CELT-cast

CELT-cast: Dr. Bruna Damiana Heinsfeld

Podcast: CELTcast – The Podcast of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Institution: Concordia University Wisconsin & Ann Arbor (CUWAA) Hosts: Kate Robertson and Kari Bjerke Producer: Ashley Curtin Guests: Dr. Bruna Damiana Heinsfeld Featured Article: Universities risk becoming passive arms of Silicon Valley if they don't question how AI shapes truth, a professor says [https://www.businessinsider.com/universities-risk-ceding-control-to-big-techs-ai-push-2025-12] Bruna Damiana Heinsfeld is an assistant professor of learning technologies at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Her research interests center on the field of Critical Studies in Education and Technology, focusing on critically examining the complex intersections of technology, society, and education. She was recently cited in this article [https://www.businessinsider.com/universities-risk-ceding-control-to-big-techs-ai-push-2025-12] from Business Insider, which led to our CUW team reaching out to her for an appearance on CELT-cast.

CELT-cast: Dr. Lane Freeman

Podcast: CELTcast – The Podcast of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Institution: Concordia University Wisconsin & Ann Arbor (CUWAA) Hosts: Kate Robertson, Natalie Upson, and Kari Bjerke Producer: Ashley Curtin Guests: Dr. Lane Freeman Featured Article: The AI Sandwich: Human-First, Human-Last in an AI-Rich Educational Environment [https://onlinelearningconsortium.org/olc-insights/2026/01/the-ai-sandwich/] Dr. Lane Freeman is a nationally recognized educator, consultant, and thought-leader in online learning and artificial-intelligence integration. Lane serves as State Director of Online Learning for the North Carolina Community College System, leading policy, faculty development, and strategy for 58 colleges. Lane has presented at OLC Accelerate, the AVID National Conference, Inside Higher Ed webinars, and technology summits from Florida to South Dakota. His workshops empower K–12 districts, community colleges, universities, and workforce partners to harness AI for personalized learning, assessment innovation, and workforce up-skilling.

CELT-cast: Dr. Don Saucier

CELTcast Episode 11 Podcast: CELTcast – The Podcast of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Institution: Concordia University Wisconsin & Ann Arbor (CUWAA) Hosts: Kate Robertson & Kari Bjerke Producer: Ashley Curtin Guests: Dr. Don Saucier Featured Article: Lessons Learned from Students Using AI Inappropriately in My Class [https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/effective-teaching-strategies/lessons-learned-from-students-using-ai-inappropriately-in-my-class/?st=FFdaily%253Bsc%253DFF251210%253Butm_term%253DFF251210&utm_campaign=13247135-Faculty%2520Focus%253A%2520June%2520-%2520December%25202025&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--jXcE8NKW08rkiHSJM8bESrjiYbIYQA95fO8U3uaapfBXLV2sc9DqLzjur13TiAsZ973vEor7wcJ953_m6wOjcewcDXo1wbMKfz1QCQ196qF60w8c&_hsmi=389817774&utm_content=389817774&utm_source=hs_email] Dr. Don Saucier is a university distinguished teaching scholar and professor of psychological sciences, and faculty director of the Teaching and Learning Center at Kansas State University. His numerous awards and honors include the Putting Students First Award for Outstanding Service to Students, University Distinguished Faculty Award for Mentoring of Undergraduate Students in Research, William L. Stamey Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching Award from the College of Arts and Sciences, and the Dr. Ron and Rae Iman Outstanding Faculty Award for Teaching. Dr. Saucier’s research interests center on expressions of antisocial and prosocial behavior. Our podcast conversation with him focuses on the student experience with the use of AI in assignments and how instructors can set students up for success regarding AI usage and policies.

CELT-cast: Dr. Sean Cho

CELTcast Episode 10 Podcast: CELTcast – The Podcast of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Institution: Concordia University Wisconsin & Ann Arbor (CUWAA) Hosts: Kate Robertson & Kari Bjerke Producer: Ashley Curtin Guests: Dr. Sean Cho Ayres Featured Article: How I rehumanize the college classroom for the AI-augmented age [https://theconversation.com/how-i-rehumanize-the-college-classroom-for-the-ai-augmented-age-269168] Dr. Sean Cho Ayres is a poet, AI ethics researcher, and educator currently serving as an Assistant Professor in the English Department at Kennesaw State University. He completed his PhD in Creative Writing and Literature at the University of Cincinnati, where he worked at the Digital Scholarship Center and served on the editorial teams of The Cincinnati Review and Acre Books. He currently serves as Editor in Chief of The Account: A Journal of Poetry, Prose, and Thought and Poetry Editor at Overhead Lit. Across his scholarship, poetry, and public-facing essays, he aims to develop approaches that treat AI as a human story—one shaped by labor, culture, and care—and to advocate for creative practices that foreground transparency, ethics, and the lived experiences behind technologies. additional article: Human Error Is the Point: On Teaching College During the Rise of AI [https://therumpus.net/2025/10/02/human-error-is-the-point-on-teaching-college-during-the-rise-of-ai/] Here is a little blurb about the extra article: This essay is a thoughtful, honest reflection on teaching in the age of AI, reminding us that the awkward moments, mistakes, and human messiness in the classroom are actually where learning happens—and why those things still matter more than ever.

CELT-cast: Dr. Jennifer Smith

Podcast: CELTcast – The Podcast of the Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching Institution: Concordia University Wisconsin & Ann Arbor (CUWAA) Hosts: Rob Balza & Kate Robertson Producer: Ashley Curtin Guests: Dr. Jennifer Smith [https://www.k-state.edu/psych/about/people/smith/] Featured Article: The Importance of Connection in the Age of AI [https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-and-learning/the-importance-of-connection-in-the-age-of-ai/?st=FFdaily%3Bsc%3DFF251013%3Butm_term%3DFF251013&utm_campaign=13247135-Faculty%20Focus%3A%20June%20-%20December%202025&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--QUeCFo_WIJ0wCMHiflufgYLHqQytzczrpegiDYu2fj6-KXx8rmzmkOLhN_yw8uuQhquIJXpnjO_PiQcBUbWehzt3bfhszDdL7XeaGTOhJw35cS4A&_hsmi=381222744&utm_content=381222744&utm_source=hs_email] Dr. Jennifer Smith is an assistant professor and internship coordinator in the Department of Psychological Sciences at Kansas State University. Dr. Smith’s primary research interest is how technology is impacting the psychology of intimate relationships and contributing to the epidemic of loneliness. Our podcast conversation with her centers on college students’ need for relationships and connection, and how AI use intersects with those needs.