The CAUCE 2024 Call for Presentations is now closed.

CAUCE is dedicated to supporting the success of our members and their engagement with not only professional and adult learners but also diverse learning communities. Our roles as professionals in Continuing Education often requires innovation, problem solving, intrapreneurial spirit, nimble growth, and collaboration as we respond to industry and community needs. 

We want to hear about practices within your Continuing Education unit that improve the careers and lives of people in your community and beyond. 

Theme

Reignite Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Continuing Education  

Continuing education units are being challenged in many ways. We are expected to develop programming that suits changing student demographics, to maintain high-quality instruction, to serve a global student body, and to remain financially viable. Consequently, it’s time to reignite our commitment to innovation and entrepreneurship.  

The word ‘reigniting’ is a nod to the ‘great reset’. How we work, learn and live is changing quickly in a post-pandemic, digitally enabled world. From instructors and leaders to learners and governments, all interested parties are rethinking the evolving fluidity and intersectionality between work and learning.  Successful Continuing Education units will respond and adapt to serve learners and communities by continuously reigniting our innovative spirit.  

The entrepreneurial element of this theme is a nod to the University of Calgary’s Ahead of Tomorrow strategy that states “. . . students will thrive in programs made rich by research, hands-on experiences and entrepreneurial thinking.” In other words, similar to entrepreneurs, continuing education practitioners are always looking for new ideas and better ways of doing things. We are passionate, flexible, and resourceful in our mission to deliver high-quality educational opportunities. 

At CAUCE 2024 we will learn from one another, and we will reignite our creativity, innovation, and passion for lifelong education. We will exchange innovative ideas in the latest research, programming, online learning, and more. Through engaging speakers, interactive workshops, and communities of practice, we will inspire each other to respond to the needs of adult learners across Canada. 

What are we looking for?

Our aim for this conference is to create an inclusive and accessible event that encourages life-long learning and professional growth. We welcome presenters of all ethnicities, genders, ages, abilities, religions, and sexual orientations to voluntarily share any relevant information about your lived experience within the presentation proposal.  

We are looking for submissions that provide engaging opportunities for learning and knowledge exchange. We are especially interested in hearing from people who bring diverse perspectives to their work in Continuing Education. Make sure you focus on the “how” not just “what” so that actual experiences and lessons learned can be shared. To put it another way, we are looking for presentations where the focus is on strategic, tactical, and operational details where participants will leave your session with new ideas that they can take back to their workplace. What take-away can you provide the audience (e.g., a model, tactic, template, detailed steps, principles, etc.)? 

Streams

To get your creative juices flowing, we have included some ideas for your consideration within each of the five conference streams described below.  

If your proposal is related to Research and Scholarship in Continuing Education or you are presenting your CAUCE-sponsored research project, please select the stream that best fits your presentation topic. 

This stream will focus on programs, strategies, services, and partnership models that further the mission of increasing access. Your presentation in this stream may address increasing access, nurturing healthy and robust communities, responding to the needs of diverse learners, EDI programming, the increasing need for Indigenous and decolonizing education initiatives, and achieving greater diversity in university CE. Ideas for proposals include (but are not limited to):  

  • Examining the heart of CE through community, government, social programs, and EDI 
  • Exploring how CE units can be leaders in championing equity, diversity, inclusion, Indigenous and/or decolonizing education initiatives in the university  
  • Sharing innovative programs, partnerships and collaborations that serve the focus of social service or common good through high-quality programs 
  • Sharing innovative approaches, challenges, and success in English Language Programming. 
  • Exploring and sharing research findings that focus on programs, strategies, services and partnership models 
  • Sharing diverse learner supports, services, and access programs 

This stream focuses on the growing importance of experiential learning in facilitating deeper learning, skills development and obtaining professional experience. Your presentation in this stream may include proposals that address the value of experiential learning, instructional design approaches and models of integration. Ideas for proposals include (but are not limited to):  

  • Sharing how the role of experiential learning is evolving in CE 
  • Focusing on innovative programming, complex partnerships, and high growth areas of course development and delivery 
  • Sharing emerging technologies, approaches, challenges, and success for online course delivery 
  • Exploring the importance of designing engaging learning experiences to fill skills and knowledge gaps 
  • Sharing success stories for supporting and engaging ESL and international students 
  • Disseminating research findings that support the growing importance experiential learning for academic success 

This stream will focus on how we create opportunities for our citizens to engage with our institutions in a meaningful, thoughtful, and purposeful manner. Your presentation in this stream may highlight the way continuing education provides pathways to lifelong learning (LLL), including partnership, services, and creative program design. Ideas for proposals include (but are not limited to):  

  • Highlighting intra-university partnerships and how they function to enhance the university’s mission and elevate CE 
  • Focusing on collaborations with industry, peer institutions, online program management (OPM) companies, corporate, and organizational training to meet skills gaps and needs of digital economy 
  • Focusing on enrolment and learner services, marketing and communication, alumni programs, career services and support, academic advising 
  • Building learner personas and designing programs to respond to learner needs/learner-centered design 
  • Exploring and sharing research findings within the lifelong education ecosystem in Canada 

This stream will focus on how continuing education units and schools are structured and supported and how they are evolving in the aftermath of the pandemic. Your presentation in this stream may relate to pandemic recovery, remote work, leadership, team engagement, infrastructure, operations, IT systems and processes, or innovation in marketing and communications. Ideas for proposals include (but are not limited to):  

  • Exploring effective structures and leadership in CE 
  • Highlighting innovation in marketing and communications or discussing innovative marketing strategies and partnerships 
  • Sharing new ways to engage with our instructors and teams
  • Sharing how CE units have integrated their systems for increased efficiency and effectiveness
  • Exploring ways to engage with and maintain strong relationships with instructors and promote high performance
  • Changing dynamics of work: impact of remote work on infrastructure, team culture, recruitment and hiring 

This stream will focus on the latest trends in alternate credentials, digital credentials, exploring new mechanisms for delivery, national frameworks, and CE’s role in leading the future of alternate credentials. Ideas for proposals include (but are not limited to): 

  • Sharing design, implementation, and impact of micro-credentials 
  • Exploring micro-credential national frameworks and alignment to CE
  • Sharing research findings within the micro-credential ecosystem in Canada
  • Exploring how CE units are responding to the market by becoming more learner and employer responsive
  • Exploring non-credit to credit pathways through alternative credentials  

Selection criteria

All sessions should share your responsive and innovative practices related to the conference theme “Reignite Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Continuing Education” and focus on at least one of the five streams. We encourage collaboration among institutions and disciplines.

The selection committee is particularly interested in submissions that reflect the diversity of the CAUCE membership.  

  • Relevance to the conference theme and chosen stream;  
  • Relevance and appeal to the intended conference audience and CAUCE constituents;  
  • Clarity and completeness of the proposal (what you will be presenting and how);  
  • The degree to which the presentation is based on responsive and innovative practices;  
  • Newness and uniqueness of the topic and information;  
  • The presentation offers a diverse perspective on the field of Continuing Education; 
  • The degree to which the presentation is engaging and participatory for an in-person audience
  • The degree to which the presentation is engaging and participatory for a hybrid audience (if applicable);
  • Key takeaways for the audience; what will you provide them with to add to their own practice and take back to their workplace (model, tactic, template, detailed steps, principles, etc.)?

Please ensure that your proposal, biography, and session description are all clear, complete, and correct. Incomplete submissions may be returned for revision or not reviewed. 

Important notes

  • We expect to notify all applicants of their proposal status by January 19, 2024. 
  • If your proposal is accepted you must register for the conference and pay the corresponding fees by April 3, 2024, to confirm your presentation(s). Early-bird registration will open approximately March 1, 2024.
  • You agree that, following your session, your presentation slides will be published on the conference app in .pdf format. 
  • When submitting your proposal, please submit presenter biographies and session descriptions as you would like them to appear in the conference agenda. The CAUCE 2024 Program Planning Committee reserves the right to revise descriptions as needed.