Learning Communities are organized by and for members of MSU’s educator community. They provide rich, supportive spaces for complicated conversations about curriculum, teaching, student support, technology, and much more. MSU has supported these communities since 2004 and continues to do so through a funding program administered by the Office of the Provost and coordinated by CTLI.
Learning Communities at MSU are welcome to propose their own topics and determine the structures that best support their inquiries. Accordingly, communities tend to vary greatly in their practices, interests, and agendas. All communities, however, share three things in common:
The application for 2026-27 Learning Communities (LCs) is now closed. Thank you to everyone who submitted a proposal to join an amazing network of educators dedicated to shared wisdom and impactful teaching.
AI has arrived in our classrooms, but most of our frameworks for good writing, critical thinking, ethics, language learning, and meaningful assessment were built without AI. Over eight monthly sessions, this Learning Community works through those frameworks one by one, drawing on current scholarship to decide what to keep, adapt, or reimagine. The year closes with a hands-on workshop redesigning our current assessments and pedagogy into High-Impact Practices (HIPs) that are both globally engaged and AI-resilient.
Frameworks for the AI Era: Interest and Participation Form.
Once you register, facilitators will manage invitation separately and send you the zoom invitation.
Please contact the Frameworks for the AI Era facilitators for more information:
Would you like to teach and assess critical thinking in your courses with and/or without AI tools? Are you looking for a community of people to brainstorm, discuss, and troubleshoot teaching strategies around critical thinking in times when students have access to AI? Are you willing to experiment, share, and exchange ideas with others? If this is you, then this learning community is for you!
This learning community will provide a space for educators who want to explore the role of critical inquiry and reasoning amid students’ increased reliance on AI. If you are willing to experiment, learn as you go, engage with colleagues facing similar challenges, and search together for solutions, this community is for you.
In the first session, we’ll orient to the topic, share our own interests and perspectives. Each month, 1-2 members of the group will choose a topic related to critical inquiry and reasoning for the group that we will explore together. Sessions will also include time to workshop teaching and assessment strategies members can implement in their course(s).
Prior experience with AI is not required. Participants may be enthusiastic, uncertain, skeptical, curious, or overwhelmed. The goal is to learn with and from one another while developing strategies for our courses that support student learning in an AI-influenced environment. Participants will have an opportunity to contribute to a shared resource collection for educators across MSU.
Meetings begin on Monday, September 14, and will take place monthly from 9:15–11:15 a.m.
Questions? Want to join but the first meeting has passed? Contact facilitators:
This learning community brings together community-engaged researchers for monthly, interactive sessions focused on building skills in community-engaged research (CEnR). Participants shape the agenda by selecting priority CEnR learning topics. Each workshop-style session combines brief presentations, hands-on activities, and discussion.
Please reach out to the Community-Engaged Research LC facilitators (below) to indicate interest and get more information:
This community will explore topics related to disability based on the work of prominent disability scholars and activists. Members will read or view material to prepare to discuss in meetings.
Please contact Disability Dynamics LC facilitators for more information!
The Environmental Justice and Climate Action Pedagogy LC seeks MSU educators from all disciplines concerned about the current state of ecological and social imbalance, who seek to integrate environmental justice topics and climate action-based exercises into their teaching. Together, we strive to create an educational environment where learning about environmental issues motivates positive action and contributes to the well-being of our planet and its inhabitants.
Please contact Environmental Justice & Climate Action Pedagogy LC facilitators (below)to join or for more information!
The Environmental Justice and Climate Action Learning Community is proud to present:
A Benton Harbor Story (A Film by MSU Alum, Cedric Taylor) examines how racism, infrastructural decline, and the erosion of democracy converged to produce a water crisis...and how a poor, majority-Black community fought to save itself. Though the Flint water crisis lingers in recent memory, Benton Harbor has its own story to tell. Many Americans see cities like Benton Harbor through the lens of the past, but its story may foretell an unsettling future for the rest of us.
Cedric Taylor is a Professor of Sociology at Central Michigan University and the founder of EcoVoice Films. His documentary work examines environmental justice and the human cost of infrastructure failure in American cities. His previous film, Nor Any Drop to Drink, told the story of the Flint water crisis. His latest feature, A Benton Harbor Story, turns to Benton Harbor, Michigan, chronicling the city's emergency management takeover and lead water crisis through the voices of witnesses and residents who lived it. The film is supported by CMU's College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences and the Ford Foundation. Taylor is also the author of the forthcoming book Storytelling and the Fight for Environmental Justice in the USA.
Coming at the end of September/ early October for a one-night viewing on MSU Campus. Contact Laura Markham, markham@msu.edu , to receive updates on the time and location for the showing.
This Learning Community supports faculty, teaching staff, and graduate instructors who teach research courses and want concrete, feminist-informed strategies for supporting students and partners ethically and sustainably. Together, we translate feminist community-engaged research principles into pedagogical tools, assignments, and instructional practices while building a supportive space to navigate disruption, power, and relationships in the classroom and the field.
Please contact Feminist Community Engagement LC facilitators (below) to express interest or get more information!
The Fundamentals of Community-Engaged Teaching and Learning: From Theory to Practice learning community, hosted by the Center for Community Engaged Learning (CCEL), offers a “back-to-the-basics” space for faculty/ practitioners to visit (or revisit) the essential pillars of the field, such as syllabus design, partnership development, and critical reflection. Each month, exemplar faculty, community partners, and/or students will present their work or “problems of practice” to lead members in collaborative discussion and shared learning.
Please contact the Fundamentals of Community-Engaged Teaching & Learning LC facilitators (below) to learn more or express interest!
We are an assets-based, idea-sharing group focused on the holistic concept of international student success at MSU, aiming to ensure that MSU is a welcoming and supportive institution for culturally and linguistically diverse learners. We collectively seek solutions for emergent, timely issues such as challenges to academic learning brought to the fore through navigation of travel restrictions, availability of technology, and online instruction in varied time zones, as well as persistent issues such as those associated with language challenges and varied cultural constructs of academic concepts such as academic integrity. We routinely share innovative and thoughtful pedagogical approaches and welcome discussion leaders within and external to MSU.
We will hold fall LC meetings from 12:00-1:00 PM on the following Fridays:
We do not have a formal “registration” process for joining this learning community. Come to one, many or all meetings. We welcome you throughout the year!
Please contact the learning community facilitators for more information or to join and receive virtual meeting information:
We will share experiences and ideas on how to integrate global learning experiences in an existing curriculum. We take a practical approach, offering group support in all aspects of curriculum globalization including tools for assessing student learning and growth in cross-cultural awareness. If you are interested in offering a global experience to your students, this LC is for you!
This LC will provide resources and support if you are interested in:
In Fall, we will meet (mostly) on the last Friday of the month from 12noon to 1:30pm, in E104 Eppley Center:
To join, please reach out to the co-facilitators:
The transition into college is a pivotal and often challenging time for students. This learning community focuses on intentionally embedding information, resources, and opportunities across the first year by examining research, trends, and practical strategies related to academic preparedness, engagement, belonging, wellbeing, and future-oriented planning. Together, we’ll develop shared resources and actionable approaches to better support today’s first-year students as they adjust academically, socially, and personally.
Please reach out to LC Facilitators (below) for more information or to become a participant!
This learning community centers on advancing undergraduate student success through the five opportunity areas as outlined in the Spartan Undergraduate Experience Strategy guide. We will come together monthly to share strategies, learn from one another, and offer mutual support. This is a collaborative space to build community, contribute ideas, and move our collective work into action.
Register via this Form - Five Areas of Student Success Learning Community 2026-2027.
Please reach out to LC Facilitators (below) for more information:
LC Meeting Dates
October 2nd 12-1pm – Virtual Introduction to the Community (recorded for those who cannot attend), please feel free to eat lunch virtually while you join us!
October – Self-Discovery of Purpose Theme
Asynchronous engagement throughout the month
Hybrid Breakfast and Learn on Wednesday, October 28th 8:30am-9:30am,
Get your breakfast at 8:00am
Brody, Synder, Akers
November – Educational Success Theme
Asynchronous engagement throughout the month
Hybrid Lunch and Learn on Tuesday, November 10th 12-1:00pm
STEM Building – BYOL, we will have snacks
December – Developing Sense of Belonging Theme
Asynchronous engagement throughout the month
Virtual Monday, December 7th 3:00-4:00pm
January – Contributing to an Empowered Community Theme
Asynchronous engagement throughout the month
Virtual on Thursday, January 14th 8:30am-9:30am
February – Developing Wellbeing Theme
Asynchronous engagement throughout the month
Virtual on Wednesday, February 24th, 8:30am-9:30am
March – Exploration of all 5 Areas
Asynchronous engagement throughout the month
In –person Lunch on Tuesday, March 16th from 12-1:30pm
April – Wrap up and survey of experience
Virtual Friday, April 16th from 12-1:00pm
The middle-year experience learning community focuses on students beyond the first year, especially the second year, when questions of direction, purpose, and career clarity become more pressing amid growing academic and personal responsibilities. Using data, cross-campus collaboration, and shared inquiry, the community elevates this often-overlooked stage and advances intentional, research-informed strategies to help students move from exploration toward direction and life beyond graduation.
Please contact LC facilitators (below) directly for more information or to participate!
The focus of the Learning Community is to support, explore and develop strategies to advance commitment to creating a trauma informed university and includes those committed to trauma informed practice in teaching, advising, student support and clinical roles at MSU. In addition, the Learning Community presents and trains on trauma informed teaching and developing trauma-informed communities. Below are the upcoming dates and topics for this year’s Trauma Services and Training Network (TSTN) virtual gatherings! Please join us when you can and save the dates below!
Facilitators
All meetings are from 1pm-2pm and on Zoom:
Fall Dates & (tentative) Topics:
Spring Dates:
The Zoom link for all meetings is
https://msu.zoom.us/j/821851929
Meeting ID: 821 851 929
Passcode: MSUTSTN
Best practices in the teaching of writing emphasize that writers should experience writing instruction and opportunities to write that support the development of their critical thinking and metacognitive skills so that they can become flexible, confident writers in a variety of contexts. Traditional grading practices that attach grades to students’ writing undermine equitable pedagogy by shifting attention from learning to performing for a grade. Together, we will reflect on current grading practices, read literature on alternative grading options, and work toward thoughtful implementation.
We will hold LC meetings from 9:30-10:30am on Zoom on the following Fridays:
Folks only have to register once (link below) for all of the dates. Please click to register for the Equitable Grading Practices for Writing Assignments Learning Community (registration numbers will be utilized in the purchase of reading materials as well as distribution of gathering information).
Reach out to LC facilitators for more information:
Join the community of IAH teachers to share best practices and insights into teaching the arts and humanities in a general education context. This group will be devoted to building connections across our broad teaching community on a 3-2-1 schedule: On the 3rd Friday of every month, we will discuss 2 items of interest during a 1-hour meeting (held in Linton Hall Room 321). Virtual attendance options will be provided.
Please reach out to LC facilitators for more information:
Do you often interact with learners in larger course formats? Are you teaching an ISS course? Join your colleagues in ISS 3-2-1! We will discuss opportunities, possibilities, and overcoming common obstacles in large-format general education courses. All are welcome!
All Fall Semester meetings will be from 3-5 p.m. in Room 5 K Berkey (basement)
September 11
October 23
November 6
December 11
Please contact the facilitators of this LC [listed below] to express your interest!
Everyone is welcome to join us as we share experiences, advice, and ideas for teaching students in large courses. While not all classes at MSU are large, almost all students at MSU will take large classes and we want to ensure their experiences are stellar and their professors are supported. If you are unable to attend during our regularly scheduled meetings, please engage by connecting with us directly via email to ask questions, share ideas, and/or access the recordings of our meetings, which are hosted on our MSU Commons site.
Fall Semester meetings will be held:
First Friday of every month from 2-3 PM in 5K Berkey Hall
or via Zoom at:
Meeting ID: 927 1436 5083
Passcode: community
Please reach out to LC facilitators for more information:
Educator development is often something people learn by doing, which can make the work isolating and difficult to navigate for those new to the field. This Learning Community brings together emerging and experienced educator developers to discuss core practices, share strategies, and collaboratively build resources that support both professional growth and innovation in educator development at MSU.
Please contact LC facilitators for more information:
The Classroom Peer Observation Learning Community facilitates classroom teaching faculty, postdocs, and graduate students in understanding the role of peer observations and the various tools available for peer observations. Participants will review various observation tools, participate in peer observations as observer and/or observee, and discuss the mechanisms in which peer observation can inform teaching practice.
Please contact LC facilitators for more information:
Facilitators
This virtual learning community is designed for educators to move past professional isolation and cultivate the collective imagination needed for educational communities to thrive. Using Hope Circuits: Rewiring Universities and Other Organizations for Human Flourishing as a foundational text, members will engage in "critical hope," dismantle scarcity thinking, and intentionally design for joy and deep connection within academic life. Ultimately, this collaborative space empowers educators to expand their own capacity for flourishing, naturally illuminating pathways to build inclusive, hope-filled environments for their students.
Please note: this learning community will meet via Zoom from 11am-11:45am every third Tuesday starting on September 15th (with a break during the winter holiday):
Facilitators
Crafting Your Curriculum invites educators to explore curriculum through hands-on making, critical reading, and collaborative reflection. Each month, participants receive a mailed kit with materials and prompts to create a physical representation of a curriculum concept, using models and metaphors as tools for examining assumptions about teaching, learning, and educational design. Drawing on traditions of reflective practice and curriculum inquiry, participants will use hands-on materials to externalize and interrogate their assumptions about curriculum, creating opportunities for deeper dialogue across disciplines and educational contexts.
Please note: this learning community will meet via Zoom from 3-4pm every fourth Tuesday starting on September 22nd:
Participation in this LC is limited to 10 educators, so REGISTER TODAY! You're making a commitment to create with us, have some fun, and craft your curriculum along the way.
The goal of our TLC is to come together and share pedagogy, evidence-based best practices, holistic educator development, and accessible and inclusive student and educator success strategies. Our bi-weekly Lunch & Learns are collaborative spaces for graduate teaching assistants, postdocs, and any educator. We strive to cultivate a culture of care and build an inclusive community throughout the year and invite educators in any role to engage with us and share their knowledge and teaching practices.
Please contact LC facilitators for more information:
The New Spartan Educators Learning Community is a collaborative, blended space designed to support new instructors as they navigate the teaching culture at MSU and build engaging classrooms. Meeting mostly virtually with three designated in-person sessions, this community brings educators together to share practical, immediate strategies through faculty-led "Teaching Tidbits." It offers a supportive mix of resource-sharing and peer fellowship to help you troubleshoot challenges, celebrate successes, and start your teaching journey strong.
This virtual LC will meet from 10-11am on the 1st Thursday of each month via zoom (connection information will be distributed to registrants via Outlook event).
May 6, 2027
REGISTRATION
Educators can register for the remaining meetings in this LC at any point in the Academic Year!
Please contact LC facilitators at any time for more information:
Pedagogical Wellness is the intersection of teaching, learning, and wellness in higher education courses, leveraging evidence-based practices from multiple domains to promote both success and wellbeing of students and educators. Learning community members will share their practices and consider emerging research, including toolkits and guides from other institutions to better understand, experiment with, and advance best practices in pedagogical wellness here at MSU.
Please contact LC facilitators for more information:
AI in Language, Learning, and Teacher Education: Ethics, Research, Pedagogical Innovation
Blockchain and Cryptoasset Education Group
Community-Engaged Partnerships and Emergent Strategy: From Theory to Practice
Community-Engaged Research: Theory and Praxis
Developing Program Leaders One Chapter at a Time
Disability Dynamics: Theory, Accessibility, and Practice at MSU
Environmental Justice and Climate Action Pedagogy Learning Community
Feminist Community-Engagement Disrupted: Writing our scholarship stories
Five Areas of Student Success Learning Community
Graduate Teaching Assistant & Postdoc Teaching Learning Community (GTAP TLC)
ISS 3-2-1
Large Course Learning Community
Learning Community for Supporting International Student Success
Linguistic Justice for Educators: Theory and Praxis
Mentorship Matters: Enhancing Undergraduate Research and Community Engagement
MSU Trauma Services and Training Network
MSU’s SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Innovation Learning Community
Pedagogies in Support of Global Learning
Sim4One Health
The Educator Exchange
Wellbeing and Belonging
Writing is Necessary (WIN) Peer Mentoring
Academic Freedom and Free Speech
Anti-Racist Community-Engaged Learning at MSU: From Theory to Practice
Arts-Based Research Methodologies Learning and Project Development Group
COIL curriculum integration for course content internationalization
Community-Engaged Research: Theory and Praxis
Decolonizing the University 3.0
Dialogic Practices – Student Flourishing
Digital Collaborative Learning for the 21st Century 3.0
Digital Humanities Pedagogy Learning Community
Disability Dynamics: Theory, Accessibility, and Practice at MSU
Environmental Justice and Climate Action Pedagogy Learning Community
Feminist Community-Engagement Disrupted: Writing our scholarship stories
Graduate Teaching Assistant & Postdoc Teaching Learning Community (GTAP TLC)
ISS 3-2-1
Learning Community for Supporting International Student Success
MSU Trauma Services and Training Network
Programming in Practice
Teaching & Learning in Veterinary Medical and Animal Science Education
The Large-Course Learning Community
Undergraduate Student Success – Five Opportunity Areas Learning Community
Arts-Based Research Methodologies Learning and Project Development Group
COIL curriculum integration for course content internationalization
Decolonizing the University
Digital Collaborative Learning for the 21st Century 2.0
Disability Dynamics: Theory, Accessibility, and Practice at MSU
Equitable pedagogy: Removing barriers to learning
Expanding the Definition of Community Engaged Learning: From Theory to Practice
Feminist Community-Engagement Disrupted: Writing our scholarship stories
Graduate Teaching Assistant & Postdoc Teaching Learning Community
IAH 321
Inclusivity in STEM: Creating Standards of Inclusivity and Mapping Pathways of Support
Learning Community for Supporting International Student Success
MSU Trauma Services and Training Network
Navigating Artificial Intelligence and Large Language Models in the Classroom
Teaching & Learning in Veterinary Medical and Animal Science Education
The Large-Course Learning Community
Accessibility for Teaching and Learning in Language Instruction and Beyond
Action Research in STEM Courses
COIL curriculum integration for course content internationalization
Critical Community Engaged Learning: From Theory to Practice
Decolonizing the University
Digital Collaborative Learning for the 21st Century
Equitable pedagogy: Removing barriers to learning
Feminist Community-Engagement Disrupted: Writing our scholarship stories
Graduate Teaching Assistant & Postdoc Teaching Learning Community (GTAP TLC)
Learning Community for Supporting International Student Success
Learning Community: How to Build an Inclusive STEM Classroom and Lab
MSU Trauma Services and Training Network (MSU TSTN)
Open Pedagogy and Open Educational Practices Learning Community
Reflective Listening Practice towards Humanizing Across Differences
Teaching 2030: Exploring Extended Reality (XR) in Higher Education
Teaching and Learning in Large-Format Courses
Teaching for Equity and Social Justice in Medical Education