2025 Teaching Innovation Grant Recipients
Professional Learning Communities
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Technology-Enhanced Learning.
In this era of rapid technological advancement, AI and technology-enhanced learning are reshaping the landscape of higher education. These innovations present both unprecedented opportunities and complex challenges for teaching and learning. This PLC explores the multifaceted impact of AI and emerging technologies on student learning, with a focus on critical AI literacy, promoting critical thinking, the science of human learning, implementation science, or preparing students to navigate a future workplace infused with AI. With guidance from Valeri Smedile Rifkin, Instructional Designer II, Academic Technology Center and Affiliate, Morgan Teaching and Learning Center.
PLC Name/ Theme: REGIST: Responsible AI in Economy, Governance, Innovation, Society, and Technology
Patricia Agupusi, Shamsnaz Bhada, Crystal Brown, Raha Moraffah, Oleg Pavlov, Daniel Treku, Stephen McCauley
Development Studies, Political Science: DEV 310X: Global Development and Technology: Bridging Innovation and Societal Progress
Patricia Agupusi, Assistant Professor, Social Science & Policy Studies
She will develop a structured research and teaching initiative focusing on the global inequalities in technology access and its impact on development. This initiative will incorporate key insights from my ongoing research and the proposed course, Global Development and Technology: Bridging Innovation and Societal Progress. The course will introduce students to international development theories while critically analyzing the socio-economic impact of AI, blockchain, mobile technologies, and renewable energy systems.
Engineering and Public Policy –2 (Gov 310X) Course Development
Shamsnaz Bhada, Assistant Professor, Systems Engineering
AI is touching all aspects of engineering design and so are its harm. Students at WPI are trained to yield the strength of this technology to deliver results faster, cheaper and better. There are courses on on-device machine learning to build smart sensors, to courses on building chips for accelerating AI. While expertise in high demand technology is essential for students facing a competitive job market, they also need to have literacy on AI generated harms, AI in public policy, governance and civic engagement. This project will focus on early writing for the GOV 310X Engineering and Public Policy –2 course to be offered in D-Term 2027. In this I intend to build a syllabus and learning objectives tailored to the governance demands of AI integrations across all engineering. The topics can range from AI and Public Policy to Explainable AI. There will be a systematic literature review of research in the intersection of AI in Engineering and Public Policy to inform the course design. I will work with the faculty learning group to publish my findings in Annual conference of American Society of Engineering Education
Policy, AI, and Responsible Innovation: Bridging Computational and Social Sciences
Crystal Brown, Assistant Professor, Social Science and Policy Studies
This project examines how artificial intelligence (AI), including large language models (LLMs) and natural language processing (NLP), can be used responsibly in public policy. It seeks to connect technical and policy studies by developing a new course in the Policy Studies Program and launching a collaborative Major Qualifying Project (MQP) that includes students from Computer Science, Policy Studies, and Economics. The project will promote interdisciplinary teamwork, ethical AI governance, and critical discussions on AI's societal impact. As the facilitator of this initiative, I want to bring AI-focused discussions into the Policy Studies and Social Science Department. It will be enlightening to explore whether we can establish this focus as a core part of our SSPS curriculum at WPI.
AI Agent Societies: From Theory to Impact
Raha Moraffah, Assistant Professor, Computer Science Department
A society of generative AI-based agents is a network of autonomous AI entities that collaborate to solve complex problems. They enhance efficiency, adaptability, and personalization by sharing knowledge and adjusting behavior based on real-time data. This course explores their role in real-world applications, especially in healthcare for diagnostics, treatment planning, and patient monitoring. We'll cover their principles, architecture, coordination, and deployment challenges, emphasizing responsible AI, fairness, and trustworthiness for safe and ethical operation.
Leveraging AI and Systems Thinking for Social and Economic Research and
Teaching
Oleg Pavlov, Professor of Economics and System Dynamics
This project explores the impact of AI on society through a systems perspective, integrating findings from ongoing research and previous studies into both research initiatives and economics courses. By leveraging AI to improve social research methods, this project will generate insights into AI’s role in economic policy and decision-making, culminating in better pedagogical materials and collaborative research opportunities
Narrative on Incorporating Aspects of this Project into my Current Courses and Proposed New Interdisciplinary Blockchain Course
Daniel Treku, Assistant Teaching Professor, Information Systems, Fintech
Collaborative Faculty, Data Science
Building on the existing blockchain course, I propose developing a new, interdisciplinary course focused on the intersection of blockchain, AI, machine learning, and social science research methodologies. This course will not only delve into the technical aspects of decentralized technologies but also explore their broader societal implications and potential applications in various fields.
Evaluation of extended reality (XR) teaching modules for promoting agency and empowerment around global grand challenges
Stephen McCauley, Associate Professor of Teaching, Department of Integrative and Global Studies, the Global Lab
This project will evaluate a suite of extended reality (XR) educational modules that the Global Lab is creating, which aim to help students think critically about world systems and
promote ethical engagement around global grand challenges. These ‘Global XR’ projects – which address 1) the energy impacts of AI, 2) representation of global/local spaces, and 3) real-time collaboration with global partners – will be evaluated through implementation in classes and several ‘play test’ events.
PLC Inclusive, Adaptive and Open Learner-Centered Teaching Practices
Ceren Yilmaz Akkaya, Lou Roberts, Ahmet Can Sabuncu, Christopher Lambert, Fiona Zoutendyk, Jillian DiBonaventura, Sakire Arslan Ay, Rebecca Moody, Lindsey Davis, Zoe Reidinger, Raul Orduna Picon, Amy Curran
Inclusive, Adaptive, and Open Learner-Centered Teaching Practices. These projects aim to create a collective learning space at WPI for staff, faculty, and students to understand neurodiverse learners' experiences, discuss support strategies, and implement adaptations. Initiatives include 'Lunch & Learns,' workshops on accommodations, a guidebook for lab notebooking, exploring cognitive barriers in engineering, assessing course tools for inclusivity, addressing gender and neurodiversity, training programs for TAs and PLAs, and improving team formation rubrics in computer science courses to enhance neurodiverse students' learning experiences.
With guidance from Amy Curran, Director, Accessibility Services, Office of Accessibility Services and Caitlin Neer, Senior Instructional Designer, Academic Technology Center and Affiliate Morgan Teaching and Learning Center
...and They Executively Functioned Down the Stairs…
Ceren Yilmaz Akkaya, Visiting Teaching Professor, Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Jillian DiBonaventura, Instructor; Director of Teacher Prep, STEM Education Center
In this project, we aim to create a collective learning space for WPI staff,
faculty, and students to learn about neurodiverse learners lived experiences, discuss practical strategies to support every learner, and assist colleagues in implementing these adaptations. Our plan includes a series of ‘Lunch & Learns’ featuring student voices, followed by three workshops: exploring common accommodations, a hands-on session for implementing co-designed supports, and a round-table discussion on the effectiveness of these implementations and sharing best practices.
Neuroinclusive Strategies to Foster Lab Notebook Skills Development
Lou Roberts Associate Professor of Teaching, Biology and Biotechnology
One major learning outcome shared by laboratory curricula is teaching students how to write a lab notebook. This skill is required for students conducting research in their courses, MQPs, and internships. While many resources and options exist to teach notebooking, we have observed neurodivergent students may struggle more than their peers with performing research and keeping their notebook simultaneously. My primary deliverable will be a guidebook exploring approaches and platforms to reduce the barriers in notebooking many neurodivergent students experience.
Cognitive Barriers in Engineering Problem Solving for Neurodivergent Students
Ahmet Can Sabuncu, Associate Professor of Teaching, Materials and Mechanical Engineering
This project aims to explore cognitive barriers experienced by neurodivergent
student in engineering problem-solving, with a focus on challenges related to executive function and working memory. Grounded in Cognitive Load Theory, the study will use semi-structured interviews to identify common points of cognitive overload, such as difficulty in tracking multiple problem variables or solution steps. The findings will inform the development and evaluation of scaffolding strategies to reduce cognitive load and enhance problem-solving performance.
Broadening participation for neurodiverse students using universal course design
Fiona Zoutendyk, Associate Professor of Teaching, Mechanical and Materials
Engineering
Assess the effectiveness of existing course tools in addressing the learning needs of neurodiverse students and determine if additional tools would help address neurodiversity. Implement this for the whole class wherever possible to create an inclusive
learning environment.
New Intersections of Inclusion: Gender and Neurodiversity in Teaching and Learning
Rebecca Moody, Assistant Professor of Teaching, Humanities and Arts, Lindsey Davis, Assistant Professor of Teaching, Humanities and Arts, and Zoe Reidinger, Associate Teaching Professor, Biomedical Engineering
This project explores the intersection of gender and neurodiversity with focused attention on the learning experiences of female, non-binary, and transgender WPI students. After gathering quantitative and qualitative data from scholarly research and student focus groups, we will develop creative, inclusive approaches to teaching and learning for
neurodiverse populations, including inclusive syllabus statements, course modules that address theories, histories, and projects relating to gender diversity and neurodiversity, sources and resource lists, and other concrete actions faculty and staff can implement.
Laboratory Learning for All: A Teaching Assistant Training Program in Supporting Neurodiverse Student Success in the Chemistry Laboratory
Raul Orduna Picon, Assistant Professor of Teaching & Christopher Lambert, Teaching Professor, Chemistry and Biochemistry
In the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department (CBC) at WPI, there is a need to support teaching (graduate students) and peer learning (undergraduate students) assistants in how to induce, orchestrate, employ, value, and honor the heterogeneity of students’ ways of thinking, doing, and being in the laboratory. To address this pedagogical call, a teaching assistant (TA) and peer learning assistant (PLA) training program called SPECTRUM will be designed, enacted, and assessed to frame diversity as a teaching and learning tool.
Rethinking Team Assignments: Improving Team Projects for Neurodiverse Learners
Sakire Arslan Ay, Associate Teaching Professor, Computer Science
Most computer science major courses are project-based, and many of them involve collaborative work completed as teams. These team projects offer students valuable soft skills and prepare them for MQPs and internships. Every instructor uses a different criterion for allocating students to teams, and most of these rubrics do not account for the needs of neurodiverse students. Partnering neurodiverse students with peers who can communicate well has a significant impact on their learning experience. The goal for this project will be to investigate how to improve the rubric used in forming project teams and to establish more productive team environments for neurodiverse students.
Course and Program Projects
Intercultural Competence as Microcredential: Integrating a Badge System into Language Programs
Gizem Arslan (PI), Assistant Teaching Professor, Althea Danielski Associate Teaching, and Wen-Hua Du, Associate Professor of Teaching Humanities and Arts
This project will pilot microcredentials in intercultural competence by designing and test-running a badge system in the German, Chinese and English Language programs that demonstrates students’ ability to interact effectively with people from other cultural backgrounds. We will redesign assessments and create digital badges in Canvas within language courses that students already take towards their HUA requirement. This pilot lays the groundwork for credentialing systems in other languages, and has potential for broader implementation in study abroad, IQP, and MQP
Gizem Arslan, Althea Danielski, Wen-Hua Du
Development of FAME: Training Students in Interactive Media Technology Spaces
Farley Chery, Associate Professor, Interactive Media and Game Development
Interactive media and animation industries require skilled technical artists proficient in tools and workflows like FAME. This project addresses the gap between academic training and industry needs by providing students with hands-on, project-based learning opportunities. It also creates a codebase for future students to edit and maneuver, which is more like industry, where code bases exist, and new hires update preexisting code. Lastly, it gives WPI students an asset that reproduces professional workflows, allowing them to complete more ambitious MQPs and other projects
Farley Chery
Environmental Leadership Workshop Series
Corey Denenberg Dehner (PI), Associate Professor of Teaching, Marja Bakermans (PI), Teaching Professor, and William San Martin, Assistant Professor, Integrative and Global Studies
Their goal is to create and pilot an action-oriented environmental leadership program for WPI sophomores. This program will help students develop an environmental stewardship and social responsibility lens that they can incorporate into their discipline-specific work. Participants will develop an environmental leadership plan to help them thoughtfully approach their environmental leadership goals. Program topics may include: environmental ethics, leadership styles, environmental agencies and participation in regulatory processes, citizen science, and civic professionals in environmental fields.
Corey Denenberg Dehner, Marja Bakermans, and William San Martin
Harnessing the storytelling power of ethnography to enhance the IQP experience: A proposal to develop a self-paced online module for students and faculty
Tsitsi B Masvawure, Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Global Health, Department of Integrative and Global Studies, The Global School
The immersive nature of IQPs makes them particularly suited to participant observation, a core ethnographic method that fosters self-reflexivity and deep insights about oneself and others among individuals entering unfamiliar cultural spaces. My project seeks to help students develop skills in participant observation, field-noting and critical writing via a self-paced, online module that they take during ID2050. The module will benefit all IQP students and any WPI faculty who teach research methods or advise student research projects.
Tsitsi B Masvawure
Literature Course to Prompt Critical Reflection on the Ethical and Societal Implications of Human-Machine Bondage
Svetlana Nikitina, Teaching Professor, Humanities & Arts
The proliferation of AI is not always accompanied by in-depth classroom conversations about long-term societal implications of human-machine bondage. Literary texts depicting human-like intelligences in action need to be part of the conversation to give students a clear image of potential and peril of algorithmic intelligences. HUA course “Machine and I: Tales of Heartaches and Hard Drives” addresses the gap in AI-related offerings and puts questions of human value front and center in the minds of students, future AI developers.
Svetlana Nikitina