Fall 2026 Conference Program

Investigation of AI and Technology Uses

• Artificial Intelligence and the Compression of War: Lessons from the US–Israel–Iran Conflict

  Remy Kleinberg, University of North Carolina Wilmington
  Abstract

  Artificial intelligence is changing warfare not only by automating tasks, but by changing the time available to make military decisions. The 2026 U.S.-Israel-Iran conflict provides an important case for examining this shift. It brought together AI-enabled intelligence analysis, predictive systems, targeting, drones, electronic warfare, cyber operations, and information operations within a conflict that unfolded at an unusually rapid pace.

  This paper argues that the significance of AI in the confrontation lies in its ability to compress the distance between information, prediction, decision, and action. U.S. and Israeli forces used AI-enabled systems to process large volumes of intelligence, identify patterns, anticipate adversary behavior, and generate or prioritize potential targets. These capabilities shortened the time between detecting a possible threat and deciding how to respond.

  Iran pursued a different approach. Rather than attempting to match U.S. and Israeli technological capabilities, it relied on missiles, drones, dispersed systems, electronic interference, and repeated attacks to impose costs and create delays. The conflict therefore became a contest not only over military capabilities, but also over the pace at which the conflict unfolded.

  The paper also examines the limits and risks of this compression. Faster processing does not necessarily produce better decisions. AI systems remain dependent on the information available to them, while compressed decision cycles can reduce opportunities for human verification and reconsideration. The conflict illustrates how the same systems that accelerate military operations can also make mistakes more consequential.

• Research on Identifying Student-Identified Barriers to Generative AI Use in K-12 and Higher Education Teaching

  Greg Levitt, University of Nevada, Las VegasSteve Grubaugh, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
  Abstract

  This study addresses key student-reported barriers to generative AI adoption across K–12 and higher education, offering evidence-based pedagogical strategies to resolve ethical, equity, and access concerns.

• Who Will Govern the Future?

  Greg Levitt, University of Nevada, Las VegasSteve Grubaugh, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
  Abstract

  This presentation examines the provocative warnings raised by Gil Durán in The Nerd Reich and by other scholars and technology thinkers about the growing concentration of artificial intelligence, wealth, infrastructure, and political power. It explores visions in which powerful technology leaders could increasingly influence, bypass, or even create alternatives to traditional democratic institutions, including private “network states” and new forms of algorithmic governance. The presentation also considers more optimistic visions of AI while asking the central question: If AI becomes essential infrastructure for education and society, who gets to write the rules? Finally, it challenges educators to view AI literacy as part of civic literacy and to help ensure that the future of AI remains.

• From the Electronic Information Exchange System to Virtual Conference: Personal Account of the First Civilian Online Scientific Meetings, 1977–1988

  Davor Jedlicka, University of Texas at Tyler
  Abstract

  This paper presents a firsthand account of the NSF-sponsored Electronic Information Exchange System (1977–1978), one of the first civilian online scientific conferences. Built at the New Jersey Institute of Technology by Murray Turoff and studied by Linton C. Freeman at Lehigh, it connected hundreds of scientists through asynchronous communication. I recount the experience and its influence on today’s virtual academic conferences.

History and Freedom of Speech in Education Examined

• Anti-Irish Nativism and the St. Patrick’s Day Riot in Troy

  Harvey Joe Strum, Russell Sage College
  Abstract

  This paper concentrates on the growth of anti-Irish and anti-Catholic nativism in the 1830s and 1940s and focuses on the example of a riot on St. Patrick’s Day in Troy, NY in March 1837. It will look at the Irish community in Troy and nearby Cohoes and Albany in the 1830s. Also, it will do a brief discussion of Protestant use of offensive effigies on St. Patrick’s Day starting in New York City in the 1790s.

• Isn’t America Supposed to be All About Choice and Freedom of Speech? How the U.S. Socio-Political Climate Impacts Elementary Preservice Teachers’ Perceptions of Teaching Citizenship Education

  Rina Bousalis, Florida Atlantic University
  Abstract

  This qualitative case study used a discourse analysis to evaluate data collected from a survey on elementary preservice teachers (PSTs) in social studies methods’ courses. The purpose of the study was to gain insight into how participants perceived the social and political climate, which issues affected them, and how these issues might influence their future teaching, as PSTs help to build the foundation of citizenship for their young students.

Ethnic Studies

• Black Principals’ Navigation of Politically Conservative Challenges to Public Schools Curricula Effects on Administrator Attrition

  Hamisi Tarrant, Cherry Hills Schools
  Abstract

  This presentation focuses on the impact of politically conservative pressures on Black principals’ leadership experiences, Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, and curriculum decisions in K–12 schools. The key objective is to explore how politically conservative efforts related to DEI, Critical Race Theory (CRT), and race-related curriculum influence Black principals’ professional experiences, leadership decisions, and commitment to remaining in their positions.

• Intergenerational Trauma and the Transmission of Historical Memory in African Poetry

  Adelokun Adetunji Oluwapelumi, Thomas Adewumi University
  Abstract

  This paper examines how African poetry represents the transmission of historical trauma and memory across generations. It focuses on how experiences of colonialism, apartheid, political violence, displacement, and social marginalization continue to influence the identities and experiences of subsequent generations. Drawing on trauma theory and cultural memory studies, the study employs qualitative interpretive textual analysis to examine selected African poems that engage inherited memories of violence and loss. The paper argues that intergenerational trauma is transmitted not only through explicit narratives but also through silence, fragmented recollections, family histories, cultural practices, and inherited identities. African poetry provides a significant medium through which these memories are articulated, preserved, and negotiated. Through recurring images of the body, ancestry, family, place, displacement, and silence, poets transform inherited suffering into testimony and collective remembrance. The paper concludes that poetic memory challenges historical amnesia while creating spaces for recognition, identity reconstruction, and critical engagement with unresolved histories.

• The Underground Railroad in Rochester, Lockport, Niagara Falls, and St. Catharines

  Michael Boston, SUNY Brockport
  Abstract

  This presentation will focus on the Underground Railroad in Rochester, Lockport, Niagara Falls, and St. Catharines. It will also underscore some routes that were used, stationmasters, escapees, etc., along with describing the lives of a few of the individuals that successfully gained their freedom.

Race and the United States Government

This panel will explore racialization and everyday people’s interactions with the government.

• Impact of Federal Policies in the Post Reagan Era

  Saeeda Islam, Yale University
  Abstract

  This presentation examines federal policies post Reagan and their impact on communities of color in Stockton, CA.

• The Political Evolution of Henrietta Vinton Davis

  Evan Wade, San Joaquin Delta College
  Abstract

  This presentation explores the political evolution of Henrietta Vinton Davis (1858–1941), the first famous African American actress, who disavowed integration politics to become the international organizer of the 1920s Back to Africa Movement.

• Judicial Review—Specifically Used by the Supreme Court: It is Real but It Ain’t Exactly There

  Danny Adkison, Oklahoma State University
  Abstract

  This presentation focuses on how textbooks used in college courses take the view that the Framers did not intend for the courts (ultimately the Supreme Court) to exercise the power of judicial review. It also builds on a previous exegetical study of James Madison’s Notes on the Constitutional Convention, wherein plenty of evidence was found that the Framers did. That record, however, is not well known. Furthermore, the Federalist Papers back that approach up.

Educational Perspectives

• Native American Sharing and Generosity: Building Knowledge Together in the Classroom

  Kathy Smart, University of North DakotaJulie Robinson, University of North Dakota
  Abstract

  This presentation introduces a topic in the series of professional development modules designed for North Dakota elementary educators, namely the Native American Sharing and Generosity Module. The Native American Sharing and Generosity Module, along with its activities, explores ways to foster learning and support knowledge construction.

• Designing for Variability: Rethinking the Asynchronous Graduate Course

  Carol Anne Johnson, University of North DakotaKathy Smart, University of North Dakota
  Abstract

  This presentation will provide participants with practical questions and strategies they can apply to their own asynchronous courses, regardless of discipline. The presentation ultimately asks: What might change when we stop designing an asynchronous course for an assumed “typical” graduate student and begin designing for the variability that exists in our classrooms?

• Teaching In the South: The Impact of Legislation on Higher Education

  Ivan Alverado, University of Tennessee at Martin
  Abstract

  Public higher education institutions across the Southern United States have become prime targets for state-level legislative intervention. This presentation offers an examination of the operational and legal ramifications of state laws targeting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), and divisive concepts curricula. Moving beyond the concepts, this session blends regional policy analysis with a look at practical, on-the-ground campus realities. Utilizing a comparative policy lens, this presentation will map how state mandates in the South have restructured university governance and restricted academic freedom.

• Decoding Political Language: A Future-Ready Democracy Skill for Secondary Social Studies Students

  Greg Levitt, University of Nevada, Las VegasSteve Grubaugh, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
  Abstract

  This paper presents political language literacy as a future-ready democracy skill for secondary social studies. It introduces the DECODE Political Speech process, through which students document political messages, extract and classify claims, clarify language, observe persuasive techniques, determine evidence and missing context, and evaluate messages using appropriately qualified conclusions. The article also situates evidence-based evaluation within democratic responsibility and critical patriotism. Rather than equating patriotism with unquestioning loyalty to leaders, this approach prepares students to apply consistent standards of evidence to political allies and opponents alike. The framework supports critical thinking, media literacy, civil discourse, and informed civic participation while offering teachers a professional and nonpartisan process for examining controversial political communication.

Online Teaching and Faculty Acclimation

• Transforming Online Teaching Through Multidisciplinary Teaching Squares

  Tammie T. Patterson, University of Tennessee at MartinLilly Farris, University of Tennessee at Martin
  Abstract

  This presentation explores faculty reflections from a multidisciplinary Teaching Squares initiative designed to enhance online instruction through collaborative peer learning and reflective practice. Grounded in Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, Teaching Squares foster reciprocal classroom observations, self-reflection, and instructional innovation. Faculty from diverse disciplines engaged in structured peer observations and discussions focused on course design, student engagement, and the integration of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence. Reflections revealed increased instructional self-efficacy, refined teaching practices, expanded pedagogical perspectives, and stronger collegial connections. Teaching Squares offer a scalable framework for faculty development that promotes reflective practice, cross-disciplinary collaboration, and equitable, innovative online instruction. This presentation and study advocates for the broader adoption of Teaching Squares to strengthen virtual learning communities, enhance student learning experiences, and prepare faculty to address the evolving challenges and opportunities of online education.

• Factors Influencing Novice Faculty Acclimation in Higher Education: A Literature Review

  Cheryl Stewart, University of Tennessee at MartinCayce Batts, University of Tennessee at Martin
  Abstract

  This presentation focuses on research and teaching support for early-career higher education faculty. The purpose of this research is to highlight key findings from a literature review suggesting that early-career support—such as mentoring programs and campus-wide initiatives—can help faculty acclimate to the demands of their roles. The presentation examines existing literature published within the past six years to better understand factors that contribute to faculty acclimation. This presentation is part of a larger study and focuses on the current knowledge base.

International Studies

• Rural Development Efforts to Enhance Teaching and Learning in Ghana

  Nathan Crook, Ohio State UniversityD. Rose Elder, Ohio State University
  Abstract

  This presentation will discuss how the presenters identified a need for modern technology in Ghanaian schools and how they went about developing computer labs with high speed internet that support contemporary educational objectives. The presentation will include multimedia feedback by Ghanaian teachers and students. While visiting junior high school classrooms in Ghana in 2022, the presenters were shocked to see the information and computer technology teachers teaching how to create a Microsoft file by drawing a diagram of a MS window on the chalkboard.

• 3D Printing as a Teaching Tool in Ghana

  Zack Matesich, Ohio State University
  Abstract

  This presentation will detail efforts in designing lesson plans complete with activities, three-dimensional (3D) models, and associated materials that are ready-made for use in JHS classrooms in Ghana. It will also discuss the implementation of a 3D printing program in two Ghanaian junior high school classrooms.

• Bio Agriculture: A Key Enabler for Safer Health and Environmental Health in India

  Yeluri Ashok Kumar, Acharya Nagarjuna University
  Abstract

  This presentation addresses how bio agriculture has emerged as a transformative approach to sustainable farming and offers a pathway towards safer health and improved environmental resilience. It will also address how in Andhra Pradesh the State has pioneered ecofriendly Cultivation by reducing fertilizers and pesticides. This paradigm shift contributes to healthier communities mitigating climate risks and strengthening rural livelihood.

Social Concerns

• Including Social and Emotional Intelligence

  Beverly A. Doyle, Creighton University
  Abstract

  This presentation focuses on how social and emotional Intelligence, when included in the curriculum, can result in students with improved emotional skills, behavior, and academic performance. Activities designed to teach this will be described, along with what the outcomes can be for students who have these activities taught and integrated in their classrooms. Diverse classrooms often have students from varying backgrounds and social and emotional intelligence lessons are of equal if not greater importance for teachers today.

• Psychological Fitness: The Development of Cognitive, Emotional, Regulatory, and Social Skills

  Cosmina Vasilescu, Union Commonwealth University
  Abstract

  This presentation will focus on defining psychological fitness, outlining its benefits, and proposing ways to cultivate it. Psychological fitness represents the ability of people to think, process emotions, regulate behavior, and connect with others effectively. In this context, effective means that people can achieve their goals, feel good, and get along with others. Psychological fitness includes four interdependent and complementary domains: cognitive, emotional insight, regulatory, and social. This presentation aims to increase attendees’ awareness and empower them with tools to strengthen their psychological fitness.

• Navigating One’s Career During Challenging Times

  Courtney E. Gasser, University of Baltimore
  Abstract

  This presentation will focus on practical ways people can help themselves personally and professionally during today’s challenging job market. Theoretically-based and empirically-supported interventions will be discussed with a focus on helping people reconnect with their own innate internal healing energy and wisdom. Strategies that foster meaning and purpose for career practitioners and their clients will be presented. Topics will include goal setting, values, self-care, prioritizing life roles, determining your focus, relaxation and guided imagery, and coping with challenges.

International Perspectives

• Israel in Gaza: Harsh Measures in Harsh Times or Crazy State?

  Matthew Ryan, Euclid University
  Abstract

  For the past three years, Israel has taken increasingly harsh measures to subdue and subjugate Palestinians in Gaza in the hopes of neutralizing the militancy of Hamas. In lieu of making accusations of genocide, ethnic cleansing, sovereignty, and colonialism, this presentation suggests the application of Israeli scholar Yehezkal Dror’s (1971) relatively obscure concept of “crazy state” to contemporary Israeli politics and military goals.

  To achieve this, this presentation has cataloged a variety of Israeli speeches, public policies and military actions and then applied them to Dror’s taxonomy.

• Foreign Policy Approaches to Syria

  William Kirtley, Independent Scholar
  Abstract

  Analysis of foreign policy in Syria begins with general concepts like idealism and realism. However, additional adjectival qualifiers, like flexible realism, are required for an in-depth analysis. This paper has four main objectives. First, what were the origins of the revolution against Assad? Second, how did the organization of the jihadist group, Hyat Tahir al-Sham, facilitate the overthrow of Assad? Third, what are the challenges facing Syria’s new government. Fourth, how has the Israel-US conflict with Iran affected Syria? This study discusses these objectives in three chronological sections: The Assad Regime, the overthrow of that government, and post-Assad developments.

• From Student Poverty to Global Power: Witnessing China’s Transformation

  Greg Levitt, University of Nevada, Las VegasSteve Grubaugh, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
  Abstract

  This presentation focuses on China’s rise to a leader of the multipolar world resulted from a distinctive combination of market reform, centralized leadership, policy experimentation, long-term planning, infrastructure, education, manufacturing, international trade, and a governing commitment to improve material living conditions. After Tiananmen Square exposed a profound crisis of legitimacy, the Communist Party rejected political democratization but increasingly grounded its authority in prosperity, stability, technological progress, and national restoration.

Social and Education Views

• The US Penny is on Hospice

  Barba Patton, Texas A&M University–Victoria
  Abstract

  This presentation will focus on the penny. Due to economics the US Penny is no longer being minted. Let’s look at it before it is too late. The penny has a long history and has been an important part of the US monetary system. Just as many of us have differing thoughts about one of our loved ones being in Hospice, many people and businesses have differing opinions about the penny. Let’s prepare its obituary as we might not want to admit it, but it is something we must face soon.

• Let’s Put on Our Sherlock Holmes Cap and Investigate: Who/What is ZERO?

  Barba Patton, Texas A&M University–Victoria
  Abstract

  This presentation will focus on looking at some of the education pitfalls of today’s teaching of math. ZERO is a very important digit in mathematics and in our world. However, ZERO is so multifaceted that it is almost scary. ZERO is this when that occurs and ZERO is that when this other thing occurs. It is no wonder that young students are left in a confused state of mind. We will prepare a ZERO Scrapbook to document the many interesting facts ZERO represents.

• Integrating Literacy Across the Curriculum

  Eddie Thompson, Christian Brothers University
  Abstract

  This presentation focuses on the idea that literacy can be infused across the curriculum spectrum. Often when we use the term literacy, our mind will quickly go to elementary classrooms and students learning to read. Today, in our modern-day classrooms, not only can we not assume that all of our students know the fundamentals of reading, but we must figure out creative ways that we cannot only instruct, but also support literacy instructions across the curriculum.

Education and History Under the Microscope

• Examining Dialogue as a 21st Century Learning Model

  James Mbuva, National University
  Abstract

  This study examines dialogue as a 21st century learning model to enhance the discovery of new knowledge and its application, use, and evaluation, leading to design and creation.

• Middle School STEM Assessments: If Teachers Differentiate Instruction, Then Shouldn’t the Assessments Be Differentiated Too?

  DeAnna Owens-Mosby, University of Memphis
  Abstract

  This presentation will discuss how middle school teachers assess their students. As educators, we meet the needs of all learners by planning out lessons that have student-centered activities that are developmentally appropriate to ensure learning. What happens when we assess the students? Should we offer them differentiated assessments?

• No Passport Required: Turning the Classroom into a Global Classroom

  Patti Abels, Findlay University
  Abstract

  This paper presents a classroom-based approach to international accounting education that eliminates the need for study abroad. Students compare IFRS and US GAAP by analyzing real Asian companies’ products, stakeholders, cultural context, financial performance, and governance practices. A key innovation integrates AI directly into the assignment: students prompt AI for company analysis, then identify its weaknesses, research corrections, and defend their findings—transforming AI from a threat into a pedagogical tool that builds judgment and skepticism. Collaborative in-class discussion and guest speakers from international firms like KPMG further develop cross-cultural business understanding, cultivating the research, critical-thinking, and accounting skills employers value, without cost or logistical barriers.

• What’s New with the edTPA?

  DeAnna Owens-Mosby, University of Memphis
  Abstract

  This presentation will allow participants to see how the edTPA has changed. It is now called edTPA essentials. The presentation will be an overview of the changes and how the edTPA essentials has been modified.

• “Rediscovering” American Founder James Madison

  Samuel B. Hoff, Delaware State University
  Abstract

  This presentation offers a book review of Jesse Wegman’s 2026 release, Lost Founder: James Wilson and the Forgotten Fight for a People’s Constitution. The review will summarize content, compare the text to other similar books, and assess findings.

Issues in Race and Ethnicity Symposium

This symposium features three papers dealing with issues in race and ethnicity in the United States of America.

• Picking Up the Gun Against Confederate Soldiers: The Case of Sergeant Cato Wright as a Gullah Man and Black Union Soldier, 1862–1866

  J. Vern Cromartie, Contra Costa College
  Abstract

  This paper examines Sergeant Cato Wright as a Gullah man and Black Union soldier from 1862 to 1866 in the First South Carolina Volunteers and the United States Colored Troops 33rd Infantry Regiment. It also examines Wright’s life after the Civil War from 1866 to his death in 1893.

• Black Life, Leadership, and Legacy in Macon, Georgia: The Case of Moses Lightfoot, Sr.

  Marti Miller, Valdosta State UniversityMuriel Jackson, Washington Memorial Library of Macon, Georgia
  Abstract

  This paper examines Moses Lightfoot, Sr.’s life and journalism in Macon, Georgia during the 1940s and 1950s. It also examines how Lightfoot’s columns appeared on the “Personal and Social News for Colored People” page in The Macon News newspaper and helped to shed light on the interconnected network of Black professionals, educators, clergy, entrepreneurs, veterans, and community leaders whose work strengthened Black Macon during segregation.

• Reconstructing Enslaved Family Networks Through Documentary Research, DNA, and Enslaver Kinship Networks

  Delbra Brown, Block Builders Academy
  Abstract

  This paper introduces a network-based methodology developed through BTTBW.net and the Honoring Our Enslaved Ancestors Project (HOEAP). It also examines how enslaved Black people were transferred through marriage, inheritance, estates, gifts, migration, and property transactions among members of extended enslaver White families.