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Join us Oct. 18-21 online and in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania!

Online sessions schedule

Attendees will have on-demand access until Monday, November 30, 2026 through this website. DigiCol paid members will have long-term access through the Professional Development Library.

Track Name Speakers Tags Delivery
Monday, October 19, 2026, 8:30 AM - 9:15 AM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)Behind the prompt: How ASU builds the AI story — and how you can tooTina Miller — Arizona State UniversityAI, content strategy, integrations, management and leadership, marketing and communicationsin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)After the AI hype: Digital shifts universities must make before 2027Piero Tintori — TerminalfourAI, CMS, content strategy, marketing and communications, search and discoverabilityin person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)How to prioritize program-specific marketing: Turn program pages into enrollment growth enginesKayla Benda — Ferris State Universitycontent strategy, engagement, marketing and communications, search and discoverability, social mediain person, online
Monday, October 19, 2026, 9:30 AM - 10:15 AM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)Operationalizing AI in marcom: From experiments to integrated workflowsMark Mazelin — Cedarville University
Ashley Pichea — Cedarville University
AI, marketing and communications, web standardsin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)Activate your brand platform with content strategyGeorgy Cohen — Georgy Cohen LLC in person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)Breaking the CRM barrier: From ad spend to enrolled studentsRobert Kadar — Yeshiva Universitydata and analytics, engagement, integrations, marketing and communications, performance, social mediain person, online
Monday, October 19, 2026, 10:15 AM - 11:15 AM
 Break activity for online attendees  online
Monday, October 19, 2026, 11:15 AM - 12:00 PM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)From SEO to AEO: 10 practical ways higher ed websites can show up in AI and searchJanna Fiester — Sandstorm
Cameron Panice — Sandstorm
AI, content strategy, marketing and communicationsin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)10 GenAI tools and tricks every higher ed pro should be usingErin Callihan — New York UniversityAI, automation, content strategy, design, marketing and communicationsin person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)From burnout to buy-in: Designing an intentional mission-driven social media workflow that actually worksRachael Eyler — Stony Brook Universitycontent strategy, data and analytics, engagement, marketing and communications, social mediain person, online
Monday, October 19, 2026, 1:00 PM - 1:45 PM
 Collegium Chat  in person, online
Monday, October 19, 2026, 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)Preparing for AI search: What did and didn't work for usLaura Barr — University of RochesterAI, content strategy, front-end developmentin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)From SEO to GEO and AEO: Upgrade your content for maximum AI visibilityMike Powers — OHOAI, content strategy, governance, marketing and communications, search and discoverabilityin person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)Embrace digital media to maximize faculty PRJenna Spinelle — Penn State
Bill Zimmerman — Penn State
collaboration and outreach, content strategy, engagement, social mediain person, online
Monday, October 19, 2026, 4:00 PM - 4:45 PM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)Know the tropes. Spot the slop. Make it human.Taylor King — Ologie
Dakota Story — Ologie
AI, content strategy, design, marketing and communicationsin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)The Y2K of digital accessibility: Navigating the DOJ rule hangoverDarren Denham, CPACC — University of Central Oklahomaaccessibility, diversity and inclusion, governance, legal and policy, management and leadershipin person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)The digital front door: How design, content and governance build trust in higher edJessica Pontarelli Evans — Brown Universityaccessibility, content strategy, governance, marketing and communications, UX and UIin person, online
Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 8:30 AM - 9:15 AM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)As AI steals the click, steal back the answerTera Buckley — University of North DakotaAI, content strategy, marketing and communications, search and discoverability, website managementin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)Copilot, not autopilot: Responsible AI use in dev workflowsMike Miles — MIT SloanAI, automation, CMS, programming, project managementin person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)The website is dead. Long live the website: New digital strategies for the AI eraEvie Ebert — Carnegie
Jon Shearer — Carnegie
Greg Zguta — Carnegie
AI, content strategy, marketing and communications, UX and UI, website managementin person, online
Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 9:30 AM - 10:15 AM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)Using Claude Code to scale content strategyDavid Poteet — NewCityAI, automation, content strategy, governance, website managementin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)Can AI build better personas? A skeptic's proof of concept (starring Christopher Walk'n as Dial-Up Internet)Melanie Lindahl — The University of Texas at AustinAI, engagement, marketing and communications, researchin person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)Beyond the send button: Technical precision meets digital strategyAparna Shrivastava — The University of Texas at Dallasaccessibility, content strategy, email, marketing and communications, testing and QAin person, online
Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 11:15 AM - 12:00 PM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)Allychemy: Leveraging AI to build a user-friendly accessibility checkerBill Columbia — UF Health
Jeff Stevens — UF Health
Kyle Tucker — UF Health
accessibility, automation, back-end development, programming, training and user supportin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)Build your automated insight collaboratorBrian Piper — AIreFlow Solutions in person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)Preserving your individuality in a brand alignmentChloé Bell — University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Joshua Jennings — University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
collaboration and outreach, content strategy, marketing and communications, project management, redesignsin person, online
Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 12:45 PM - 1:45 PM
 Lightning talks  in person, online
Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)Why students can’t find what they need on your website (and how TCU is fixing it with AI)Jeff Dillon — SearchStax
Corey Reed — Texas Christian University
CMS, content strategy, data and analytics, marketing and communications, UX and UIin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)Consistency at scale: Unified digital experiences through governance, standards and communities of practiceJoyce Peralta — McGill Universitycontent strategy, governance, management and leadership, UX and UI, web standardsin person, online
Marketing and communications (MCOM)Why your analytics reports are not answering leadership's real questionsMandee Englert — JAKALA
Rebecka Hall — Old Dominion University
AI, data and analytics, performance, search and discoverabilityin person, online
Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 2:45 PM - 4:00 PM
 Break activity for online attendees  online
Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 4:00 PM - 4:45 PM
AI and emerging tech (AIET)'What are the best schools for…' — How AI decides who makes the listBrian Clark — Rhode Island School of Design
Elliott Mower — Current
AI, CMS, content strategy, search and discoverability, website managementin person, online
Higher ed strategy and trends (HEST)Oatmeal raisin or chocolate chip? Cookie consent that isn’t half-bakedGabriel Nagmay — Portland Community Collegedata and analytics, front-end development, legal and policy, programming, UX and UIin person, online
Wednesday, October 21, 2026, 8:30 AM - 9:15 AM
 Red Stapler sessions  in person, online
Wednesday, October 21, 2026, 10:45 AM - 12:00 PM
 Awards and keynote  in person, online
Time Zone: (UTC-04:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada) [Change Time Zone]