Greetings, Friends, 

When we launched the Innovations in Teaching and Learning Conference back in the oughts, we really weren’t sure whether anyone would come. Would GMU faculty think it helpful to hear their peers talk about Teaching Digital Natives, Navigating Group Projects, Creating Equitable Classroom Spaces, Developing Writing Assignments, or Integrating Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the Arts? Maybe these were just momentary questions. (Maybe people would only come if we promised them cookies.) 

But you keep telling us it’s still relevant: you want to attend, you want to present, and you want cookies! This year we’re expanding to provide engagement across the whole week: online workshops, live teaching talks, and our fabulous on-campus Friday with lunch (and desserts!) -- all free to GMU instructors, staff, and students. We hope you’ll mark your calendar -- for an hour or a whole day -- to join our vibrant community of scholarly teachers. 

See below and check out our Events Calendar for more opportunities to give your teaching an energy boost and connect with like-minded colleagues here at the start of the semester. 

Along with our partners (including the Office of the Provost, Faculty Affairs and Development, Writing Across the Curriculum, Mason Impact/Undergraduate Education/CECiL, Graduate Education, GradLife, University Libraries, and Information Technology Services) we look forward to seeing you sometime very soon! 

E Shelley Reid, Ph.D. 

Executive Director

Get a head start on your ITL experience by registering to join any or all four of our virtual pre-conference workshops on Tuesday, September 22 and Wednesday, September 23. Led by Stearns Center educational developers, these brand-new or refreshed sessions are designed to extend this year’s Relevant Teaching theme and offer practical, engaging ideas you can bring directly into your teaching. Be sure to also register for the conference before the deadline Friday, September 18 at midnight!

Students, faculty members, or administrators may nominate a faculty member for any 2027 Teaching Excellence Award (no self-nominations). Learn about these awards on our website. New this year, ALL nominations are due Monday, September 28, 2026: Full-time faculty award, adjunct faculty award, and online teaching award nominations.

Looking for a meaningful way to strengthen your teaching and earn a credential along the way? Our upcoming workshops and clusters offer valuable opportunities for faculty of all appointment types, experience levels, and disciplines:

Through the High Impact Practices (HIPs) Cluster on Monday, September 14 and Wednesday, September 16 from 10AM-12PM, you can explore strategies that help students connect their learning to experiences in and beyond the classroom while also earning the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Level 1 Teaching Essentials credential.

If you teach Mason Core courses, completing both the HIPs Cluster and Solving the Puzzle: Engaging Non-Majors in Mason Core Courses on Friday, September 18 from 11AM-12PM can earn you the Certified Mason Core Instructor credential through the Mason Core Instructor Certification Program (MC-ICP).

Are you experienced with alternative grading and looking for community? Join colleagues who are actively implementing alt grading practices to share what's working, troubleshoot challenges, and talk through big questions together. Each session has a theme, but you can always bring your own concerns and questions to the group. We meet via Zoom every 3rd Monday at 2PM, starting September 14 and continuing through to May 2027. Please register for each meeting that fits your schedule. 

This month, we will publish three episodes:

Today we published Teaching Relevance Across Languages and Disciplines featuring Statistics professor Ajiboye Babaloa and Business and Law professor Omario Kanji of Mason Korea, they draw on both classroom and life experiences to share how connecting theory to real-world practice helps students see why course concepts matter beyond the classroom.

Our next episode on September 16 will feature Joy Banks and Minkyung Park from CEHD as they discuss how to approach helping students grapple with controversial topics across teaching modalities. 

Then, look forward to September 30 when we will publish a very special episode featuring a selection of attendees and presenters from this year's Innovations in Teaching and Learning Conference!

✅ Follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts to stay tuned for <25-minute episodes where you can discover small change strategies you might try now in your classrooms! 

Do you find yourself at the end of the semester wondering where time went and feeling like you were not able to accomplish what you needed? Register for this interactive workshop to help you align your time with your career goals for this academic year. This workshop is on Friday, September 11 from 1:30-3:00pm on Zoom.

The Online Sprints are every Friday, 9:00-11:00am on Zoom.

Mason Online is offering several workshops this Fall for George Mason faculty to level-up their online teaching tools! Contact Mason Online at online@gmu.edu for registration assistance and questions. 

We’re pleased to share that we are now ready to begin accepting position descriptions for the OSCAR Research Assistant program for the 26-27 AY. The GMU Federal Work Study office is currently awarding eligible students, so this is a great time to begin submitting positions. If the student is eligible, you can expect their start date to be the first day of Fall 2026 classes. 

Join the Graduate Division for its biannual faculty mentorship professional development training in Fall 2026 (Monday, September 21 and Tuesday, September 22, 2026 from 12-4 pm). The Entering Mentoring training was developed by the Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER) and is led by CIMER-trained George Mason faculty and staff. Register to secure a spot in the training or reach out to Dr. Alyssa Bivins for more information (abivins2@gmu.edu).

George Mason University Libraries have obtained a subscription to Inside Higher Ed, which recently changed from a free resource to requiring a subscription. You can access the subscription directly in the catalog or through the libraries’ A-Z Database List by searching for "Inside Higher Ed." If you are off campus, you will need to sign in using your credentials.