Digital Teaching Symposium 2026: Reach, Teach & Demonstrate

LIVESTREAM

1:00 PM GMT

Nov 19 – Nov 20, 2026

# LMS

# Faculty

Join us virtually on November 19, 2026, for the Digital Teaching Symposium (DTS), a free, one-day event bringing together higher education faculty and educators from around the world to share practical experiences, ideas, and approaches shaping the future of teaching and learning.

Now in its tenth year, DTS is a faculty-focused conference built around the power of educators learning from one another. Through peer-led sessions, you'll discover how colleagues are tackling the challenges and opportunities of digital teaching — from reaching diverse learners and creating engaging learning experiences to adapting teaching practice and demonstrating meaningful impact.

This year's theme, Reach, Teach & Demonstrate, is inspired by three questions at the heart of modern teaching and learning:

Reach — How do we reach every learner?

Teach — How do we teach well in a changing world?

Demonstrate — How do we demonstrate that it was worth it?

Expect practical ideas, honest experiences, fresh perspectives, and examples you can take back to your own teaching practice.

Whether you're looking for new approaches to teaching, practical strategies to try, inspiration from peers, or opportunities to reflect and connect, DTS offers a day dedicated to learning from the people at the heart of education: educators.

Speakers

Eman Elbealy

Dr @ King Khalid University

Helga Gunnarsdottir

Digital Learning Manager @ University of the West of England

Dania Ghani

Senior Digital Learning Designer @ University of the West of England

Heidi Reed

Professor @ Audencia Business School

Claudia Carrone

Digital Learning Manager @ EDHEC Business School

Heath Hightower

Assistant Professor @ University of Saint Joseph

Liezl Wagenaar

Learning Innovation Lead @ Gordon Institute of Business Science

Ciska Snyman

Senior Instructional Designer @ University of Pretoria

Estelle Drysdale

Senior Instructional Designer @ University of Pretoria

Francisco León Heyder

Academico @ Universidad Diego Portales

James Woolley

Digital Education Lead @ Aberystwyth University

Mary Beth Scumaci

Director of Digital Learning @ Trocaire College

Kamu Pindiprolu

Chief Information Officer @ Trocaire College

Rebekah Marangon

Senior Teaching Fellow @ Aston University

Ivan Eduardo Llanos Bustos

Director de Carrera Ing.Informática e Ing. en Ciberseguridad @ Universidad de las Américas

Richard Gibbons

Senior Product Manager @ Anthology, Inc.

Lisa Clark

Associate Vice President, Academic Transformation @ Anthology

Joe Thibault

VP New Ventures @ Blackboard

Stephen Weiss

Associate Professor of Business, Angell Snyder School of Business @ Ottawa University

Kristen Moore

Associate Professor of Business, Angell Snyder School of Business @ Ottawa University

Jennifer Lowry

Assistant Professor @ Campbell University

Stacy Ybarra

Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence @ Our Lady of the Lake University

Angel Moreno Mora

Docente y asesor tecnológico @ Duoc UC

Alexander Burchett

Instructional Technologist @ Bryant & Stratton College

Kelly Hambel

Course Developer @ Freelance

Carly Kutsup

Instructional Designer @ Ocean County College

Jacie Green

Senior Educator @ Wichita State University

Edilberto Arteaga - Narváez

Catedrático de Física @ Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico, Recinto Metropolitano

Rosa Brito Gómez

Catedrática de Química. @ Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico

Heather Breittholz

Instructional Designer @ University of Connecticut

Valarie Artigas

Director of the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner (NNP) Program @ University of Connecticut

Wendolyn (Wendy) Velez-Torres

Senior Instructional & Accessibility Specialist @ Coppin State University

Sharonda Lipscomb

Director of Online Learning @ University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Alma Rosa Anayanzy Rodríguez Valles

Diseñador instruccional @ Universidad del Valle de México

Vera Bratnichenko

Assistant Professor @ Universty of South Carolina Upstate

Wendy Sellers

Professor and Founding Director-Social Work @ Wingate University

Jacklyn Polk

Assistant Professor and Director of Clinical Education-Physical T @ Wingate University

Sandra Mohr

Associate Professor @ Angelo State University

Matthew Pittinsky

Incoming Chief Executive Officer @ Blackboard

Phil Hill

Educational Technology Consultant and Industry Analyst @ Phil Hill & Associates, LLC

Daryl Tate

Associate Professor | eLearning Fellow @ University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Brook Dickison

Associate Professor @ Angelo State University

Jennifer Blickwedehl

Chief Academic Affairs Officer @ Trocaire College

Agenda

Stage View

Main

AI & Course Design

Accessible & Inclusive Design

Success & Evidence of Learning

Español

3:00 PM

4:00 PM

GMT

Keynote

External Link

Mark Hopkins' Log: AI, Higher Education, and the Extraordinary Potential of an Ordinary Technology

Blackboard co-founder, Matthew Pittinsky, Ph.D., argues that for thirty years the digital infrastructure supporting teaching and learning has been a course management system masquerading as a learning management system. A true LMS would deliver what he calls the three L’s – organized around the Learner, used for Learning, and provide the system of record for what was Learned. AI technologies can finally make the three Ls possible, provided serious consideration is given to governance, and technology remains in service to the core social dynamic of learning.

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9:00 PM

10:00 PM

GMT

Keynote

External Link

When Schools Ban AI, What Exactly Are They Banning?

Schools are announcing AI bans, but what exactly are they banning? Learning platforms embed AI functions ranging from captioning and study tools to feedback and grading, and each one calls for a different policy decision. Phil Hill, publisher of the On EdTech blog and Partner at Phil Hill & Associates, LLC, offers a framework: instead of asking whether a tool "has AI," ask what work the AI does. Phil is then joined by incoming Blackboard CEO, Matthew Pittinsky, for a fireside chat and audience Q&A.

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Live in 29 days 11 hours

1:00 PM GMT

Nov 19 – Nov 20, 2026

Online

Organized by

Blackboard Community

Live in 29 days 11 hours

1:00 PM GMT

Nov 19 – Nov 20, 2026

Online

Organized by

Blackboard Community