Professional Learning Communities (PLCs)

2026–2027 Academic Year

A Modern Teaching Salon

CRTLE Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) are inspired by the intellectual tradition of the Salons of Paris—regular gatherings where thinkers, creators, and practitioners came together to exchange ideas, dialogue, explore emerging questions, and learn through conversation. This is not a class or a workshop!

Like those salons, CRTLE PLCs are designed as intellectual commons for teaching across departments and colleges: spaces where faculty engage in dialogue, experimentation, and collective sense‑making around pedagogy.

Rather than one‑time workshops, PLCs function as sustained, faculty‑driven communities that emphasize:

  • Knowledge sharing across disciplines and teaching contexts to circulate ideas
  • Pedagogical innovation grounded in real classroom practice
  • Think‑tank–style discussion of emerging challenges and opportunities as well as cross‑pollination of ideas across units
  • Crowdsourcing and piloting new ideas in courses, with space to reflect on what works—and what doesn’t
  • Exploratory Talk and Ideas‑in‑Progress: Each meeting will start with: “What’s one teaching question you’re sitting with right now?” and “What did you try since last time—successful or not?”
Illustration of a diverse group of people connected by lines and icons, representing online networking, communication, and collaboration.

Faculty are encouraged to bring works‑in‑progress into the PLC: teaching ideas, assignments, questions, experiments, and even uncertainties. Through regular meetings, guest speakers, and shared reflection, participants collectively surface patterns, refine practices, and contribute to broader campus conversations and problem-solving about teaching and learning.

Across the academic year, PLC participants:

  • Engage in structured discussion and peer‑led knowledge sharing about applications to teaching and learning.
  • Learn from occasional guest speakers and campus partners about trends and issues relating to the PLC topic.
  • Pilot new pedagogical approaches in their own courses, whether face-to-face, hybrid, or online modalities.
  • Develop their professional knowledge and skills around evidence-based and high-impact teaching innovations and seek feedback from students.
  • Create microcontent (e.g., short reflections, examples, templates, or teaching tips) to share insights with the wider faculty community. Microcontent summarizes key ideas for other faculty.
  • Participate in the April CRTLE Faculty Showcase in Spring 2027, sharing lessons learned and ideas in progress.

Participation in each PLC is intentionally capped (approximately 12 faculty) to preserve the conversational, collegial nature of the group and to support meaningful dialogue—mirroring the salon‑style environment that inspires this work. We will have waiting list.

2025-2026 PLC

To see the outcomes and overview of the 2025-2026 PLC, click here:

professional-learning-communities
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Academic Year 2026-2027

For the 2026–2027 academic year, CRTLE will offer two PLCs: one focused on online learning (but can be used for face-to-face and hybrid teaching) and one on artificial intelligence and teaching. Occasionally, the two PLC groups will meet together.

Apply Here. Application Deadline is by or before August 1, 2026. 

Apply Here

Benefits for Faculty/Staff Participation:

  • Individual and group technical and pedagogical support and training
  • Interaction with leaders in the field of education
  • Opportunity to experiment among supportive colleagues
  • Connected conversation across disciplines about creating meaningful learning experiences
  • Paid registration for an Online Learning Consortium (OLC) online workshop (and ability to earn a certificate for course completion). This is optional.
  • Completers will receive a certificate, a recognition email sent to their supervisor and dean, and will be recognized at the Faculty and Associates program in Spring 2026, as well as the CRTLE website.
  • Detailed bio on the CRTLE website.
  • Receive 1-2 books on the topic to keep.
  • Welcome luncheon on September 9, 2026

Expectations:

  • Regular attendance of PLC meetings, including joining with camera on and actively participating in discussion and knowledge-sharing
  • Participate in group attendance and the Spring 2027 annual CRTLE Showcase event
  • Collaborate and share ideas and experiences with PLC colleagues
  • Contribute microlearning deliverable(s) on PLC activities
  • Present information and insight gained to the campus community through a spring campus conference and, if desired by the participant, at national conferences.
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PLC 1: Digital Learning Design Studio: Focus on Online Learning led by Dr. Karen Magruder

Innovating Online & Hybrid Teaching Together

The Digital Learning Design Studio PLC is designed for faculty who teach online or hybrid courses—and those preparing to do so—who want to intentionally design, refine, and sustain high‑quality digital learning experiences. This PLC focuses on practical, adaptable strategies that faculty can test in their own courses while learning from colleagues across disciplines.

This group serves as both a knowledge‑sharing community and a design studio knowledge sharing space, where participants bring real course challenges, exchange ideas, and collaboratively explore what works (and what doesn’t) in online learning.

Topics may include but are not limited to:

  • Designing engaging, inclusive, and accessible online learning experiences
  • Structuring courses for clarity, consistency, and ease of navigation
  • Supporting student presence, interaction, and motivation in online environments
  • Managing instructor workload and sustainability through intentional, accessible design
  • Using templates and design systems to streamline course development while supporting accessibility at scale

Faculty are strongly encouraged to make use of:

  • LinkedIn Learning for just‑in‑time skill building and exploration of emerging practices
  • DesignPlus (To support consistent, accessible, and scalable online course design

Books Provided by CRTLE:

Outcomes

By participating in the Digital Learning Design Studio PLC, faculty will:

  • Strengthen confidence and intentionality in online and hybrid course design
  • Pilot at least one new digital teaching or design strategy in a course
  • Receive peer feedback through structured knowledge sharing
  • Contribute to a shared set of online teaching insights and practices at UTA

Format & Schedule

  • Meeting cadence: Every three weeks
  • Format: Virtual (Microsoft Teams)
  • Fall semester: Mid‑September through early December
  • Spring semester: Late January through early April

Tentative meeting dates: Selected Fridays, 1:00-2:30 pm

  • Fall: September 18, October 9, October 30, November 20
  • Spring: January 29, February 19, March 19, April 2
AI

PLC 2: Teaching with AI Learning Community

Exploring Pedagogy-First Approaches to AI and Learning led by Dr. Amy Hodges

Facilitator: Dr. Amy Hodges

The Teaching with AI Learning Community brings together faculty who want to thoughtfully explore how generative AI and related technologies are reshaping teaching, learning, and assessment. Designed for faculty who are newer to AI, this PLC takes a pedagogy-first approach, centering instructional goals, disciplinary values, and student learning rather than tools alone.

This group functions as an exploration and practice community, where faculty learn alongside peers, examine emerging applications of AI in teaching, share questions and early experiences, and identify practical strategies that can support student learning and faculty effectiveness.

Book(s) Provided by CRTLE:

Topics may include:

  • Exploring the capabilities and limitations of generative AI tools
  • Using AI to support instructional planning, feedback, and course development
  • Supporting student AI literacy and critical thinking
  • Developing transparent and ethical guidelines for AI use in courses
  • Designing assignments and learning activities in AI-rich environments
  • Sharing examples of AI use, and intentional non-use, across disciplines

Faculty are strongly encouraged to make use of LinkedIn Learning and Coursera to explore AI-related concepts, teaching strategies, and emerging practices that can inform discussion and experimentation within the PLC. We also encourage you to complete the Google AI Professional Certificate (free through UTA Coursera Career Academy). To access Coursera, click on MyApps (My Apps) using your UTA login credentials and then locate the tile for Coursera Career Academy.

Outcomes

By participating in the Teaching with AI Learning Community, faculty will:

  • Develop a clearer framework for responsible, pedagogically grounded AI use
  • Build confidence in evaluating and using AI tools for teaching and learning
  • Pilot at least one AI-supported instructional strategy or learning activity
  • Learn from cross-disciplinary perspectives on AI and teaching
  • Participate in campus conversations about teaching in an AI-enabled world

Format & Schedule

  • Meeting cadence: Every three weeks
  • Format: Virtual (Microsoft Teams)
  • Fall semester: Mid‑September through early December
  • Spring semester: Late January through early April

Tentative meeting dates: Selected Fridays, 1:00-2:30 pm

  • Fall: September 18, October 9, October 30, November 20
  • Spring: January 29, February 19, March 19, April 2
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PLC 3: Teaching in the Age of AI Collaborative

Advanced Pedagogy-First Approaches to AI, Assessment, and Future-Ready Learning

Facilitator: Dr. Kevin Carr

The Teaching in the Age of AI Collaborative brings together faculty who want to engage more deeply with the pedagogical, ethical, and disciplinary implications of generative AI and related technologies. This PLC takes a pedagogy-first approach, centering instructional goals, disciplinary values, and student learning while examining how AI may be transforming higher education, workforce preparation, assessment, and knowledge creation.

This group functions as a think tank and experimentation hub, where faculty collaboratively surface complex questions, share pilot projects and course redesign efforts, and crowdsource responsible, evidence-informed approaches to AI in teaching and learning.

Book(s) Provided by CRTLE:

Topics may include:

  • Designing authentic assignments and assessments in AI-rich learning environments
  • Rethinking academic integrity, feedback, and evaluation practices
  • Supporting advanced AI literacy, critical thinking, and responsible use
  • Developing transparent, ethical, and discipline-specific AI policies
  • Using AI to support instructional planning, feedback, course redesign, and sense-making
  • Sharing examples of AI use, and intentional non-use, across disciplines
  • Examining emerging research, trends, and implications for future-ready pedagogy

Faculty are strongly encouraged to make use of LinkedIn Learning and Coursera to explore AI-related concepts, teaching strategies, and emerging practices that can inform discussion and experimentation within the PLC. We also encourage you to complete the Google AI Professional Certificate (free through UTA Coursera Career Academy). To access Coursera, click on MyApps (My Apps) using your UTA login credentials and then locate the tile for Coursera Career Academy.

Outcomes

By participating in the Teaching in the Age of AI Collaborative, faculty will:

  • Develop a sophisticated framework for responsible, pedagogically grounded AI integration
  • Pilot and evaluate at least one AI-related instructional strategy, assignment redesign, or assessment innovation
  • Engage in cross-disciplinary dialogue about ethics, policy, and future-ready teaching
  • Share lessons learned and emerging practices with the wider campus community
  • Contribute to institutional conversations shaping the future of teaching and learning in an AI-enabled world

Format & Schedule

Tentatively Thursday afternoons on designated days, time to be determined

Tentative meeting dates are below:

  • Fall: September 17, October 8, October 29, November 19
  • Spring: January 28, February 18, March 18, April 1

Who Should Join a PLC?

PLCs are open to faculty across all colleges and career stages who are interested in:

  • Pedagogical innovation and experimentation
  • Learning from peers across disciplines
  • Sharing ideas, challenges, and emerging practices
  • Shaping the future of teaching at UTA

No prior expertise is required—just curiosity, openness, and a willingness to learn and experiment together.

Row of simple line icons depicting people, charts, targets, checklists, awards, and analytics symbols representing goals, performance, teamwork, and achievement.

Led by Expert Facilitators:

Both PLCs are led by experienced faculty facilitators with deep expertise in teaching innovation, who guide the groups in the spirit of a modern teaching salon. Rather than serving as lecturers, facilitators act as hosts and conversation stewards—curating meaningful questions, inviting dialogue, and creating space for shared inquiry and experimentation. Drawing inspiration from the salon tradition, facilitators support a collegial, intellectually generative environment where ideas evolve through discussion, reflection, and peer feedback. They help participants surface patterns across disciplines, connect individual experiments to broader pedagogical questions, and engage thoughtfully with guest speakers and campus partners. Throughout the year, facilitators foster a culture that values curiosity, works‑in‑progress, and collaborative sense‑making, ensuring the PLCs remain inclusive, dynamic spaces for faculty learning and innovation.

 

When spider webs unite they can tie up a lion
African Proverb