University of Tennessee SoTL Retreat

Sponsored by the University of Tennessee Educational Developers Consortium and funded by the University of Tennessee System, the first annual UT SoTL Retreat will be held June 12-13 at Henry Horton State Park in Chapel Hill, TN. 

Located about an hour south of Nashville, the retreat will provide University of Tennessee faculty interested or engaged in the scholarship of teaching and learning dedicated time to work on grant proposals, papers, or presentations while surrounded by experts in SoTL, grant preparation, literature reviews, scholarly writing, research methodology, and many others. The schedule is a combination of keynote speakers, networking, idea sharing and feedback, and writing time.

The retreat is 100% free for University of Tennessee faculty. Travel expenses such as mileage, food, and overnight lodging in the park’s lodge will be covered.

Getting There

The retreat is at:

Lodge at Henry Horton
4201 Nashville Hwy, Chapel Hill, TN 37034

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Schedule

Thursday, June 12
12:30pm-1:00pm	Registration		Lodge A
1:00pm-1:30pm	Welcome/overview		Lodge A
1:30pm-2:30pm	Anchor Session	Laura Cruz, Penn State University and editor of Transformative Dialogues: Teaching and Learning Journal and Journal of General Education	Lodge A
2:30pm-3:00pm	Break
3:00pm-4:00pm	Group Activity What are your ideas, where are you in the process?	Chris Kilgore, Director for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, UT Knoxville	Lodge A
4:00-5:00pm	YOU CHOOSE
	Writing Time Find a quiet place to work on your grant proposal, paper, or presentation, or spend time talking with any of the experts on hand.	Retreat to your room, find a picnic table near the lodge, or walk down to the river and work alongside the sound of calming water.
	Concurrent Sessions
	From Idea to Paper: Designing a SoTL Research Paper in My Discipline	Adnan Rasool, Director, Center for Teaching and Learning, UT Martin	Lodge A
	Entering the SoTL Conversation: Leveraging Classroom Practices for Scholarly Impact	Devin Scott, Instructional Consultant, UT Health Science Center	Lodge B
	Seeking External Funding for My Research	Jessica Snowden, Vice President for Research, UT Health Science Center	Lodge C
	But Is It “Red Tape”?  IRB Rules as Opportunities	Chris Kilgore, Director for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, UT Knoxville	Private Dining Room
5:00pm-6:30pm	Writing Time Find a quiet place to work on your grant proposal, paper, or presentation, or spend time talking with any of the experts on hand.	Retreat to your room, find a picnic table near the lodge, or walk down to the river and work alongside the sound of calming water.
6:30pm-7:30pm	Dinner	Barbecue!	Pavillion 2
7:30pm	Group activity (something fun!)	Adnan Rasool, Director, Center for Teaching and Learning, UT Martin and Melissa Ryckman, Director, Teaching and Learning Center, UT Southern	Outdoor Stage
Friday, June 13
7:00am-8:00am	Breakfast		Lodge A
8:00am-9:00am	Anchor Session Elevating Education: Strategies for Showcasing Teaching and Research Achievements	Jessica Snowden, Vice President for Research, and Kyle Moore, Director, Scientific Writing, UT Health Science Center	Lodge A
9:00am-9:15am	Break
9:15am-10:15am	YOU CHOOSE
	Writing Time Find a quiet place to work on your grant proposal, paper, or presentation, or spend time talking with any of the experts on hand.	Retreat to your room, find a picnic table near the lodge, or walk down to the river and work alongside the sound of calming water.
	Concurrent Sessions
	Going Public: Finding an Outlet for Your Research	Laura Cruz, Penn State University and editor of Transformative Dialogues: Teaching and Learning Journal and Journal of General Education and Chris Kilgore, Director for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, UT Knoxville	Lodge A
	Using, analyzing, and reporting qualitative data	Devin Scott, Instructional Consultant, UT Health Science Center	Lodge B
	Preparing a SoTL Literature Review for My Topic of Inquiry	Grace Therrell, Assistant Professor, Libraries, UT Knoxville	Lodge C
	Using, analyzing, and reporting quantitative data	Tom Laughner, Director, Teaching and Learning Center, UT Health Science Center	Private Dining Room
10:15am-12:00pm	Writing time  Find a quiet place to work on your grant proposal, paper, or presentation, or spend time talking with any of the experts on hand.	Retreat to your room, find a picnic table near the lodge, or walk down to the river and work alongside the sound of calming water.
12:00pm-1:00pm	Group check-in and Lunch	Victoria Bryan, Director of the Walker Center for Teaching and Learning, UT Chattanooga	Lodge A
1:00pm-4:00pm	Writing time  Find a quiet place to work on your grant proposal, paper, or presentation, or spend time talking with any of the experts on hand.	Retreat to your room, find a picnic table set around the lodge, or walk down to the river and work alongside the sound of calming water.
4:00pm-4:30pm	Check-in and Closing Activity	Victoria Bryan, Director of the Walker Center for Teaching and Learning, UT Chattanooga	Lodge A
4:30pm	Departure

 

Speakers and Consultants

The following individuals will be available throughout the retreat for individual consultations.

• Victoria Bryan, Director of the Walker Center for Teaching and Learning, UT Chattanooga
• Laura Cruz is a Research Professor with the Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence at Penn State. She is also a Fulbright Specialist and holds a position as a Visiting Scholar with the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Prishtina (Kosovo). She has served as the editor of five teaching and learning journals, including her current appointment as co-editor of the Journal of General Education.   She is the co-editor of 3 recent books: The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in the Health Professions (volumes 1 and 2) (Wiley, 2024)  and the forthcoming volume An Applied Introduction to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (Indiana University Press, 2025). 
• Chris Kilgore, Director for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, UT Knoxville
• Kyle Moore, Director, Scientific Writing, UT Health Science Center
• Adnan Rasool, Director, Center for Teaching and Learning, UT Martin
• Devin Scott is an Instructional Consultant at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s Teaching and Learning Center. With expertise in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), curriculum development, course design, and assessment, Devin is dedicated to enhancing educational practices. He has extensive experience in teaching and designing in-person, online, and hybrid courses. Devin is passionate about collaborating with researchers at UT and globally to publish impactful teaching and learning scholarship.
• Grace Therrell is an Assistant Professor and the Student Success Librarian for Online Pedagogy at UT Libraries in Knoxville. She has been supporting faculty SoTL research since 2021 as a collaborator, faculty co-leader, and faculty coach with UTK Teaching and Learning Innovation’s SoTL Funding Support Program. She has offered support through consulting with faculty one-on-one, helping with literature review searches, and creating a research guide for different phases of the SoTL process. Additionally, Grace serves on UTK’s Scholarly Teaching Advisory Network and conducts her own SoTL research.
• Jessica Snowden, Vice President for Research, UT Health Science Center

What to Bring

While the lodge is very comfortable and modern, we will (weather permitting) be spending just a little time outside. Here are a few items to bring:

• Laptop or tablet (not required, but may be helpful for some of the events)
• Umbrella (most of the events are in one building, but there may be a need to move to another building)
• Bug spray
• Flashlight
• Chair for outdoor seating
• Comfortable clothes (it’s a retreat, so time to relax!)

Application Form

While there is no cost to attend the retreat, space is extremely limited. Please complete this short application form to indicate your interest and preparation to attend.

The application form will be open until March 31 and those selected to participate will be notified by April 15.

Questions?

Contact your CTL Director if you have any questions or concerns about the retreat. We look forward to seeing you!

UT Chattanooga	Victoria Bryan victoria-bryan@utc.edu
UT Health Science Center	Tom Laughner tlaughner@uthsc.edu
UT Knoxville	Ferlin McGaskey fmcgaske@utk.edu
UT Martin	Adnan Rasool arasool1@utm.edu
UT Southern	Melissa Ryckman mryckman@utsouthern.edu