Program

Plan to arrive at the hotel in time for the 4pm start time on Tuesday, July 29, 2025 and airport departure after 3pm on Thursday, July 31, 2025.

Jump to: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3

Day 1: Community Building and Learning about ITYC Projects

Tuesday, July 29, 2025, Hilton Alexandria Old Town

1:00pm - 3:45pm Meetings with NSF Program Officers

2:00pm - 4:00pm Registration at hotel

4:00pm - 4:45pm Welcome and Introductions: Welcome, norms, expectations, Summit goals and overview, ice-breaker

  • Bring your sense of curiosity!

4:45pm - 5:45pm Celebrate ITYC Projects: Share and Learn

  • Micro-poster sessions at tables to share and learn about the range of ITYC projects

5:45 pm - 6:00pm Break before dinner

6:00pm - 8:00pm Working Dinner: Food for Thought

  • Conversations about ITYC projects and more
  • Closing remarks, next-day plans, roadcheck

Day 2: Strategies for Innovation; NSF opportunities for TYCs

Wednesday, July 30, 2025, NSF Headquarters

6:30am - 7:45am Breakfast at Hilton Alexandria Old Town

7:30am - TBD Shuttle or walk to NSF Headquarters

8:00am - 8:45am Informal Birds-of-a-Feather Conversations at NSF

8:00am - 8:45am Meetings with NSF Program Officers

8:45am - 9:00am Getting Settled

9:00am - 10:00am Opening Session: ITYC Program Goals and Your Projects

  • Micro-poster sessions at tables to share and learn about ITYC projects

10:00am - 10:20am Break

10:20am - 11:50am Working Groups: What Works

Participants will engage in small group discussions related to several topics of interest to ITYC: supporting the students in our programs, undergraduate research, students' professional pathways, emerging technologies, faculty professional development, cultural change, and education research.

11:50am - 12:00pm Short break before buffet lunch

12:00pm - 1:30pm Working lunch - Dynamic Leadership: Navigating Complex Collaborations

In this lunchtime session, Dr. Becky Wai-Ling Packard, Mary E. Woolley Professor of Psychology and Education at Mount Holyoke College, will offer perspectives from contrasting leadership models that can shed light on the dynamics (and frustrations) that sometimes emerge within our higher education collaborations. While it is one thing to say leadership is dynamic and changing, it is another to navigate that complexity. Whether serving as a leader by role, aiming to lead from the middle, or simply leading by example, participants will discuss sources of friction within collaborations and opportunities to shift the dynamics when facing leadership challenges. Participants will reflect on their own leadership models and relevant collaborations.

1:30pm - 1:50pm Break

1:50pm - 2:40pm NSF Opportunities for 2YCs: ITYC and Beyond (Acrobat (PDF) 1.4MB Aug29 25)

Session led by Dr. Kalyn Owens, Dr. Christine Delahanty. Other program officers from NSF will participate.

2:40pm - 3:00pm Break

3:00pm - 4:30pm Working Together

  • Option A: Community Conversations: Strategies for effective collaborations and partnerships with other offices on your campus, other TYCs, 4YCs, evaluators, and others.
  • Option B: From Concept to Funding: Shaping STEM Education Ideas for Submission to NSF (Acrobat (PDF) 2.4MB Aug29 25) - This interactive session, led by ITYC Program Directors Kalyn Owens and Chris Delahanty, is designed for prospective PIs and those with less NSF experience. It will support participants in transforming their own STEM education innovations into NSF proposals. Through guided activities and discussion, attendees will refine their project ideas by building on evidence-based practices, considering their institutional context, situating their work within the regional landscape, and addressing student needs. The session also highlights how engaging with the broader two-year college STEM education community can strengthen proposals and foster meaningful professional growth. Participants will leave with clear next steps and a stronger foundation for proposal development and submission.

4:30pm - 5:00pm Closing Session with roadcheck

6:30pm - 8:00pm Dinner at Hilton Alexandria Old Town

Then networking, jigsaw puzzles, card games, other unconference activities

Day 3: Looking to the Future

Thursday, July 31, 2025, Hilton Alexandria Old Town

7:00am - 8:15am Breakfast at Hotel

Informal birds-of-a-feather conversations

8:30am - 9:15am Opening Session: Panel on scaling-up and sustainability

9:15am - 10:40am NSF Grant Management: Wouldn't it be great if...?

  • Share challenges and strategies, discuss lessons learned, and make recommendations

10:40am - 11:00am Break

11:00am - 12:00pm Closing Session: Future Possibilities and Next Steps, Summit Evaluation

12:00pm - 1:00pm Pick up box lunches