2026 CSI Summer Conference: Teach Together

As education continues to shift in response to emerging technologies, changing workforce needs, and an increasingly complex world, our role as educators is not simply to help students keep up—it is to help them think deeply, ask better questions, and navigate change with curiosity and wisdom. This opening keynote will invite participants to consider what students need most as they prepare for the future: adaptable skills, thoughtful judgment, intellectual curiosity, and meaningful human connection. Together, we will begin the conference by reflecting on how we can equip students not only to succeed in a changing world, but to engage with it purposefully.

Attendees will learn about the history of Zines and be guided through a creative exercise to create their own. Creativity and collaboration are at the heart of this session using a self-published project to enrich the learning experience of our students.

The CSI Library’s resources are much more than just the materials housed in its Twin Falls location. Physical books are tops, but many of the library’s resources live on the internet or can be delivered to the satellite CSI campuses.   In this session attendees will learn about the many ways that students, faculty and staff can take advantage of their CSI Library resources even if they can’t visit the Twin Falls campus. I will cover all of the CSI Library’s off-campus resources including databases, Canvas courses, interlibrary loans, and even the librarians themselves! In the interactive portions I will demonstrate how to use the new tools available through the CSI Library catalog including interlibrary loan, article request, ask a librarian, and scheduling meetings with library staff.

Accessibility is often treated as an afterthought. In practice, it is one of the most effective ways to improve clarity, usability, and learning for everyone.  In this interactive 60-minute session, participants will explore how common design choices in Microsoft Word and PowerPoint can unintentionally create barriers for learners. Through guided demonstrations and hands-on practice, participants will learn how to use built-in tools such as the Accessibility Checker, Styles, slide layouts, and alt text to create documents and presentations that are more inclusive from the start.  Grounded in Universal Design for Learning and cognitive load principles, this session emphasizes simple, high-impact strategies that can be applied immediately. Participants will leave with practical skills, ready-to-use techniques, and a renewed perspective that accessible design is not about compliance, but about good teaching.

Dual credit teaching is a messy middle. You're asked to deliver college rigor to teenagers with jobs, family responsibilities, and uneven preparation. Do problems like inconsistency, readiness, or communication appear in your classroom?  

This session introduces a straightforward way of thinking about those problems: see them more clearly through your students' eyes, rephrase them into something you can influence, and sketch one small change you could try together next term.

Bring one real problem from your dual credit course. You'll leave with a clearer picture of what's happening and one concrete, student-facing experiment you're willing to try. No pedagogy 101, no promises to fix the system, just a thoughtful approach to working on the class with the people sitting in it.

Field trips don’t have to be expensive, complicated, or reserved for a select few programs—they just have to be worth it. In this session, Trent Van Leuven shares field-tested strategies for planning and leading meaningful student travel experiences that connect classroom learning to the real world. Drawing from over a decade of experience leading trips across 50,000 miles, participants will learn how to design trips with purpose, secure funding through community partnerships and creative fundraising, and manage logistics without becoming overwhelmed.  This session goes beyond checklists to focus on what makes a field trip truly impactful: preparation, student ownership, and intentional reflection. Attendees will leave with practical tools, planning frameworks, and ready-to-use ideas that can be adapted to any program—whether organizing a local day trip or a multi-state experience. If you’ve ever wondered whether a field trip is worth the effort, this session will show you how to make it both doable and transformative.

Each student brings their own perspectives to the classroom.  These are often under-utilized as educators present content pursuant to outcomes.  Yet, the ability to engage in perspective taking is an essential, durable skill.  This session will focus on teaching the communication concept of linguistic relativity by encouraging students to use their own words.  Come learn how to take students on a curiosity voiage about the way words shape our view of the world from concept, to application, to implication.

Join us for a presentation on Lewis & Clark’s contributions to our understanding of Idaho’s native plants.  From ponderosa pine and Oregon grape to wild mock orange (our state flower), shrubby penstemon and camas lily, Lewis and Clark carefully documented the native flora of our state. Also an optional tour of Orton Botanical Garden is available in the hour after the session.

Restrooms are available on-site. Parking is available either at the garden entrance or along the street in front of the house at 821 Filer Avenue West.  The left door is the classroom entrance. 

This session introduces a practical, theory-driven process for using AI and 3D printing technologies to design experiential learning activities that promote deeper engagement and authentic application of course concepts.  Participants will explore the development of a simulation-based accounting cycle activity in which students complete the full accounting cycle within a simulated business environment. AI tools were used iteratively to transform a traditional worksheet into a collaborative, performance-based learning experience featuring realistic source documents, embedded formative assessment, and 3D printed inventory components that students must purchase, assemble, and account for. Additional AI applications—including generating artifacts with Claude and producing a student podcast using NotebookLM for discussion in Packback—will also be discussed.  The session concludes with an interactive escape room activity built using the same AI-supported design process for a Business Communications lesson on interpersonal and team communication.

This presentation attempts to present multiple search tools, including AI-enhanced search, in historical and societal context. The session addresses both the democratizing potential and inherent limitations of each technological shift, focusing on aspects such as information accessibility, critical evaluation, and responsible use. Attendees will examine how biases have evolved rather than disappeared with each new technology, from editorial choices in print materials to algorithmic biases in search engines and AI tools. The workshop tackles known pitfalls of modern research tools, including SEO manipulation, commercial interests influencing search results, and AI "hallucinations" that present false information with unwarranted confidence. Participants will engage with strategies for developing critical information literacy skills tailored to each technological era, emphasizing the SIFT framework for evaluating accuracy, bias, and relevance in both traditional and AI-generated information. Through practical exercises, attendees will learn to balance the convenience of "insta-research" with thorough evaluation methods. The session aims to empower faculty and administration to guide students through the evolving information landscape while maintaining critical perspectives on both traditional and emerging research tools. The workshop begins with a half-hour description of the history of research tools, methodologies, and processes, beginning in the pre-digital age, continuing through the digital age, expanding in the Internet and Search Engine Era and culminating in the "AI Era," Benefits and drawback to each time period and its technologies are discussed. A brief review of critical thinking and information literacy is given. The next half hour involves discussing the nature, development, benefits, ethical issues, and information issues regarding AI tools and web-enhanced AI search. Generative AI tools, or "genAI," are built to approximate communicative language through statistical analysis and data reconfiguration. This method introduces a host of problems, including confabulations, hallucinations, artificial agency, and the tendency of users to rely on the first outputs of AI tools. An individual/group exercise follows in which participants use two handouts, one comparing the efficacy of AI tools and one with a suggested "search tool workflow" process, to decide which tools to use when researching certain topics, how those tools should be implemented in the search process, and how the user should be accountable/transparent regarding their research tool use. Finally, all participants come together for a discussion. The last segment is a search experience, in which participants utilize the various tools discussed in the presentation on their own, with feedback from the facilitator. This can be an individual or group experience, and the end result is that participants will be able to help their students and others use AI search tools, and other search tools, in an informed and responsible manner. Discussion questions will be encouraged throughout the session in order to facilitate presenter-facilitated, participant-directed, dialog. All attendees will receive handouts that discuss the benefits and drawbacks of various research technologies, common research principles when using AI, a comparison of the efficiency of various research tools, and suggestions for holistic research.

Curious about AI but not sure where to start? This session offers a practical entry point using NotebookLM. Teachers will explore how AI can support everyday work by refining how we evaluate and talk about student performance.  We’ll begin by examining common feedback and assignment language and how it often focuses on what students are missing. From there, participants will use NotebookLM with their own materials to make small, practical revisions that better support student growth.  The goal is to provide a low-pressure way to try an AI tool while improving something you already use in your classroom.

Participants will assess the health of CSI's Perinne drain according to the U of I Extension IDAH20 Master Water Stewards Protocol.  Participants will collect data on macroinvertebrates, pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, and temperature, and discuss ways of incorporating field learning into their curriculum for students.

This presentation will address the ongoing challenge of maintaining meaningful student engagement in fully online introductory chemistry courses. CHEM 100 at the College of Southern Idaho serves a diverse population of students—many of whom are non‑majors, returning adults, or students completing prerequisites for health‑related programs. These students often enter the course with limited confidence in science, competing life responsibilities, and a strong desire for content that feels relevant and accessible. The seminar will present practical, evidence‑based strategies for increasing engagement, improving clarity, and creating a more supportive online learning environment.

LaMar after living in Okinawa Japan for several years, as well as years collecting an extensive shell collection has developed a class that examines this collection with it's many shells, their creatures, and an educational slideshow. Class held at the Orton Botanical Garden classroom. Class is one hour, and LaMar through shell education will propose that these animals are a vital part of our environment and the different threats they face. The class will be followed by an optional garden tour.  Please note: This class is in the garden classroom.  

Restrooms are available on-site. Parking is available either at the garden entrance or along the street in front of the house at 821 Filer Avenue West.  The left door is the classroom entrance. 

This class will cover and understanding of our current water usage, our local climate, and an understanding of drought tolerant plants and how to get them established in the landscape. We will also take a walk through the gardens to look at the principles discussed in action.

I want to present basic statistics on AI's increasing use, examples of current legislation that involves the implementation of AI in workplaces as well as schools, and then open the floor for discussion for teachers to provide examples of how they are teaching kids responsible use, as well as how to address students that are abusing AI tools.

I will be facilitating a game I've titled "Cards Against Campus Life," which is a spin on Cards Against Humanity. It will be specific to CSI faculty and staff using realistic campus and workplace scenarios. The game uses humor to respond to the scenarios, the purpose will be to get people talking through difficult or awkward situations, different perspectives, and possible ways to respond in a professional and supporti

New to Dual Credit with CSI? This session covers the essentials—from DualEnroll and student registration to instructor pay and key expectations. Come connect, ask questions, and get set up for a successful start.

This session explores the role of perspective through a collaborative, cross-disciplinary project that brings writers and artists into meaningful dialogue. Presenters will showcase a dynamic exchange between students illustrating how meaning shifts as it moves between mediums. This authentic practice challenges students to consider not only what they want to say, but how their message will be received and transformed by others, helping them develop a more nuanced awareness of audience, perspective, and creative intention.

The Changemaker’s Guidebook is a practical and inspiring session based on the leadership principles of Dr. Joy Karavedas’ work. In a time of rapid change in education, this session explores how educators can lead meaningful change within their own schools through trust, authenticity, influence, and purposeful action. Participants will leave with strategies for building positive culture, developing leadership in others, and creating momentum for innovation and growth—regardless of their title or position.

Will highlight topics covered at the conference which include the following: Curriculum in the Age of AI, Data Science Education, Challenges in Academia, Supporting New Faculty, Multimedia Storytelling in Math, Calculus Success and Rethinking Assessment.

Would you like to try out the Zip Line at the CSI challenge course? If yes, then please drop by and take a ride. It's drop in as you would like, so please don't rush at the end of the conference.