Revisiting the Unizin Summit

Published July 8, 2021

Revisiting the Unizin Summit

with Cathy O’Bryan

– I was thrilled to host Unizin’s pandemic-inspired, first-ever virtual Summit, which was held on April 21st and 22nd.  This year’s summit focused on the transformative power of Learning Analytics, and the virtual format enabled participants to choose their own adventure – sampling key learnings and insights from Unizin member institutions, staff, and partners. Now that we’ve tallied the numbers, we can report with confidence that the entire Summit experience was a resounding success.

While we all enjoy the opportunity to connect, learn, and share live and in-person, the virtual format enabled the Unizin community to extend its reach and attract new attendees from across the higher education spectrum.  As an organization dedicated to positively impacting the digital learning ecosystem, our ability to connect with non-member institutions is a testament to the reputation we have established and the vitality of the conversation regarding this critical area of higher education.  

More than 500 attendees from 28 states and eight countries, representing 63 different higher education institutions attended the two-day conference.  Additionally, two-member institutions sent over eighty participants each.  Because we were virtual, no session rooms were closed due to seating capacity – a first. 

The vast variety of topics covered, from research updates at Unizin member institutions to workshops concerning the latest Unizin capabilities and partner solutions kept the agenda and energy flowing.   In our post-Summit attendee survey, 88% of respondents rated the overall Summit as very good or excellent and 91% agreed or strongly agreed that the summit was valuable and worth the investment in time. 

Twenty-six of the 28 Summit sessions are available for replay on YouTube. Two include proprietary content that cannot be shared publicly.  I invite you to peruse them all.  To help you get started, here are some of our most popular Summit sessions. I hope you will watch and enjoy.

• Learning (Analytics) is Not a Spectator Sport: Keynote (Presented by: Kenneth Koedinger, Carnegie Mellon University)

• Canvas Roadmap: 2021 and Beyond (Presented by: Melissa Loble, Shaun Moon, and Jared Stein, Instructure)

• Modeling Student Success Based on Digital Activity (Presented by: Ji Guo, Ross Miller, and Nick Seedorff, University of Iowa and Kyle Unruh, Unizin)

• Innovations in Student-Facing Learning Analytics (Presented by: Jennifer Love and Stephanie Teasley, University of Michigan)

• Inclusivity in College: Strategies for Supporting Diverse Learners (Presented by: Natalia Kouraeva, Rutgers University)

• Not so Dicey: Get Rolling with Research Using the Unizin Data Platform (Presented By: Emily Oakes, Unizin and Andi Strackeljahn, Indiana University)

• ManyClasses 1: An Unprecedented Learning Experiment – Findings, Lessons Learned, and Looking Ahead (Presented by: Ben Motz and Emily Fyfe, Indiana University)

• How Usable is Canvas? Leveraging the Power of Unizin to Advocate for Improvement (Presented by: Sara Schoen and Susan Tade, University of Minnesota, Jason Buzzell, University of Nebraska, and Christian Renoe, Penn State University)