you'll gain insights on work-related institutional AI strategies, policies, and guidelines; the risks, opportunities, and challenges associated with using AI for work in higher education; and specific examples of how staff and faculty use - and want to use - AI for work.

Learn and Discuss | Funding and Sustaining AI: Strategies, Costs, and Partnerships

Beth Rugg, Chief Workplace AI Officer & Assistant Vice Chancellor, Client Engagement, University of North Carolina Charlotte

Tracy Weber, Assistant Vice President, Enterprise Solutions & Delivery, University of Notre Dame

Ryan Low, Vice Chancellor for Finance and Strategic AI Integration, University of Maine System

As institutions move from piloting AI to sustaining it at scale, questions of cost, funding, and partnerships have become central. This session explores emerging models for funding AI initiatives, including central investment, chargeback, and cost-sharing approaches, as well as the roles of external and internal partnerships. Presenters discuss how institutions are evaluating ROI, balancing innovation with financial stewardship, and structuring partnerships with vendors, consortia, and campus units. Attendees will gain practical insights into designing funding and partnership models that support responsible, scalable, and mission-aligned AI adoption.

Show & Solve: Crowdsourcing AI Solutions with Peers

Bring a real example from your campus—an AI initiative, governance model, workforce strategy, funding plan, or implementation challenge—and put it on the table. In facilitated, rotating groups, peers will provide focused feedback, share comparable approaches, and surface practical refinements. This fast-paced session harnesses collective expertise to sharpen your thinking, strengthen execution, and leave you with actionable next steps informed by colleagues advancing similar AI priorities.

Break

Expert Panel | AI Workforce Development & ROI: Proving the Value of Investment

Lori Robbins, Instructional Technologist, Denison University

Dan Harder, Chief Academic Technology Officer, The University of Tennessee

Mark McCallister, Senior Director, Academic Technology, University of Florida

Kristen Richardson, Sr. Director Analyst, AI Innovation & Emerging AI Trends, Gartner

Higher education institutions are rapidly adopting AI tools to transform how work gets done—but few are systematically developing staff capabilities or effectively measuring the return on those investments. With widespread staff use of AI but inconsistent guidelines and ROI measurement, institutions face both opportunity and risk as they scale skill development and align workforce growth with mission outcomes. This session explores approaches to building AI workforce capacity—from upskilling and reskilling models to embedding AI literacy into professional growth frameworks—and linking those efforts to meaningful outcomes. You’ll hear practical examples of how campuses are measuring impact, navigating governance and policy gaps, and making the case for investment in people as AI reshapes roles across administrative, academic, and operational units.

Closing "Keyshop" & So What, Now What: Ideas into Action

Eden Dahlstrom, Vice President, Professional Development and Membership, EDUCAUSE

David Weil, Senior Vice President for Strategic Services and Initiatives, Ithaca College

Tawnya Means, Strategic Innovation & AI Advisor to the Provost and Dean, Bowling Green State University

Ryan MacTaggart, Associate Director, Professional Learning, EDUCAUSE

You’ve explored the ideas, compared approaches, and surfaced new possibilities. Now it’s time to turn that momentum into a clear path forward—working alongside a colleague from your campus or a new partner you’ve met. In this facilitated closing session, you’ll synthesize your notes and planning document into a focused short-term action plan or longer-term roadmap. Guided prompts will help you clarify priorities, assign ownership, sequence next steps, and define early indicators of progress. You’ll leave with a practical, personalized plan to advance AI strategy and workforce readiness at your institution.

Dine Arounds