Open to all! Early in each semester, the Teaching Academy invites the campus community to gather for a morning of conversations on a relevant theme in higher education teaching and learning. These topics help to prepare instructors and faculty for another successful year with undergraduate students and allow campus educators to discuss new updates in undergraduate education. If you are interested in helping to plan or facilitate the next Fall or Winter Retreat, please contact Dan Pell (retreats-uwta@g-groups.wisc.edu).
- The Fall Retreat celebrates Fall in Madison by gathering for a morning of conversations on a relevant theme in higher education teaching and learning.
- The Winter Retreat is a half day event in the dark of winter to share ideas on teaching and learning topics creating a buzz on campus.
Contact Dan Pell (retreats-uwta@g-groups.wisc.edu) with questions, or to get involved!
Winter Retreat: Building a Culture of Wellbeing through Accessibility & Accommodations
- Date: Friday, 6 February 2026 (Free & Open to All)
- Time: 9-11:30 am
- Location: H.F. DeLuca Forum, Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery and Zoom
- Register to Attend
Light breakfast will be served from 8:30am. Zoom opens at 8:45am.
Description: As higher education evolves, building and sustaining a broad culture of accessibility is more important than ever. The Winter Retreat will be an opportunity for instructors, TAs, and those who support instruction to gather and share how they bring accessibility into their teaching and daily work. Participants will discover and discuss emerging technologies and practical strategies to remove barriers, enhance student engagement, and promote long-term accessibility practices. Whether you’re just beginning your accessibility journey or looking to deepen your practice, this retreat will help you move beyond a compliance mindset toward innovative approaches that contribute to a culture of better learning and wellbeing for all.
Format: The 2026 Winter Retreat will include a series of short presentations from invited and volunteer speakers about how they’re approaching this topic and breakout activities to build community and consider how to bring what you’ve heard back to your campus context.
Call for Speakers: Want to share how you or your colleagues are creating a culture of wellbeing through accessibility and accommodations? You can have up to 5 minutes of stage time to share what you’re doing: Register to Speak
Questions about the Retreats? Contact Dan Pell (Chair): dan.pell@wisc.edu
Past Fall Retreats
Retreat Recap | Neurodivergence on Our Campus (Oct 18, 2024)
On October 18, over 200 faculty, staff and students gathered in the DeLuca Forum (WID) and on Zoom to talk about experiences of neurodivergence on campus, and strategies for respectful inclusion and interaction. Panelists Scott …
Retreat Recap | How to Build a Culture of Feedback (Sep 29, 2023)
Over 150 people took part in the Teaching Academy’s Fall Retreat on Fri Sept 29 in the DeLuca Forum (WID). Invited guest speakers Ayse Okur (Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis), Mitra Sharafi (Law), Sandrine Pell (Collaborative Language Program), Tracy Puccinelli (Biomedical Engineering) discussed how to …
Retreat Recap | Addressing Linguistic Bias to Support All Learners (Sep 30, 2022)
The Teaching Academy’s Fall Retreat took place on Friday, September 30 online and in Gordon Commons. Over 200 people attended our first hybrid event, engaging in vibrant conversations despite some significant technical challenges. A captioned …
Retreat Recap: Ableism, Disability, and Inclusive Practices (Oct 01, 2021)
Ableism, Disability, and Inclusive Practices The 2021 Fall retreat was held on Friday, October 1st from 9 – 11am. The theme was Ableism, Disability, and Inclusive Practices. The event featured a panel discussion with both …
Retreat Recap: A More Inclusive and Empowering Campus (Oct 02, 2020)
A More Inclusive and Empowering Campus! On Friday, October 2, Caitlyn LoMonte (she/her/hers), the Program Director for Social Justice Education in the Office of Inclusion Education led a workshop on the theme of creating a …
Retreat Recap: Inclusive Teaching — Evidence and Practice (Sep 27, 2019)
2019: Inclusive Teaching — Evidence and Practice On Friday, Sep 27, 130 campus educators heard Markus Brauer share several simple inclusive teaching practices you can incorporate into your teaching — including the research and evidence that supports them. This was …
Retreat Recap: Intellectual Confidence (Sep 28, 2018)
2018: Intellectual Confidence On Friday, September 28, the UW-Madison Teaching Academy held its 2018 Fall Retreat. The theme focused on Intellectual Confidence from the recently refined language of the Wisconsin Experience. Tied to the Wisconsin Idea, The Wisconsin Experience is UW-Madison’s vision …
Retreat Recap: Relentless Curiosity (Oct 06, 2017)
2017: Relentless Curiosity On Friday, October 6, the UW-Teaching Academy held its 2017 Fall Kickoff. The theme focused on Relentless Curiosity from the recently refined language of the Wisconsin Experience. Tied to the Wisconsin Idea, The Wisconsin Experience is UW-Madison’s …
Retreat Recap: Student Feedback (Sep 23, 2016)
2016: Student Feedback On Friday, September 23 the UW-Teaching Academy held its 2016 Fall Kickoff in Gordon Commons to discuss the role of student feedback in improving teaching. Just over 100 educators met! View the slide …
Retreat Recap: Reimagining Our World of Teaching and Learning (Oct 03, 2014)
Reimagining Our World of Teaching & Learning On Friday October 3, the UW-Teaching Academy held its 2014 Fall Kickoff in the Great Hall of Memorial Union. Our theme was “Reimagining our World of Teaching and …
Retreat Recap: Enhancing Student Learning Through Feedback (Oct 04, 2013)
Enhancing Student Learning Through Feedback On Friday October 4 about 100 instructors gathered at Union South to talk about enhancing student learning through feedback. Campus experts across disciplines shared research-based principles and experience-informed practices on …
Retreat Recap: From Philosophy to Feedback (Sep 28, 2012)
Grading: From Philosophy to Feedback On Friday, September 28th, from 8:30-1, about 140 educators gathered at Union South to explore the purposes of assigning grades to students and to generate discussions over alternative practices and …
Retreat Recap: Teaching That Matters (Sep 24, 2010)
Teaching That Matters September 24, 2010. Friday, 9-5pm UW Welcome Center. Featuring Douglas Bernstein, a noted psychologist and textbook author formerly chair of the Psychology Department of the University of Illinois, focused on the similarities between …
Retreat Recap: Relationships (Oct 27, 2009)
Fall Collaborative Teaching Adventures and Learning Outcome Forum. The Teaching Academy kicked off the Teaching Adventures and Outcomes Series of the 2009-2010 academic year on Tuesday, October 27th, 2009. For this event, we hosted Tony Docan-Morgan, …
- More Past Fall Retreats posts
Earlier Fall Retreats
Records unavailable.
Past Winter Retreats
Retreat Recap | AI: Teaching & Tools (Feb 2, 2024)
On February 2, 2024 over 230 instructors, staff, and graduate students gathered in the DeLuca Forum and on Zoom for the Teaching Academy’s 2024 Winter Retreat – AI: Teaching & Tools. Seventeen speakers from a wide range of disciplines …
Retreat Recap | Confronting Burnout, Rekindling Wellbeing, and Rebuilding Connection (Feb 3, 2023)
Winter Retreat Recap | Confronting Burnout, Rekindling Wellbeing, and Rebuilding Connection Raquel Tatar, Sarah Webber, Abby Letak and Wei-Chiao Hsu shared insights and inspiration on burnout, wellbeing and connection at our Winter Retreat, on February 3 in the DeLuca Forum. …
Retreat Recap: Fostering Belonging through Equitable Assessment (Feb 04, 2022)
More than 140 campus members joined us at the 2022 Winter Retreat, which featured Dr. Shobhina Chheda (Associate Dean for Medical Education of SMPH), Prof. Jerome Camal (Anthropology), Dr. Angela Zito (Writing Across the Curriculum), …
Retreat Recap: Supporting Student Mental Health (Feb 05, 2021)
Supporting Student Mental Health in Times of Covid and Beyond Friday, February 5, 9-11am, featured undergraduate student videos of what supported them during this past year of remote instruction followed by a panel (Sarah Nolan, Director …
Retreat Recap: Inclusive Teaching – Gender Inclusivity (Jan 31, 2020)
Thank you to all of the people who joined us from across campus for the Teaching Academy’s Winter Retreat on January 31, 2020. Warren Scherer and Tiffany Lee from the Gender and Sexuality Campus Center …
Retreat Recap: Fostering the Wisconsin Experience — Purposeful Action (Jan 25, 2019)
Fostering the Wisconsin Experience — Purposeful Action Friday, January 25th, 8:30am-11am, DeLuca Forum, WID. Over 70 attended our fourth and final deeper dive considering ways to foster the elements of the Wisconsin Experience, “Purposeful Action.” Andrea …
Retreat Recap: Fostering the Wisconsin Experience — Empathy and Humility (Jan 26, 2018)
Fostering the Wisconsin Experience: Empathy and Humility January 26th, 8:30am-12pm, DeLuca Forum, Wisconsin Institute for Discovery. The 2018 Winter Retreat dug into how to foster Empathy and Humility in our work and teaching. With a …
Retreat: Teaching in Divisive Times (Feb 15, 2017)
Teaching in Divisive Times In an increasingly-polarized culture, teaching and learning are being framed as ideological actions. How do we navigate this in our course spaces? Is discussion an important part of learning? What are best practices for having …
Retreat Recap: Beyond Rate My Professors — Course and Instructor Evaluation (Jan 21, 2016)
Beyond Rate My Professors: The Future of Course and Instructor Evaluation Thursday, January 21st from 8–1:00pm in Union South. At a time of increased accountability, universities are under pressure to build effective methods for evaluating courses …
Retreat Recap: Identifying Communities of Practice (Jan 16, 2015)
Identifying Communities of Practice The UW-Teaching Academy presented its Winter Retreat for 2015 on Friday, January 16 at Union South. Over 50 participants from across campus gathered to share their thoughts, experiences, and visions about …
Retreat Recap: Learning Matters (Jan 17, 2014)
RELATE: Rethinking Effective Learning and Teaching Engagement Why Does the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Matter? The scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) is the process of asking ‘what should I do to enhance learning in …
Retreat Recap: Peer-Review and Evaluation of Teaching (Jan 16, 2013)
Peer-Review and Evaluation of Teaching January 16th, 2013. Richard Halverson, from the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, gave a keynote on Learning to Notice in a College Classroom, sharing strategies for constructing peer groups for ongoing teaching improvement, and using data …
Retreat Recap: Community Service and the Wisconsin Idea (Jan 18, 2012)
Using Community Service Learning to Integrate the Wisconsin Idea into Our Teaching and Learning Wednesday, January 18, 2012. Intro slides. Agenda. Speakers: Does the Wisconsin Experience Lead to the Wisconsin Idea? Aaron Brower, PhD, UW-Madison …
Retreat Recap: Academic Integrity (Jan 13, 2011)
Keeping academic integrity alive and well Thursday, Jan 13, 2011. Speakers: Keeping academic integrity alive and well, Yolanda Garza. Plagiarism and Copyright: some of what you need to know but were afraid to ask, Phyllis …
Retreat Recap: Internationalizing the Curriculum (Jan 14, 2010)
Internationalizing the Curriculum January 14, 2010 at R2120 Grainger Hall. The theme was “Internationalizing the Curriculum” in which we partnered with the Division of International Studies (agenda). Over 90 participants from a cross section of …
Retreat Recap: Engaging the Diverse Classroom (Jan 16, 2009)
Engaging the Diverse Classroom Data from UW-Madison Gateway Classes: Jeffrey Henriques. How can I use data to think about changes in my classroom environment? Erica Halverson & Richard R. Halverson. Hearing the Voices of Students: …
- More Past Winter Retreats posts
Earlier Winter Retreats
Details pulled from less-than-perfect archives—