Programs and Initiatives
CTE Programs and Iniatives
National, International and Grant-Funded Initiatives
CTE Signature events Guide
Program Eligibility
AI Working Group
This working group focuses on the challenges and opportunities in higher education presented by generative artificial intelligence. Led by Doug Ward (CTE associate director/Journalism), Vaibhav Diwanji (Journalism). In Fall 2026, this working group will meet online from 2-3 pm on the following Fridays: 9/11, 10/9, 11/13, 12/11.
More about AI from CTE
The Engaged Learning Collaborative
The Engaged Learning Collaborative explores strategies for helping students participate actively and intentionally in their own learning. The group will tackle today's biggest classroom challenges, such as attendance, distraction, motivation, and student success, drawing on peer examples and insights from student partners and classroom observations. Join the community for conversation and working sessions, and apply for funding and postdoc support to put new ideas into practice.
Online Teaching Working Group
This working group meets monthly to discuss strategies for effective, inclusive and engaging online teaching. In Fall 2026, this group is facilitated by Doug Ward (CTE/Journalism) and Susan Marshall (Psychology) and meets online from 12-1 on the following Mondays: 9/14, 10/5, 11/2, 12/7.
Supporting Teaching Resource
Mentoring for Success
Join a community of practice that will bring together mentors from across campus to collaborate, develop their skills, and learn from each other. Each month, we will meet over lunch to discuss our mentoring experiences and learn more about the research behind best practices in undergraduate mentoring. All members of the KU community who mentor are invited, including graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, research staff, and faculty. Fall 2026 Mentoring Learning Community Dates: 9/11, 10/2, 11/13, & 12/4.
Learn More
Alternative Grading Learning Community
A discussion group organized around non-traditional approaches to grading (e.g., competency-based grading, mastery grading, contract grading, ungrading, and more) that move away from gatekeeping and instead focus on student growth and skill development. Participants meet regularly to discuss new approaches and how to apply them to their own practice. Led by Drew Vartia (CTE). To meet with colleagues in person or follow the group’s activities electronically, join the list.
Alternative Grading Resources
Teaching Scholarship Collaborative
A twice-monthly learning community focused on teaching innovation, educational leadership, and institutional change. Open to anyone interested in teaching and learning, TSC provides a space to troubleshoot challenges, celebrate successes, and explore topics shaped by the group’s interests, from alternative grading and AI’s impact on engagement to SoTL projects, attendance, and open educational resources. This year's TSC will be co-led by Nikki Perry (CTE) and Trevor Rivers (UG Biology). We will poll participants for a meeting time in early Fall 2026.
Learn more about TSC
Fall 2026 New Faculty Book Club
A community for early career faculty organized around the book How Learning Works, which outlines practical strategies for using research-based principles in your teaching. During our sessions, we will have discussions where we reflect on our reading and share further ideas for our own classrooms. Participants will each receive a copy of the book. Led by faculty fellow Sarah Browne (Mathematics), this group will meet for a lunch provided by CTE from noon-1:00 pm on the following Mondays: 9/21, 10/5, 10/26, 11/16, & 11/30.
New Faculty Links
Gamification of Learning Working Group
The gamification of learning working group for faculty and graduate students explores the intersection of gaming and game-based models with engaging classroom pedagogy. We work together to develop and share examples of gamified learning, as well as review scholarship and best practice recommendations in this exciting – and rapidly developing – area of active learning. Plus, we’re working to build a community of board and video game enthusiasts across KU’s several campus and within the Lawrence and Kansas City areas.
Fall Faculty Seminar: AI Literacy and Course Innovation
CTE’s Faculty Seminar gives faculty members an opportunity to develop teaching innovations and new models of practice in a collegial setting that offers peer review and support. The goal of the seminar is to research, design, test, and assess AI-supported course changes that strengthen student learning and AI literacy. Participants will engage in readings, workshop ideas and develop plans to adapt their 2027 courses and assessments to generative AI, and create plans to assess the impact on student learning. Apply by Sept 4.
AI Literacy Resouces
Teaching Scholars Program
Faculty who are curious about student learning and interested in exploring their teaching through a scholarly lens are invited to apply for CTE’s inaugural Teaching Scholars Program. Through a yearlong community of inquiry, participants will have dedicated time, structured guidance, a $1500 stipend to develop and carry out a teaching scholarship project, and travel funding to present the work. Whether you are refining a question that has emerged from your own classroom or beginning to explore teaching scholarship for the first time, this program provides a supportive pathway to investigate student learning, contribute to broader conversations about teaching, and grow as a leader in teaching innovation. Apply by Sept 4.
Teaching Scholars Program Links
Teaching Innovation Grants
Grants of up to $1,500 for single course projects or up to $5,000 for projects spanning multiple courses or a program. Our goal is to support well-planned project proposals that will enhance or innovate the student learning experience at KU. Priority deadline for Fall 2026 proposals is Sept 14, 2026. Applicants will be notified of funding decisions by Sept 28, 2026. Grant recipients produce a poster on their work for the Celebration of Teaching.
More about Teaching Innovation
KU IRISE Course Initiative
KU faculty are invited to apply to participate in a grant-funded project: “Character Development at the University of Kansas: The IRISE Virtues Initiative.” The goal is to increase faculty support for teaching IRISE virtues and thereby contributing to the character development of KU students. Applications due September 14.
More about IRISE
The Grading Studio
The Grading Studio brings together small groups (triads or quads) of faculty to explore, develop, and implement growth-oriented grading methods. This is an opportunity to join a group of innovative thinkers and find alternate ways to assess learning in your classes. The 2026 Cohort has already been selected; Stay tuned for information about how to apply for our 2027 Cohort.
Related Links
Course Design Institute
A multi-day institute in which faculty will design, refresh or reimagine a course for deeper learning and engagement and later, assess the impact on their students’ learning. The institute follows a backward course design model. It is a collegial, hands-on program for instructors who want to develop engaging and effective courses for today’s KU students. Participants receive a stipend and produce a poster for the Celebration of Teaching after completing their work. The 2027 CDI is scheduled for May 18-20. The call for applications will go out in early Spring 2027.
Ideas to Action
I2A empowers teams of faculty and staff from an academic unit to engage in collaborative inquiry into their students’ success and learning. Dept teams identify questions and CTE program leaders work with other units (e.g., AIRE) to produce databases, online dashboards, and reports, and convene the teams to guide interpretation of results and action planning and foster cross-department queries. Apply by Sept 14, 2026.
Re-Envisioning Curricula for an AI Era
The Center for Teaching Excellence invites proposals from departmental and cross-departmental teams for Re-Envisioning Curricula for an AI Era, a program for the 2026-27 academic year. Selected teams will receive up to $5000, meet six times with CTE staff, and create a plan for a curriculum that can adapt as technology, students, and careers change. Apply by Sept. 22, 2026.
Benchmarks Resources
Transforming Teaching Evaluation: The TEval Initiative
CTE partners with academic units to develop transparent, fair, and multidimensional approaches to teaching evaluation that are also aligned with the university's new Collective Bargaining Agreement with KUIA. Our work centers on the widely-used (and developed at KU) Benchmarks for Teaching Effectiveness Framework for defining and documenting effective teaching. Originally funded by the NSF-supported TEval initiative, over 80 units at KU, CU Boulder, and UMass Amherst have adapted the framework to enact more holistic and equitable teaching evaluation practices. CTE provides ongoing consultation and resources to departments seeking to refine or reimagine their own approaches to faculty teaching evaluation, peer review, and/or GTA evaluation.