NEXT 2026 - March 6, 2026

Designing for Authenticity: Assessment, AI, and the Future of Learning

Reimagine. Assess. Advance.

The University of Akron proudly invites you to the 9th annual NEXT (New Explorations in Teaching) conference, a premier gathering for faculty, education professionals, researchers, administrators, and industry leaders. This year’s theme, “Designing for Authenticity: Assessment, AI, and the Future of Learning,” explores how we can meaningfully evaluate learning when generative tools are ubiquitous and knowledge is instantly accessible. This year’s conference will showcase innovative assessment strategies that prioritize critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and real-world relevance—without losing sight of integrity.

Join us on March 6, 2026, to help shape the role of artificial intelligence in teaching and learning.

Register for NEXT 2026

Registering someone else for NEXT 2026? Follow these directions to register another attendee.

2026 Conference Sponsors

Platinum Sponsor

McGraw Hill logo

Platinum Sponsor

Rumi logo

Gold Sponsor

packback logo

Gold Sponsor

Respondus logo

Industry Panel: From Campus to Career: Assessing What Matters When AI Is Everywhere

March 6 | 8:30 - 9:30 AM | Ballroom

This panel session brings employer voices into the conversation about what “real skill” looks like now. As AI tools become commonplace in the workplace, this panel explores the competencies organizations most need—critical thinking, communication, collaboration, ethical judgment, and the ability to apply knowledge in context—and how those show up (or don’t) in traditional academic assessments. Panelists will share how their industries are adapting hiring, onboarding, and performance expectations in an AI-enabled environment, and what evidence of learning best signals career readiness. Attendees will leave with concrete ideas for designing authentic assessments that translate beyond the classroom while strengthening trust and integrity.

Moderated by Dr. Alexa Fox

Headshot of Alexa FoxDr. Alexa K. Fox is an Associate Professor of Marketing and Director of the Taylor Institute at The University of Akron, where she teaches Social Media Marketing, Digital Marketing, and Consumer Behavior. She earned her Ph.D. in Business Administration (Marketing) from The University of Memphis, and her M.B.A. and B.S.B.A. from The University of Akron. Alexa’s research interests include digital marketing, user-generated content, online privacy, sharenting, and physiological measurement of cognition and emotion. Her work on the company/consumer dyad's use of digital technology is uniquely positioned to inform marketing and business practice as well as benefit society. Alexa's research was a finalist for the American Marketing Association-EBSCO Annual Award for Responsible Research in Marketing and has appeared in journals such as Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Advertising, Computers in Human Behavior, and more, along with book chapters, national conferences, and in the media from Forbes.com, to radio and television segments, to podcasts. Alexa serves on the Editorial Review Board of five high-quality marketing academic journals, and on the Advisory Board for St. Herman’s House of Hospitality, a homeless shelter in Cleveland. Prior to academia, Alexa worked for strategic marketing and online marketing firms, as well as a nonprofit organization, where she conducted marketing research, created online copy, and developed marketing, social media, and branding strategies.

Lunchtime Keynote:
When Assessment Ends: Designing Teaching and Learning After AI

Dr. Patrick Dempsey

Director of Digital Teaching and Learning

Loyola University Maryland

As AI makes many traditional measures of individual performance unreliable or irrelevant, attempts to “return” to pre-AI practices or intensify surveillance miss the larger opportunity now in front of us.

This keynote argues that the collapse of traditional assessment is not a failure to correct, but a signal to listen to. Drawing on the history of standardized assessment; observations from authentic learning environments; and insights into how complex, real-world problems are actually solved, the session shows how AI disrupts assessment practices built around proxies for learning—practices that were never designed to surface cognition, judgment, or transfer.

Rather than framing AI as a threat to academic integrity, this talk positions AI as a catalyst for shifting attention from measuring outputs after the fact to intentionally designing the conditions under which learning becomes visible as it unfolds.

The keynote concludes by outlining a design-forward approach to teaching and learning in the AI era: creating meaningful contexts for challenge, providing human support where it matters most, and equipping learners with heuristics that strengthen judgment as problems emerge.

Dr. Patrick Dempsey

Learn more about Dr. Dempsey

CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS

Industry Panel

From Campus to Career: Assessing What Matters When AI Is Everywhere" featuring notable speakers from regional businesses. Moderated by Dr. Alexa Fox.

Speakers

  • California State University, Northridge
  • Cleveland State University
  • Cuyahoga Community College
  • Kent State University
  • LearnAIID, LLC
  • Loyola University Maryland
  • Otterbein University
  • Penn State Erie, The Behrend College
  • Pepperdine University
  • Purdue University
  • Rumi Docs
  • St. Francis de Sales School, Toledo
  • The University of Akron
  • The University of Cincinnati
  • University of Central Florida
  • University of Mount Union
  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  • Western Reserve Academy
  • Youngstown State University

Session Topics

Choose from 35 breakout sessions focused on authentic assessment in age of AI. Session topics include:

  1. Authentic Assessment in an AI World: Sessions focused on designing assessments that make learning visible—even when AI tools are widely available. Presenters will share approaches that emphasize application, thinking, and authentic performance.
  2. Assessment Integrity and Ethics: Discussions tackling the evolving landscape of academic honesty and ethical AI use. You’ll explore practical ways to set expectations, support students, and respond consistently when concerns arise.
  3. AI Tools for Assessment and Feedback: Demonstrations of how AI can support assessment workflows and feedback—while keeping instructor expertise and student connection at the center.
  4. Accessible Assessment Practices: Examples centered on access and flexibility in assessment design—especially as tools and modalities expand. You’ll learn how to increase clarity, choice, and opportunity for all learners.
  5. Faculty Development and Institutional Strategy: Conversations for department leaders, instructional designers, and faculty developers who are supporting campus adoption. Expect examples of scalable support models and change leadership strategies.
  6. Student Perspectives on AI and Learning: Bringing the student voice forward—how students are actually using AI, what they find helpful or confusing, and how educators can partner with them to build shared norms.

SCHEDULE HIGHLIGHTS

  • Breakfast & Registration

  • Welcome & Introduction

  • Industry Panel

  • Morning Breakout sessions 1-3

  • Lunch and Featured Speaker

  • Afternoon Breakout sessions 4-7

  • Closing Interactive Session and Raffle

REGISTER FOR NEXT

Don't miss this chance to discover how embracing AI can empower educators to create dynamic, inclusive, and forward-thinking learning environments.

Register for NEXT

TRAVEL AND LODGING

EVENT LOCATION

Student Union

NEXT 2026 will be held in the The Jean Hower Taber Student Union, conveniently located in the center of UA's campus. Learn more about the student union and its amenities: https://www.uakron.edu/studentunion/index.dot

Museumsmuseum

The rich history of Akron has been archived in the city’s many museums.

Arts and culture

akron civic theaterLive Entertainment

Downtown Akron

If you want to get off campus and discover Akron, downtown is the place to start. Easily accessible and only minutes away, downtown Akron puts you in the center of vibrant cultural amenities, living opportunities, delicious dining options, unique shopping excursions and more.

What's going on downtown?

PARKING

NEXT 2026 is located at The University of Akron's Student Union. Attendees who don't already have a University of Akron parking pass can purchase a 1-day pass via the QR codes located at each park lot. We recommend that you park in the South Campus Parking Deck, Lot 36. The South Campus deck is located across from South Hall on Exchange Street. Handicap parking is available on a surface lot directly adjacent to the Student Union on Carroll Street.

 

South Campus Parking Address:

181 E Exchange St
Akron, OH 44304
United States

LODGING



Lodging

Conference attendees can receive a discounted rate at the Hilton Garden Inn in Akron  of $125/night.

Rates are guaranteed when booked by February 10, 2026. Or, call the hotel directly at 330-733-2900 & ask for the "University of Akron NEXT Conference" Block Rate. The Hilton Garden Inn is located a short, 5-minute, drive from the The University of Akron's Student Union.

Book a room at the Hilton Garden Inn of Akron

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Don't miss this chance to demonstrate your AI capabilities.

Learn about our Sponsorship Opportunities

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