MCCA will introduce three emerging tools designed to support planning, goal setting, and student success improvement. Participants will see demonstrations of a completion goal-setting tool, a healthcare program readiness tracker, and an enrollment projections tool for recruitment and enrollment management.
Presenter(s): Evan Pauken
Macomb Community College’s healthcare apprenticeship initiative strengthens workforce development by aligning education with employer needs, expanding career pathways, and addressing healthcare staffing shortages. Through employer partnerships, pre-apprenticeships, technical training, and registered apprenticeships, the program builds clinical and professional skills while creating sustainable talent pipelines for the region’s healthcare industry.
Presenter(s): Amy Jury
AI is supposed to save time, but many educators spend more time fixing AI output than doing the work themselves. In this interactive session, participants will apply a structured workflow to a real teaching or workforce task and learn how to evaluate, refine, and use AI effectively.
Presenter(s): Sonja Howell
Innovative approaches to skilled trades education are helping schools meet workforce demands. Learn how Jackson College reimagined HVAC training through hands-on learning, industry partnerships, and workforce-aligned curriculum. This session explores strategies for securing stakeholder buy-in, strengthening student confidence, and preparing learners for careers in today’s evolving HVAC industry.
Presenter(s): Scott Richard
Teams of 6-8 members will compete for the fastest time to “escape” from the diabetes mellitus (DM) escape room. To support today’s diverse, multigenerational student body, nurse educators must shift how complex topics such as DM are taught to help students bridge the gap between didactic material and real-world application.
Presenter(s): Cheryl Nienaber and Jodi McKittrick
Addressing basic needs among college students requires collaboration among faculty and staff to provide equity and inclusion for all students. By forming partnerships with CTE and other faculty and staff, this provides inclusive classrooms and an inclusive campus where student needs are being addressed. Data shows that students who struggle with basic needs inequities are less likely to complete their educational goals. This includes marginalized students like those who are in non-traditional programs on our campuses.
Presenter(s): Rhonda Donovan
This presentation shows how critical thinking, case studies, and simulation transform respiratory care education by moving students from memorization to clinical judgment. Research supports these strategies for improving confidence, competence, and national board exam performance in respiratory therapy students
Presenter(s): Jennifer Riggs
Learn how Washtenaw Community College Success Coaches connect with students, lead initiatives, and expand support systems for students, leading to greater retention campuswide.
Presenter(s): Joyce Hovermale
The breakout session examines the evolving social responsibilities of judicial officials who engage with academia, whether as adjunct faculty, or guest lecturers in the classroom. The session will explore how judges can leverage academic platforms to strengthen public understanding of the rule of law, promote access to justice, and model ethical judicial conduct.
Presenter(s): Lynnell Talbert and Judge Kellen Dotson
An AI Community of Practice is a collaborative network where interdisciplinary faculty come together to explore, share, and develop practical uses of artificial intelligence in teaching and learning at Washtenaw Community College. At its core, the community is built around a shared goal: helping educators use AI thoughtfully, creatively, and responsibly to improve student engagement, learning outcomes, and classroom efficiency. A business and a nursing faculty member will share their insights of being a part of the WCC community of practice.
Presenter(s): DeAnna Gapp and Doug Waters
Maybe you’ve wanted to be a supervisor, manager or in another leadership role your whole life. Or maybe you are in that type of role without it ever being one of your goals. Can a leader who has never been in a leadership role or been trained for that type of role be a good leader? What can unexpected leaders do to be great leaders that lead their teams well and thrive in their role? How do unexpected leaders find the tools to be the best leaders they can be? Whether you are a leader of CTE students or a leader of CTE or other faculty or staff, this session will provide discussion and information on how you can thrive and handle challenges you may face as an unexpected leader.
Presenter(s): Rhonda Donovan
Teams of 6-8 members will compete for the fastest time to “escape” from the diabetes mellitus (DM) escape room. To support today’s diverse, multigenerational student body, nurse educators must shift how complex topics such as DM are taught to help students bridge the gap between didactic material and real-world application.
Presenter(s): Cheryl Nienaber & Jodi McKittrick
Join us for the CAD & 3D Printing roundtable. It will be an informal discussion with CAD and 3D Printing educators & professionals from industry discussing software, equipment, curriculum, job outlook for graduates, assessment, recruiting, marketing, new technologies, and challenges in CAD and 3D Printing education. Plan to share your experiences and find out what other colleges are doing. Eric Sander from Mid Michigan College and Kathy Liefer from Muskegon Community College will help facilitate this roundtable discussion.
Presenter(s): Eric M. Sander and Kathleen Liefer
Evidence demonstrates there is a need for innovation and further investigation on how to best prepare nursing students for practice. A consistent framework is necessary to guide students, theory faculty, and clinical instructors. A tool was created to transform the student learning experience and include more emphasis on NCLEX success in the clinical environment. This tool, the Clinical Compass, provides opportunity to better integrate didactic knowledge within the clinical experience. The tool was evaluated by creating a questionnaire for both students and faculty. Survey data were collected from both student and instructor groups via an anonymous electronic survey. Both student and instructor surveys yielded positive results reflecting improved connection between theoretical and clinical knowledge. Data support continued use and ongoing revisions of the Clinical Compass tool. This session will explore how the tool was created and its adoption into an ADN program. It will also highlight bridging the clinical and classroom gap via the creation of the accompanying Classroom Compass.
Presenter(s): Shari Lambert and Elise Napier
Navigating recent shifts in federal oversight and state funding requires a new strategy. In this interactive session, we break down these major changes and introduce a rapid, four-question audit to stress-test real-world project ideas. Learn how to immediately align campus initiatives with today’s new rules, compliance realities, and state priorities.
Presenter(s): Mara Phillips
Explore practical AI workflows for creating no-cost assessment-integrated videos and LMS activities in your own voice, complete with gradebook integration. Bring your laptop for hands-on experimentation (optional) and leave with ready-to-use strategies, simple AI content recipes, and practical guidance on transparency, ethics, and building student trust with AI content.
Presenter(s): Christopher VanOosterhout
This presentation explores the Michigan Apprenticeship Readiness Credential (MARC) and its role in bridging community college programs with Registered Apprenticeship opportunities. Attendees will learn how MARC endorsements validate partnerships, connect students directly to high-demand Registered Apprenticeships, and strengthen employer networks to ensure a seamless transition into paid, high-skill careers.
Presenter(s): Wanda Bigelow, Callan Eschenburg, and Joel Elsenbroek
Teams of 6-8 members will compete for the fastest time to “escape” from the diabetes mellitus (DM) escape room. To support today’s diverse, multigenerational student body, nurse educators must shift how complex topics such as DM are taught to help students bridge the gap between didactic material and real-world application.
Presenter(s): Cheryl Nienaber and Jodi McKittrick
Join us for the CAD & 3D Printing roundtable. It will be an informal discussion with CAD and 3D Printing educators & professionals from industry discussing software, equipment, curriculum, job outlook for graduates, assessment, recruiting, marketing, new technologies, and challenges in CAD and 3D Printing education. Plan to share your experiences and find out what other colleges are doing. Eric Sander from Mid Michigan College and Kathy Liefer from Muskegon Community College will help facilitate this roundtable discussion.
Presenter(s): Eric M. Sander and Kathleen Liefer
Traditional skills checkoffs often focus on isolated psychomotor tasks performed in a high-stakes environment that may not reflect actual nursing practice. This session explores the redesign of a nursing skills laboratory from a pass/fail evaluation model to a Skills Showcase approach. Students first learn and practice individual skills, then demonstrate competency through immersive, scenario-based patient care experiences that mirror real clinical settings. Attendees will learn how this model promotes clinical judgment, confidence, skill integration, and student engagement while maintaining rigorous evaluation standards. Practical strategies, implementation tips, and lessons learned will be shared to help educators reimagine skills assessment in their own programs.
Presenter(s): Tamara Tasker
This roundtable will begin with leading questions from Skilled Trades Apprentice Coordinators at Macomb Community College. With the increase in apprenticeship across Michigan, you can expect a robust and lively conversation as we share and exchange tips to enhance and strengthen the apprenticeship experience across all Michigan Community Colleges. The MCAA-led Michigan College Credit for Apprenticeships Program (MI-CCAP) will also be a point of discussion in the context of determining equivalencies and/or block credit.
Presenter(s): Vikki Gordon
Attendees are offered deep insights & ideas that reveal how to approach, coordinate, launch & teaching a two- to three-week study abroad course. All phases of the process are visited: from choosing a destination and study abroad administrative team, to managing budgets, to assignment ideas, to submitting student final grades.
Presenter(s): Donald Werthmann
Presenter(s): Amanda Bastoni
Teams of 6-8 members will compete for the fastest time to “escape” from the diabetes mellitus (DM) escape room. To support today’s diverse, multigenerational student body, nurse educators must shift how complex topics such as DM are taught to help students bridge the gap between didactic material and real-world application.
Presenter(s): Cheryl Nienaber & Jodi McKittrick
Presenter(s): Lisa Radak
Presenter(s): Gary Ebels
Presenter(s): Bethann Talsma
Presenter(s): Robert Bernard
Teams of 6-8 members will compete for the fastest time to “escape” from the diabetes mellitus (DM) escape room. To support today’s diverse, multigenerational student body, nurse educators must shift how complex topics such as DM are taught to help students bridge the gap between didactic material and real-world application.
Presenter(s): Cheryl Nienaber & Jodi McKittrick
Camp Scrubs demonstrates how community colleges can create scalable, hands-on career exploration programs that inspire middle and high school students to envision themselves in college and healthcare careers. Attendees will learn strategies for partnership development, student engagement, sustainable funding, and expanding equitable access to career-connected learning opportunities.
Presenter(s): Michelle Valin
In partnership with the National Association of Social Workers-Michigan Chapter and the Mott Community College, the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity-Workforce Development (LEO WD), has launched a career pathway opportunity for individuals working in entry level positions to get a headstart toward a career pathway to become licensed social workers through the Michigan Advancing Social Work Careers through Education and Navigation Direction (MI ASCEND) pilot program.
Presenter(s): Valerie Jemerson, Anar Asman, Angela Bowman, Lynne Hatton, Duane Breijak, and RJ Frausto
This session highlights Montcalm Community College’s new Exercise Science program as a model for building health career pathways through dual enrollment, industry certifications, workforce preparation, and transfer. Presenters will discuss program development, community partnerships, and regional workforce needs while engaging attendees in collaborative discussion.
Presenter(s): Alex Montoye