Thu 19 Feb 2026 15:50 - 16:00 at Meeting Room 241-242 - Lightning Talks #1

As computer science courses rely on large teams of undergraduate teaching staff, it becomes important to identify structures that can support them effectively while fostering both consistency and community. In this lightning talk, we present a cohort-based model for organizing staff, in which Head Teaching Assistants, experienced Teaching Assistants (TAs) who take on additional leadership and course logistics responsibilities, each lead a small group of four to five other TAs. Each cohort intentionally mixes more- and less-experienced staff to promote mentorship and peer learning. Rather than convening in all-staff meetings, which often suffer from inconsistent attendance and limited interaction, the course relies on a layered structure: the Preceptor, a full-time faculty member responsible for overall course management, meets weekly with Head Teaching Fellows, who in turn meet weekly with their cohorts. This model decentralizes communication, granting Head TAs more agency in how they guide their groups while creating smaller communities where staff feel comfortable raising concerns, asking questions, and sharing strategies. To this end, we will share concrete examples of how cohort meetings have improved information flow, strengthened staff development, and cultivated a greater sense of belonging among teaching staff. Additionally, we will highlight challenges such as uneven dissemination of information across groups and discuss strategies we have implemented to mitigate these issues. Lastly, we will reflect on why we believe this structure offers a scalable and transferable model for other large courses seeking to balance efficiency with community while developing leadership pathways for experienced staff.

Thu 19 Feb

Displayed time zone: Central Time (US & Canada) change

15:40 - 17:00
15:40
10m
Talk
Beyond the Sprint: Teaching Project Management as a Human Skill
Lightning Talks
15:50
10m
Talk
Cohorts for Community: Structuring Undergraduate Staff Support
Lightning Talks
Kelly Ding Harvard University, David J. Malan Harvard University
16:00
10m
Talk
Compiling Course Insights: A Dashboard for Holistic Views in CS EducationGlobal
Lightning Talks
Matt Chen Monash University
16:10
10m
Talk
Enlightning Learning ExperiencesGlobal
Lightning Talks
Michel Zam University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UWM); Paris Dauphine University – PSL; KarmicSoft; , Jacek Urbanski Sodexo — Data Hub, Tara Bogart KarmicSoft
16:20
10m
Talk
Evolving Decisions, Evolving Identities: Scaffolded Tabletop Exercises as a Course Innovation in Cybersecurity
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Lily Pharris UT Martin
16:30
10m
Talk
From Fear to Practice: Integrating Quantum Computing into CS Courses
Lightning Talks
16:40
10m
Talk
LLMTutorBench: A Benchmark for University-level TCS AI Tutoring Systems
Lightning Talks
Anant Gupta Georgia Institute of Technology, Hieu Nguyen Georgia Institute of Technology, Carine G Webber Georgia Institute of Technology, Justin Stevens Washington University in St. Louis, Abrahim Ladha Georgia Institute of Technology, Sanika Ainchwar Georgia Institute of Technology, Vijay Ganesh Georgia Institute of Technology
16:50
10m
Talk
Proactive Listening to Student Voices: Automating Reddit Summaries for Education LeadersGlobal
Lightning Talks
Matt Chen Monash University