January 2026
January 2026 Wednesday Writing Workshops
The CILA “Writing Wednesdays” workshop series, led by Diane LeBlanc, Professor and Director of Writing, offers time, space, and guidance as you engage with your scholarly and creative work during and beyond January. Please click here to learn more and sign up.
“Sharing Your Experience Publicly” Community of Practice
Faculty and academic staff are invited to participate in a January community of practice on “Sharing Your Expertise Publicly.” Each Tuesday from 3:30-5:00 pm in January will feature reflection on what it means to be a “public scholar” in this particular moment and discuss the means and methods to informally share your expertise through a variety of public channels alongside weekly guest presenters. Honorariums and hospitality provided. Click here to learn more and register by December 12!
Co-sponsored by CILA, the Boldt Chair, and the Svoboda Center for Civic Engagement
Spring 2026 Events
Shawna Shapiro: Critical Language Awareness. February 19-20, 2026.
CILA is co-sponsoring Shawna Shapiro’s visit to campus. Shapiro will deliver a public lecture on Critical Language Awareness on Thursday, February 19th, 4:00-5:00pm, and lead a workshop for 10-20 faculty who will have attended the public talk on Friday, February 20th, 11:45 -12:45. More information coming soon!
Cake with CILA: Celebrating Tenure and Promotion February 26, 2026, 3:30-4:30, CILA Office, RML 300
Come celebrate our colleagues’ tenure and promotion with cake and conversation. No RSVP required!
Considering the Low-Tech or No-Tech Classroom, led by Doug Casson and Tom Williamson. March 5, 3:45-5:00, CAD 202.
In response to a wave of new research, student concerns, and our own experiences with technological distractions in the classroom, we have both been experimenting with minimizing or eliminating tech in our classrooms. For us, this has meant creating a space where students can take a break from their phones and laptops and focus on paper books, handwritten notes, and discussion. We have also tried to minimize tech outside of the classroom, encouraging students to spend time preparing for class away from tech and communicating as much as possible face-to-face during class and office hours and not through online teaching platforms. Although some students have been surprised, the response has been overwhelmingly positive with fewer accommodation challenges that we anticipated. During this session, we hope to share our reasoning and our experiences, and hear from colleagues about the benefits as well as the drawbacks of this approach.
Difficult Classroom Conversations, led by Chris Chapp. March 10, 3:30-5:00, TBD.
Challenging social and political conversations are everywhere, from our personal lives to public discussions. The classroom environment raises a unique set of challenges around these conversations ranging from positionality to neutrality to academic freedom. Drawing on the experiences of a faculty community of practice that met in the fall of 2024 we present a framework for getting the most of these conversations with our students. We will both present the findings of the community of practice and workshop classroom scenarios to co-create a set of best practices to guide participants in their teaching.
Assessment Workshop, led by Jean Porterfield, Chair of the Assessment Committee. March 19, 2026, 3:45-5:00, TBD
If you have an idea for an event, please get in touch with Nancy Thompson (thompsn@stolaf.edu.)
Year-long Reading, Writing, and Talking groups
Writing Alone, Together
CILA is happy to sponsor writing groups and workshops for faculty and staff during the 2025-26 academic year. Click here to learn more and to sign up for January Writing Wednesdays.
Slow Food, Slow Living, Slow Looking, Slow Professor, Slow Pedagogy–slow everything?
This reading group will explore various “slow” movements and discuss how they can impact our lives as teachers, scholars, and administrators. Open to all interested staff and faculty. Click here for more information.
Mid-career faculty community
Are you a mid-career faculty member who would like to discuss ways to prioritize what matters to you at this busy stage of your career? For the purposes of this reading group, mid-career is defined as teaching faculty of any rank and appointment type who are between these two milestones: about seven years after receiving a terminal degree and about ten years before retirement. Click here for more information.
CILA on the Road!
Is there an idea or an issue that your department/program would like to work on this academic year? CILA is here to help! Click here for information on how to get started.