DREAM Studios are three-hour workshops where experts dive into effective practices to support your work and advance the field. Presentations highlight critical elements for advancing student success.
DREAM Studios will take place on Tuesday, February 18, 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. ET. Registered DREAM 2025 attendees may sign up to attend for an additional fee.
9:00 a.m.–12.00 p.m.
The "Fast Track": Building Strategies To Accelerate Students Along Career Pathways
This session will explore innovative approaches to accelerating students along career pathways through various methods of credit articulation. Participants will gain insights from community colleges that have successfully implemented innovative credit articulation strategies, including converting non-credit coursework to credit, recognizing credit for prior learning for marginalized student populations, awarding credit for industry-recognized credentials, and integrating work-based learning components into credit-bearing courses. Participants will develop a matrix to assess and understand the current “fast-tracking” strategies at their institution and will leave the session with a plan to establish or enhance strategies that support students in advancing more rapidly along their chosen career pathways.
Learning Objectives:
Registration Fee:
$195 per workshop for Network colleges
$245 for out-of-Network attendees
Empowering Faculty: Integrating AI and Open Educational Resources (OER) for Ethical Teaching Practices
This Dream Studio, a collaboration between Achieving the Dream (ATD) and the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR), aims to support faculty in understanding and integrating artificial intelligence (AI) and open educational resources (OER) into their teaching practices to promote greater access to education, accelerate student momentum, and enhance socioeconomic mobility. By focusing on the ethical and effective use of AI tools and leveraging open education as pedagogy (OEP), this studio will equip educators with practical strategies to create inclusive and engaging learning environments that uphold academic integrity and quality content. Participants will explore how AI and OER can be utilized to break down barriers to education, support diverse learners, and prepare students for a rapidly changing workforce.
Learning Objectives:
Registration Fee:
$195 per workshop for in-Network colleges
$245 for out-of-Network attendees
Holistic Advising for Student Well-Being: Addressing Basic Needs and Beyond
This session will explore innovative strategies for integrating academic advising with basic needs, empowering students with both the direction and resources they need to pursue their educational and career goals. Participants will learn how to create supportive environments that address students' academic, financial, and personal needs, leading to improved success outcomes. Participants will create a basic needs and advising matrix, returning to their institutions with a plan for connecting academic advising and accessing basic needs for all their students.
Learning Objectives:
Registration Fee:
$195 per workshop for in-Network colleges
$245 for out-of-Network attendees
Strengthening Enrollment Management: Attracting Adult Learners by Utilizing Technology and Market-Driven Programs
This session will delve into innovative and strategic enrollment management strategies supported by AI and other digital technology that attract, retain, and increase student success outcomes for adult learners. It will cover the emerging role of AI in recruitment and retention and its impact on successful enrollment management practices. Participants will learn about how academic advising can and should align with academic program areas connected to high market outcomes. Participants will also discuss how institutions are using post-completion outcomes to understand their institutions' impact on the social and economic mobility of their students.
Learning Objectives:
Registration Fee:
$195 per workshop for in-Network colleges
$245 for out-of-Network attendees
Bold Access Agendas: Leveraging Data To Connect Opportunity Populations
In this interactive workshop, participants will explore a framework, tools, and data sense-making practices to support colleges in developing a deeper understanding of groups and neighborhoods within their community who have been traditionally left behind by postsecondary education. This workshop aims to use data to stimulate critical reflection on who has not had equitable access to our institutions, to introduce essential questions to guide efforts to intentionally dismantle barriers and transform practices, and to provide examples of strategic partnerships to expand access.
Learning Objectives:
Registration Fee:
$195 per workshop for in-Network colleges
$245 for out-of-Network attendees
