Cornerstone Faculty Contribute Strong Presence at Annual Lilly Conference

On Oct. 19-21, 11 faculty and two staff members from Cornerstone University traveled to Traverse City, Mich., for the annual Lilly Conference.

Geared toward college and university teaching and learning, the Lilly Conference provides opportunities for faculty, staff and administrators from across the United States to share wisdom from nearly every discipline found within higher education.

Originally funded by a Lilly Endowment grant, the now thriving conference series is entirely self-sufficient and hosts five national conferences annually.

Boasting a broad variety of highly screened scholarly presentations, this year’s Traverse City Lilly Conference featured a notable four presentations from CU faculty and staff members on topics ranging from gender bias in the classroom and diverse presentation techniques to neurodiversity and information literacy.

“CU faculty and staff consistently present topics that are relevant and well-received by the broader Lilly community,” Dr. Nicole McDonald, CU presenter and director of CU’s Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, noted. “At Lilly Traverse City, the CU team is viewed as a leading group in our scholarship in areas such as innovative teaching practices, working with neurodiverse students, collaboration between faculty and staff and many other relevant and engaging topics.”

High academic standards required by the Lilly conference also provide a great opportunity for faculty and staff to learn more about best practices in teaching and learning.

CU presenter Dr. Sergio daSilva noted, “The conference is a great opportunity to interact with colleagues from other institutions, learn from them and share with others our findings and practices.”

In addition to presenting scholarly material and collaborating with other experts in their respective areas, CU Lilly participants also enjoy an opportunity to grow and learn as a team.

“It is important team building time as we recommit to our shared mission of excellence in teaching and learning,” McDonald said.

Cornerstone University boasts a longstanding tradition of participating in Lilly Traverse City and continues to contribute to and glean from the wisdom shared there each year.

“Lilly is always a good opportunity to refresh and learn. I always come back with a few ideas and techniques to try as well as relevant thoughts about pedagogies,” said daSilva.