ATE Principal Investigators Conference

Call for Sessions

Submissions are now closed.
Download the Call for Sessions (PDF)

ATE Projects and Centers are invited to submit proposals to conduct sessions as part of the agenda for the 2023 ATE Conference. The ATE Conference will take place on October 25-27, 2023, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C.  

Conference Theme: Celebrating 30 Years of Advancing Technological Education

This year’s conference will focus on celebrating the significant impact of the ATE community in advancing technological education. For three decades, ATE Projects and Centers have played a pivotal role in addressing and shaping the current and future needs of STEM technician education by preparing students with STEM, innovation, and employability skills—and working to ensure a diverse, equitable, and inclusive U.S. workforce.

Session proposals should follow the criteria and guidelines outlined below. Where applicable, submissions in all tracks should demonstrate how the ATE community has successfully broadened impact through partnerships and collaboration with key stakeholders. Including internal and external stakeholders (e.g. college leadership, industry representatives, secondary or four-year college representatives, etc.) as presenters is strongly encouraged.

Sessions will be selected based on the ability of session leaders to:

  • Share case studies, experiences, promising strategies, and lessons learned that demonstrate evidence-based project or center impact in one of the topic areas identified by the session tracks provided below.
  • Focus on learning experiences and promising strategies that are common or relevant across disciplines and different project areas.
  • Engage participants in interactive learning activities and provide take-away resources that can be used and/or implemented in their own work.
  • Demonstrate collaboration among ATE Projects or Centers with strong preference given to session proposals that can speak to broadening impact and that involve more than one project or center in a presenting role.

PLEASE NOTE that submissions in response to this Call for Sessions should not be used as a venue to conduct a general report-out on grant activities. All Projects and Centers are expected to participate in “ATE Connects,” which is a featured component of the conference agenda. ATE Connects provides an opportunity to engage in the general sharing of information, resources, and materials related to ATE projects and programs; network with participants; and explore the community. Reserving space to participate in ATE Connects is SEPARATE from this Call for Sessions process. For more information on ATE Connects, click here. 

Session Tracks
Individuals proposing sessions for the 2023 ATE Conference are encouraged to submit under one of the following five tracks.

  • Track 1. Advancing Technological Education for Impact
    Examples of topics include: virtual teaching/learning strategies; AI; undergraduate research; competency-based learning; work-based learning; credit for prior work experience; alternative forms of credentials including micro-credentials; internships; apprenticeships; bridge programs; addressing emerging career fields/technologies; career pathways; professional and faculty development; leadership development; and mentoring programs.
  • Track 2. Engaging STEM Students for Success
    Examples of topics include: addressing diversity, equity, and inclusion gaps; strategies for recruiting and retaining underrepresented students; interactions with secondary school CTE programs; dual enrollment; career awareness/outreach; working with guidance counselors and career coaches; and direct student interaction with industry.
  • Track 3. Initiating & Maintaining Partnerships
    Examples of topics include: creating, maintaining, and leveraging partnerships with business and industry, college administrators, secondary schools, funders, local/state government, and/or the community; addressing workforce development needs through collaboration with business/industry; and outreach to external constituents.
  • Track 4. Conducting STEM Research & Evaluation
    Examples of topics include: strategies for conducting institutional and educational research; partnering with four-year colleges on student learning outcomes; strategies for assessment; strategies for capturing reliable impact data; and evaluation.
  • Track 5. Sharing Proven Practices in Grant & Program Management
    Examples of topics in this category include: strategies for project and fiscal management; sustaining and scaling programs; preparing annual reports; and dealing effectively with unforeseen and/or unavoidable project changes.

Session Formats
Proposals submitted under the five conference tracks must follow one of the following formats.

**NEW for the 2023 ATE Conference, a select number of Affinity Group Meetings and High Impact Workshops will be scheduled on Wednesday, October 25 between 1:00 – 4:30 p.m., prior to the opening plenary session. To help with participation, AACC is supporting the cost of three hotel nights for two people per project/center. See the Hotel & Travel page for more information—and be sure to take advantage of the extended conference agenda by proposing a session in one of the formats listed below.**  

Affinity Group Meetings
Session Length: 60-90 minutes
Maximum Number of Facilitators: 3
Scheduling: Affinity Group Meetings will be scheduled on Wednesday, October 25 between 1:00 – 4:30 p.m.  Session rooms will be equipped with a laptop, data projector, and screen.

Affinity Group Meetings offer a venue for ATE grantees to network, share insights, and explore ways to collaborate around areas of similar interest. Affinity meeting leaders serve as facilitators of interactive, substantive discussions that share promising practices and lessons learned with other members of the ATE community. Proposals should explain the overall context surrounding the anticipated discussion and clearly identify the intended audience. Affinity meeting proposals should also reflect the capacity to generate new ideas and questions from conference participants as a means of making the session stimulating and meaningful.  Affinity Group Meetings can be scheduled in 60 or 90-minute blocks, please indicate a preferred time frame on the session proposal form.

High Impact Workshop
Session Length: 1 hour and 50-minute workshop
Maximum Number of Presenters: 4 people
Scheduling: High Impact Workshops will be scheduled on Wednesday, October 25 between 1:00 – 4:30 p.m., or on Friday, October 27 between 10:10 a.m. – Noon. Session rooms will be equipped with a laptop, data projector, and screen.

High impact workshops are multi-presenter/facilitator sessions designed to address targeted areas of need within the ATE community, such as those identified through the conference tracks, including but not limited to addressing challenges in student recruitment/retention; stakeholder engagement; diversity, equity, and inclusion; virtual/hybrid teaching and learning practices; and the implementation of pedagogical or technological tools to keep pace with industry demand. High impact workshops should focus on content that is relevant and applicable across STEM disciplines. Session proposals should identify the area of need or challenge to address, outline proven practices to be shared, include 3-4 learning objectives, and provide key takeaways for session participants.

Demonstration Session
Session Length: 30 minutes
Maximum Number of Presenters: 2
Scheduling: Demonstration Sessions will be scheduled on Thursday, October 26 between 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Session rooms will be equipped with a laptop, data projector, and screen.

Demonstrations are formal presentations that show how to use or apply a pedagogical tool or concept. The proposal should describe how the presenter will walk attendees through a clear, step-by-step explanation of the concept or tool, how it compares to other teaching and learning tools, its strengths, and weaknesses, and how it can best be applied or implemented. Presenters should be experts on the concepts or tools they are presenting. 

Spotlight Session
Session Length: 50 minutes
Maximum Number of Presenters: 4
Scheduling: Spotlight Sessions will be scheduled on Thursday, October 26 between 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. or on Friday, October 27 between 10:10 a.m. – Noon. Session rooms will be equipped with a laptop, data projector, and screen.

A Spotlight session is a panel presentation that should involve at least two, but no more than three presenters and a facilitator who will present thought-provoking questions to the panelists and coordinate presentations in addressing the session topic. Preference will be given to sessions that involve presenters who represent different projects, centers, and/or grant partners. Spotlight session proposals that focus solely on a general report out of a project’s or center’s activities will not be selected. Spotlight sessions should share proven strategies and lessons learned in accordance with the session criteria.

Synergy Session
Session Length: 50 minutes
Maximum Number of Facilitators: 3 people
Scheduling: Synergy sessions will be scheduled on Thursday, October 26 between 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. and on Friday, October 27 from 10:10 a.m. – Noon. Session rooms will be equipped with a laptop, data projector, and screen.

Synergy sessions are similar in format to Affinity Group meetings—though offer a more informal opportunity to connect attendees and stimulate interactive and lively conversations during the main days of the conference agenda. The sessions allow attendees to meet and discuss issues relating to common interests, address challenges, and share transferable strategies and practices. Synergy sessions can be used to gather the people you have been working with on a project, engage with potential new collaborators, explore topics that are crossing cutting and interdisciplinary, or conduct a deep dive on a singular area of focus. The floor is yours to stimulate discussion, and to make connections and contacts that you can take with you following the event to keep the momentum going.

Breakfast Roundtable
Session Length: 60 minutes
Maximum Number of Moderators: 1
In-Person Conference Scheduling:  Breakfast Roundtables will be scheduled on Friday, October 27 between 7:45 – 8:45 a.m. No AV is provided for breakfast roundtables. Moderators typically bring handouts or take-aways for participants. 

Breakfast roundtables provide forums for informal discussion of a specific topic among small groups. Attendance is first-come, first-served and limited to a maximum of 10 people, including  the moderator, seated around one round table. 

Session Collaboration
AACC provides information on its conference website to assist ATE Projects and Centers with identifying potential session collaborators and similar projects—such as searching through ATE Central or the NSF awards database. AACC reserves the right to identify similar session proposals and ask those submitting to work together on conducting a session, as well as to change the presentation type as needed to adhere to session guidelines.

How to Submit a Session Proposal

  • Session proposals must be submitted online by the deadline of August 7, 2023.
  • Required information for all session proposals includes:
  • Submitting project or center grant number
  • Submitting project or center grant title
  • Contact information for all presenters/facilitators
  • Session Title – limited to 70 characters
  • Session Description/Program Abstract – limited to 600 characters
  • Session Outline – An outline to include a session agenda, 2-3 participant learning outcomes, 2-3 discussion questions if submitting an Affinity Group Meeting, High Impact Workshop, Spotlight, or a Synergy session, and any resources/materials that could be shared.

Session Notification
AACC will notify all session submitters of the status of their proposals and those that have been accepted onto the conference program by August 31.