2025 Assessment Institute Sponsor Sessions
The Assessment Institute in Indianapolis will offer the following educational and product-based sponsor sessions on various topics from Monday, October 27, through Tuesday, October 28, 2025.
Assessment with Purpose: Indiana University Southeast’s Model for General Education
Assessing General Education remains one of the more complex and nuanced challenges institutions face, balancing state mandates, institutional mission, faculty-defined goals, and a curriculum that spans departments and disciplines. At Indiana University Southeast, the purpose of an undergraduate education is to prepare students to act as thoughtful, informed, and productive citizens and lifelong learners in a rapidly changing world. This vision of intellectual breadth and depth is supported by a set of common educational goals that crosscut all programs, developing essential skills like written and oral communication, quantitative reasoning, ethical inquiry, and critical thinking. This presentation will explore how Indiana University Southeast structured its General Education assessment process to reflect those goals meaningfully and manageably. Historically, the institution struggled with organizing and tracking assessment data across a wide array of courses and requirements. By rethinking their framework and utilizing a system that allowed for data aggregation and disaggregation across courses and programs, they created a sustainable and faculty-driven process that supports both internal improvement and external accountability. Attendees will learn the following: how to structure General Education assessment across diverse curricular paths while maintaining alignment with institutional and statewide outcomes; strategies for mapping outcomes to both major and general education courses, recognizing their shared contributions; approaches for managing and reporting data in ways that are meaningful to stakeholders; and lessons learned from moving to a clearer, more aligned model with reduced administrative overhead. Whether you're just beginning to rethink your General Education assessment process or looking for strategies to make it more actionable, this session offers a practical case study grounded in values, alignment, and continuous improvement.
Jayme Kerr, SPOL; and Amanda Scarberry, Indiana University Southeast
Presentation Type: Concurrent 60-Minute Sponsor Session
Audience Level: Intermediate
Primary Track: General Education
Time: Monday, October 27, 2025, from 1:45-2:45 p.m.
Sponsor: SPOL
Beyond Busywork: Practical Strategies to High-Impact Assessment
Many institutions struggle to make assessment strategic due to the time-consuming and siloed nature of the work. This presentation will offer practical strategies to reduce administrative burden, eliminate data silos, and ensure assessment findings lead to tangible impact. Drawing on insights from a recent survey of over 175 assessment professionals, we'll explore how institutions nationwide manage their assessment cycles, leverage tools (including AI), and experience challenges. Discover how to foster a culture of accountability and information sharing, making assessment more manageable and transparent. We'll also walk through how integrated platforms like Coursedog can streamline your assessment efforts by connecting seamlessly with your Student Information System (SIS) and Learning Management System (LMS).
Lauren Fontana, Coursedog
Presentation Type: Concurrent 60-Minute Sponsor Session
Audience Level: Beginner
Primary Topic: Institution-Wide Data Collection/Use
Time: Monday, October 27, 2025, from 12:30–1:30 p.m.
Sponsor: Coursedog
From Implementation to Intentionality: Configuring Nuventive to Reflect and Advance Our Assessment Practice
This session offers a behind-the-scenes look at how our institution moved beyond the initial implementation of Nuventive to thoughtfully configuring the platform to reflect our evolving assessment framework. Designed for assessment professionals, we'll share how we structured Nuventive to mirror our institutional assessment processes, aligned the assessment and strategic planning modules to support integrated planning, and collaborated with Nuventive to incorporate process enhancements directly into the platform. Learn how intentional design, cross-functional collaboration, and a focus on continuous improvement allowed us to move from simply using Nuventive to shaping it into a meaningful and strategic tool for assessment.
Kiwanis Burr McTier and George Pinkney, IV, Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University
Presentation Type: Concurrent 60-Minute Sponsor Session
Audience Level: Beginner
Primary Topic: Use of Technologies in Assessment
Time: Tuesday, October 28, 2025, from 1:15–2:15 p.m.
Sponsor: Nuventive
Get in the Game: Practical Ways to Use Artificial Intelligence Now
For many assessment professionals, generative AI is a dream, but not a reality. This presentation will explore ten practical applications of AI to enhance assessment practices and drive institutional effectiveness. As many institutions struggle with limited resources and seek to expand their institutional effectiveness, AI offers powerful tools to streamline processes, gain deeper insights, and improve outcomes. Attendees will learn how AI can support faculty in developing more targeted assessments, assist administrators in identifying areas for improvement, and ultimately contribute to a more robust and responsive institutional effectiveness framework. In addition to providing step-by-step instructions on AI use, the session will highlight considerations for implementing AI responsibly and ethically within an academic context. Regardless of your AI experience, this presentation will equip you to start using AI now!
Glenn Allen Phillips
Presentation Type: Concurrent 60-Minute Sponsor Session
Audience Level: Intermediate
Primary Track: Artificial intelligence (AI)
Time: Monday, October 27, 2025, from 3:15–4:15 p.m.
Sponsor: Watermark
Leveling Up Your Assessment Skills: From Beginner to Advanced
Whether you are new to assessment or looking to lead improvement efforts on your campus, this session offers something for you. Discover James Madison University’s award-winning, 5-day Assessment 101 workshop, which guides participants through the full assessment cycle—from writing learning outcomes to using results for improvement. You’ll explore the workshop’s structure, try sample activities, and experience its practical, hands-on approach. For more advanced participants, we’ll share leadership strategies from our Improving Student Learning at Scale workshop, which focuses on leadership at the program and institutional levels. Led by experts from JMU’s Center for Assessment and Research Studies, this session supports growth at all experience levels.
Keston H. Fulcher and John Hathcoat, James Madison University
Presentation Type: Concurrent 60-Minute Sponsor Session
Audience Level: Beginner
Primary Track: Assessment Methods
Time: Monday, October 27, 2025, from 4:30–5:30 p.m.
Sponsor: Center for Assessment and Research Studies (CARS) at James Madison University
Motivation that Matters: Leveraging Strategies to Engage Students and Enhance Assessments
Institutions often face challenges in motivating students to take assessments seriously. Too often, these assessments are seen as mere check-box exercises rather than meaningful opportunities for growth. This session explores how assessments used for programmatic improvement and accreditation can also provide tangible benefits to students. Participants will share innovative approaches to motivating students in assessment settings, providing valuable insights into effective motivation strategies. We will also share about institutions awarding digital badges based on testing proficiency, which can not only demonstrate accountability but also empower learners to showcase their skills to potential employers, making assessments a win-win for both institutions and students.
Sherry Reed, Territorium
Presentation Type: Concurrent 60-Minute Sponsor Session
Audience Level: Intermediate
Primary Topic: Student Partnership and Engagement in Assessment
Time: Monday, October 27, 2025, from 3:15–4:15 p.m.
Sponsor: Territorium
Streamlining Student Achievement and Continuous Improvement with Insights
Come meet Insights for Canvas Outcomes, the app that extends the power of Canvas to support comprehensive outcomes assessment. Not only does it make gathering data for accreditation easier, but it makes assessment more effective and meaningful. See how Insights can help you track outcome mastery, retain and leverage longitudinal data, and develop a deeper understanding of student performance. With Insights, you can engage your community around outcomes assessment, align outcomes to accreditation standards, and improve the institution’s ability to drive meaningful change - all without ever leaving Canvas. You’ll also get a sneak peek into our designs for a new student-facing experience, which will allow students to be able to see their aggregated results, request external assessment for field experience or prior learning, and see where they can earn more skills and badges.
Jerry Anderson and Erin Bentrim, eLumen
Presentation Type: Concurrent 60-Minute Sponsor Session
Audience Level: Intermediate
Primary Topic: Accreditation
Time: Tuesday, October 28, 2025, from 10:45–11:45 a.m.
Sponsor: eLumen
Xitracs™ for Assessment, Planning, Accreditation and Credentialing
Xitracs™ is a user-friendly, cost-effective software platform that allows your IR/E staff, other campus leaders, and users-at-large to streamline work related to learning outcomes assessment, institutional effectiveness reporting, program review, strategic planning, faculty/staff credentialing, agency accreditation activities, grant management, AI integration options, and more! This presentation will give an overview of how Xitracs supports success and continuous improvement in these key areas. We will wrap up the session with time for your questions and input.
Stephanie Allen, Xitracs by Concord USA, Inc.
Presentation Type: Concurrent 60-Minute Sponsor Session
Audience Level: Intermediate
Primary Track: Accreditation
Time: Monday, October 27, 2025, from 12:30–1:30 p.m.
Sponsor: Xitracs™ by Concord USA, Inc.