Annual Spring Teaching Conference

CTL’s annual teaching conference began in 2005 in partnership with colleges across UNM, and was originally titled Success in the Classroom.

The goals of the conference are to:

• Showcase the great pedagogical work taking place at UNM.
• Promote and motivate creativity and innovation in teaching.
• Encourage and support reflective practice and the scholarship of teaching and learning (SOTL).
• Invigorate the teaching and learning conversations on campus.
• Facilitate and promote intra- and cross-disciplinary conversations and collaborations on teaching and learning.
• Create an environment that motivates the formation of teaching communities of practice within and across departments.

Register for the Spring Teaching Conference Today!

Registration will remain open throughout the conference. However, lunch may not be available for registrations occurring after April 1.

Our conference theme this year is Constellating Our Praxis: Connection and Inspiration in Teaching and Learning at UNM. This theme is inspired both by the UNM Framework for Teaching and Learning Success, developed by the Faculty Senate Teaching Enhancement Committee and endorsed by the full senate in April 2025, and the knowledge that many in the UNM community are already engaging in practices consistent with the framework’s seven principles! Through this year’s conference we are excited to amplify this work and foster community, conversation, sharing, and, hopefully, long-lasting relationships around our collective teaching endeavors. We envisage our collective efforts as a constellation where individual teaching and learning practices connect to form a shared mission of excellence.

Central to this gathering is the concept of Praxis. Drawing from Freirean thought, Praxis embodies the cyclical practice of Knowledge + Action + Reflection. Praxis goes beyond essentialized practice. It is the constant exercise of creating collective knowledge; it is also a commitment to engage in the cycle of transforming our realities through constant action and reflection to produce new knowledge for transformation. Sessions are designed to support this cycle through dialogue, shared inquiry, and opportunities for application.

The 2026 conference welcomes all members of the UNM campus community --faculty, instructors, staff, administrators, graduate students, and undergraduate students who share an interest in teaching and learning.

We look forward to coming together for two days of conversation, learning, and connection and to culminating Day 1 with the Teaching Excellence Awards Celebration, which for the first time this year features awards aligned with the seven principles of the Framework for Teaching and Learning Success:

• Engage in Active & Relevant Learning
• Foster Open Communication & Assessment
• Embrace a Culture of Growth
• Cultivate Community
• Integrate Research-Centered & Experiential Learning
• Support the Potential of All Learners
• Practice Reflection & Continuous Improvement