CELT announces Fall 2026 faculty cohort for AI-focused Teaching Innovation Institute

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Aug. 13, 2026) —The University of Kentucky Center for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching’s (CELT) Teaching Innovation Institute was launched in 2020 as a responsive, interdisciplinary learning community that addresses current and critical issues in higher education. With CELT facilitation, the institute brings faculty together to explore, experiment and implement new strategies or projects in ways that advance student learning and success.

In 2024, the institute was redesigned to focus on AI in education. Participants develop AI literacy and fluency while leveraging their expertise and experience to better understand the meaning of AI in disciplinary and professional contexts. Faculty participation in the institute benefits students directly in the learning environments where they experience clear guidance and open dialogue on engaging with AI in ways that are grounded in specific fields of study and professional practice.

Faculty in the Teaching Innovation Institute have designed courses, updated curricula, implemented innovative or forward-looking teaching strategies, developed unique use cases for AI in their programs and initiated complex scholarly projects. They have presented their work at conferences and in academic publications. Many have gone on to receive teaching awards and lead initiatives in their departments, colleges and professional organizations.

“The AI-focused Teaching Innovation Institute helped me understand an emerging technology and how to incorporate it into a writing workshop for my engineering lab,” said Thom Cochell, Ph.D., senior lecturer in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering. “We dealt with the practical realities of using generative AI, but also how to deal with the ethics and issues of critical thinking in the classroom. It was great to have the space to work on developing my workshop with the expertise of the folks at CELT.”

“I participated in the Teaching Innovation Institute because I was feeling overwhelmed in navigating generative AI and keeping up with how quickly it’s changing,” said Erin Richard, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Biology. “Being part of the cohort helped me to connect with other faculty across the university to talk through issues and to share ideas. The CELT team were great guides. They have developed considerable expertise on AI and kept up with the current tools and applications in teaching and learning. The whole experience gave me space to practice applying AI to be creative, improve teaching, support student learning and streamline tasks.”

CELT’s Fall 2026 Teaching Innovation Institute cohort represents 13 colleges and 17 departments. Across all seven cohorts since 2020, the Teaching Innovation Institute has involved 128 faculty in 18 colleges and 60 departments. The Fall 2026 cohort includes:

• Becky Alley, School of Art and Visual Studies; College of Fine Arts

• Molly Blasing, Department of Modern & Classical Languages, Literatures, & Cultures; College of Arts and Sciences

• Joe Dvorak, Department of Biosystems & Agricultural Engineering; Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering

• Sophia Farmer, School of Art & Visual Studies; College of Fine Arts

• Fan Gao, Department of Kinesiology & Health Promotion; College of Education

• Jessica Houlihan, Department of Dietetics & Human Nutrition; Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment

• Michael Hovish, Department of Chemical & Materials Engineering; Pigman College of Engineering

• Marc Kiviniemi, Department of Epidemiology & Environmental Health; College of Public Health

• Anita Lee-Post, Department of Marketing & Supply Chain; Gatton College of Business and Economics

• Shelby Oberst, Department of Oral Diagnosis, Oral Medicine, & Oral Radiology; College of Dentistry

• Jennifer Osterhage, Department of Biology; College of Arts and Sciences

• Johné Parker, Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering; Pigman College of Engineering

• Kristen Platt, Department of Neuroscience; College of Arts and Sciences

• Praneel Samanta, Department of Mathematics; College of Arts and Sciences

• John Schultz, Department of Anthropology; College of Arts and Sciences

• Amanda Slone, School of Information Science; College of Communication and Information

• Liz Utterback, College of Social Work

• Andy Williford, Department of Physician Assistant Studies; College of Health Sciences