November 6, 2026
Register to Attend Submit a Proposal
The 2026 Illinois Online Higher Education Symposium (IOHES) will be hosted virtually by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign on Friday, November 6, 2026, under the leadership of the Office of Online Learning and the Center for Innovation in Teaching & Learning. Stay tuned for more information about this free virtual event dedicated to those who learn, teach, design, support, or lead online education in Illinois.
The inaugural IOHES was hosted by the Southern Illinois University (SIU) Center for Teaching Excellence in fall 2024, which has successfully led the coordination of two free statewide virtual events. For historical context, you can review details about the 2025 symposium on SIU’s website.
We encourage everyone involved in online education across the state to register for this year’s event using the registration link. The registration link also allows you to volunteer to participate in the organizing committee or to receive conference email updates.
Accessibility
We are committed to making our virtual symposium welcoming and accessible to all participants. Live captions and screen reader–friendly materials will be provided, along with ASL interpreters for the keynote address. If you require additional accommodations—such as sign language interpretation for the breakout sessions or advance access to presentation materials—please reach out to onlinelearning@illinois.edu.
To ensure we can meet your needs, please submit your accommodation request by Friday, October 16. We will make every effort to honor requests received after this date, but advance notice helps us provide the best possible experience.
Institutions
Conference Theme: Accessibility
We invite you to attend this year’s virtual event, devoted to exploring accessibility in its many forms, including inclusive design, equitable participation, and the shared institutional responsibility of creating meaningful online and digital learning spaces. We look forward to connecting with you during the symposium!
Keynote
Accessibility Is a Relationship Worth Cultivating
Keynote Speaker: Kyla Williams Tate
As online and digital learning spaces expand, accessibility remains one of higher education’s most shared and most tested institutional responsibilities. Yet it has standards, checklists, and compliance frameworks that sometimes still manage to feel exclusionary despite its inclusion goals. When accessibility is treated as a requirement rather than a relationship, inclusive design and equitable participation become casualties of compliance. Grounded in research, storytelling, and poetry, this session invites everyone who learns, teaches, designs, supports, or leads to carry the Ecological Relational Access Framework into their daily practice across online and digital learning spaces.
About Kyla Williams Tate
Kyla Williams Tate is a national leader in digital equity and responsible AI, serving as the inaugural Director of Digital Equity for Cook County, where she leads efforts to expand technology access and opportunity for more than five million residents. She spearheaded the county’s Digital Equity Action Plan and Digital Equity Map, earning recognition from the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, which named Cook County a Visionary Digital Inclusion Trailblazer three consecutive years running. In 2025, she was further honored as NDIA’s Digital Equity Champion and recognized by ScaleLIT as a Beyond Books Literacy Leader.
With more than 20 years of experience in public policy, workforce development, and technology, Kyla is advancing AI literacy, shaping the future of work, and driving responsible AI adoption across institutions, learning environments, and communities. Her AI policy expertise is recognized at the highest levels, as a Rising Civic AI Leader through Aspen Digital and the Aspen Policy Academy, alongside Certificates of Distinction in Basic and Advanced Artificial Intelligence Policy from the Center for AI and Digital Policy. Outside of her policy work, Kyla is a poet, singer, and founder of the CollabARTive Community, a collective of artists centering storytelling and cultural practice.
Symposium Sponsors
Thank you to our symposium sponsors, whose support helps keep the symposium free and accessible to all attendees.
Breakout Session Proposals
The IOHES 2026 Symposium Planning Committee invites you to submit breakout session proposals for consideration to the 3rd Annual IOHES. The symposium will be held on Friday, November 6, 2026.
Submission Information
Proposals are submitted through the online submission form and must be received by Monday, June 29, 2026. The primary contact of the proposal submission will be notified if the proposal has been accepted by Monday, August 31, 2026.
Please direct all questions to onlinelearning@illinois.edu.
Submit a ProposalAll proposals must include the following:
Please note items with an asterisk are required for submission.
- Affiliated Institution/Organization* – 15 word limit
- Primary Contact First Name*
- Primary Contact Last Name*
- Primary Contact Position Title
- Primary Contact Email*
- Preferred Pronouns
- Co-Presenter(s) – Name, Preferred Pronouns (optional), Role/Title, Affiliation – 150 word limit
- Document upload for presenter bio(s)
- Presentation Title* – 15 word limit
- Preferred presentation type (breakout session formats below)*
- Program track(s) that best aligns with presentation (proposal tracks below)*
- Learning objectives* – 250 word limit
- Presentation outline (topic, main ideas, overall focus)* – 200 word limit
- Description on presentation accessibility.*
Contact onlinelearning@illinois.edu if you would like to see an example of a proposal submission.
Breakout Session Formats
Submitters will select one preferred session format. There will be an option on the submission form to propose an alternative session format from the ones listed below.
- Presentation: Presenter(s) deliver a “traditional” presentation to attendees using visuals (e.g., PowerPoint, Prezi) or screenshots. There would normally be 35-40 minutes of presentation, with 5-10 minutes for questions and answers. [45 minutes scheduled]
- Panel: Usually consists of 3 or more presenters. Presenters deliver a brief introduction, with the rest of the session devoted primarily to short presentations and/or answering questions from attendees. [45 minutes scheduled]
- Virtual Roundtables: Presenters will give a shorter 5-10 minute introduction to the topic, with the remainder of the time devoted to an interactive exchange with attendees. [45 minutes scheduled]
- Workshop: Presenter(s) provides a demonstration or training in a skill, program, or technique, with attendees given the opportunity to engage in or try out the skill, program or technique. [90 minutes scheduled]
- Poster: Develop a visual to share (few slides, PDF, etc.); you’ll be paired with others for short presentations and discussions. [15 minutes per poster; 45 minute session]
Proposal Tracks
Submitters will select all the proposal tracks that are relevant to their breakout session. There will be an option on the submission form to propose an alternative proposal track from the ones listed below.
- Accessibility, Equity & Access: Ideas and approaches that help create more inclusive, supportive learning environments.
- Online Pedagogy & Instructional Strategies: Creative strategies to engage learners in online and blended spaces.
- Student Success: Supporting students as they grow, persist, and achieve their goals.
- Technology & Tools: Tools and tips to enhance teaching, learning, and everyday workflows.
- Innovation & Trends: Fresh ideas and emerging trends shaping the future of learning.
- Leadership & Strategy: Big-picture thinking for guiding programs, people, and progress.
Proposal Selection Criteria
The committee will be using a rubric to score the proposals.
The rubric scores each proposal on:
- Clarity: The proposal is written clearly and professionally.
- Accessibility: The proposal considers accessibility and inclusive practices to support participation and engagement for all learners.
- Relevance: The session’s topic is relevant and of current interest to those who teach, administer, support, research or lead online education.
- Significance: The session will make a notable contribution to the knowledge and/or practice of online education.
- Completeness: The proposal adequately describes what will occur during the session (not just describing the background and importance of the topic).
- Alignment: The proposal aligns with one or more of the conference topics.
- Engagement: The proposal includes clear plans for engaging the audience and encouraging interaction during the session.
- Learning Objectives: The proposal includes specific, meaningful learning objectives that outline what participants will gain from the session.
Timeline
January 2026: Conference theme announced: ACCESSIBILITY
May 2026: Accepting program submissions for breakout sessions
June 29, 2026: Deadline for program submissions
August 31, 2026: Notification of program acceptances
October 2026: Conference schedule released
November 6, 2026: Symposium