Professional Development Programs  

Conferences 

Conference on Instruction and Technology 

The annual SUNY-wide Conference on Instruction and Technology (CIT) is hosted each year on a SUNY campus. In 2025, it was held at SUNY Oneonta and attracted 297 participants from 45 SUNY campuses, SUNY System Administration, SUNY organizations, and five institutions outside of SUNY.  

SUNY Online Summit 

The 2025 SUNY Online Summit, held in Syracuse and virtually from February 26–28, marked the 26th annual gathering of SUNY’s online teaching and learning community of practice and the 31st anniversary of online education at SUNY. With 510 participants representing 50 SUNY campuses, 22 SUNY organizations, 106 non-SUNY institutions, 37 U.S. states, and 9 countries, the Summit reinforced SUNY’s role as a national and global leader in online education. Participant feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with 91% agreeing the Summit met expectations, highlighting the value of both in-person and free virtual access in fostering system-wide and national/international engagement. 

SUNY OER Summit 

The annual virtual SUNY OER Summit convenes educators, librarians, technologists, and administrators from across SUNY and beyond to share best practices in open education. The Summit highlights innovative projects, celebrates campus achievements, and fosters collaboration in support of equitable and affordable learning. 

Non-conference Professional Development 

Fellowships 

In 2024–2025, SUNY OER Services expanded its professional development portfolio, engaging faculty and staff through a variety of fellowships. 

• Lumen Circles Fellowships: Lumen Circles Fellowships support faculty professional growth through free, nine‑week virtual communities of practice where participants explore evidence‑based teaching strategies, reflect on their practice, and learn from peers across institutions. Open to SUNY faculty in any discipline or career stage, the program is flexible, supportive, and focused on continuous teaching improvement. 

• Open Learning Initiative (OLI) Learning Engineering Fellowship: The OLI Learning Engineering Fellowship is a free, nine‑week program that engages faculty, instructional designers, librarians, and researchers in applying learning science to course design. Participants use human‑centered and data‑informed approaches to strengthen learning experiences and advance real instructional projects. 

• AI4 Learning Fellowship: The AI4 Learning Fellowship is a self‑paced program that helps faculty integrate artificial intelligence into teaching and course design without requiring technical expertise. Developed collaboratively with faculty and partners including CMU’s Open Learning Initiative and SUNY OER Services, the program emphasizes ethical, practical, and policy‑aware uses of AI to support student learning. 

These programs foster inclusive pedagogy, digital fluency, and collaborative teaching practices across disciplines. 

OLIS Webinars and Virtual Meetings 

OLIS offered a broad range of professional development opportunities during 2024–2025. Programs included regular OLIS updates, training and informational sessions on workflows and system developments, vendor presentations on resources and features, and spotlight sessions showcasing projects and achievements across SUNY libraries. A total of 32 programs attracted nearly 2,000 attendees, with an average attendance of 60 participants per session. 

In addition to presentations, OLIS also facilitated more than 60 interest group and community of practice meetings. These meetings provided SUNY librarians and library staff a forum to network with each other and discuss topics of interest, as well as providing OLIS with insight into the needs of our SUNY libraries. Nearly 1,000 people attended these meetings throughout the year. 

SUNY Online Webinars

In addition to supporting the webinars hosted by the SUNY Online Teaching unit, SUNY Online also hosted webinars around relevant topics to the SUNY Online Community featuring campus presenters and highlighting campus projects, as well as showcasing the DLE implementation. SUNY Online amplifies visibility and collaboration by its inclusion in events such as National Distance Learning Week, which is promoted nationally, and Open Education Week, which is promoted to an international audience. 

Feedback from webinar participants: 

“I always learn something new when I attend these webinars.” 

“Timely and relevant information. Very useful!” 

“This was a fabulous set of offerings, and the presenters were also fun and engaging.” 

The monthly webinar series is an open forum for campuses to share their online activities. Collectively, these initiatives demonstrate SUNY Online’s leadership in fostering a vibrant, system-wide community of practice, while scaling quality, recognition, and innovation in online education. 

Distance Learning Leaders 

Established in 2024, The SUNY Online Distance Learning Leader (DLL) Onboarding Program is a free program for new distance learning leaders across the SUNY system to help them succeed in their role. The onboarding program provides foundational information about SUNY System, SUNY Online, and distance learning program management. The program provides a clear picture of navigating and making the most of the DIAS resources available to new distance learning leaders across SUNY and fosters connections among them.  

10 distance learning leaders from 9 campuses completed this program in the 24-25 academic year. 

“Honestly, the personalized nature of the sessions made all the difference. It felt like everything was really geared toward what I needed to know, and the facilitators were so generous with their time and knowledge. It was a great mix of practical info and broader context, and I left each session feeling more confident and better equipped to do my job.” 

-Distance Learning Leader Program participant 

Professional Development Certifications 

DIAS provides design and delivery of certificate programs and courses through the Center for Professional Development (CPD) in the following areas. Faculty, instructional designers, and librarians have access to world-class content delivered by experienced and knowledgeable training staff. 

Artificial Intelligence Courses (1 & 2) 

• 26 Participants 

Instructional Design Certificate Program – Including customized programs for the Educational Opportunity Centers and the SUNY Online Help Desk

• 41 Participants 

Online Teaching Certificate Program

• 10 participants

Library Leadership and Management Certificate

• 45 participants

OTTER 2025: Accessibility Edition 

Online Teaching: Technology & Educational Resources 

• 407 Registrants 

• 10 webinars 

• 2 student panels 

Online Student Support Certificate Program – 15 participants

The Online Student Support Certificate program provides staff, faculty, and campus leaders with strategies and research informed practices to strengthen student success in online learning environments. Participants examine how campus workflows and perspectives can adapt to the unique needs and challenges of online students while also leveraging the opportunities online learning provides. 

Through this certificate program’s three six-week courses, participants gain practical skills to foster online student engagement, motivation, and academic achievement. The goal is to equip campuses to reimagine and deliver student services and resources designed for online learners. 

“The SUNY CPD Online Student Supports Certificate is a great baseline for exploring student support in the online space.” 

Online Student Support Certificate Recipient   

Developing a Student Success Coaching Mindset

(Coaching in Higher Ed Certificate Program, Course 2)

Student success coaching is a critical strategy for supporting holistic student development, persistence, and completion. Offered through the SUNY Center for Professional Development, this six-week course builds on the foundation established in Coaching Strategies and, together with that course, completes the Coaching in Higher Education Certificate. 

Grounded in evidence-based, strengths-based, and solution-focused practices, the course equips participants with skills and frameworks to apply coaching techniques that empower students to achieve both academic and personal goals. Participants develop a practical coaching toolkit that is culturally responsive, adaptable across diverse student populations, and scalable for institutional use. By the end of the program, participants are prepared to apply student-centered coaching approaches that enhance engagement, foster resilience, and drive measurable student success outcomes. 

“I completed the SUNY CPD course: Developing a Student Success Coaching Mindset in Spring 2025. I found this course especially helpful when applied to the last few years of my professional experience as a former Student Success Coach (for 10 months) and now as an Academic Advisor (2 years). I found exploring Appreciative Advising with a Success Coach lens was incredibly helpful to better understand how I was incorporating coaching into my advising approach and how I could expand that. Something I considered throughout the course was how to incorporate coaching into working with my caseload – I usually meet with about 350 students once per semester. The biggest takeaways were offering a judgment free environment, meeting students where they are at, and actively listening to both verbal and non-verbal communication. This course is absolutely helpful for faculty and staff that work with students.”  – Program Participant 

OSCQR Program 

SUNY Online Teaching advanced the OSCQR program with new structures, training, and expanded global reach. A formal certification process (in three areas: Self-Assessment, Reviewer, and Trainer) was implemented, with 587 online SUNY faculty, instructional designers, and non-SUNY individuals attending OSCQR introductory webinars during this period. Eight individuals completed all the requirements for fourteen OSCQR certifications across the three certification areas, with one individual being from a non-SUNY institution.