CITI BEAT September 2025

FOCUS ON AI

WSSU AI Faculty Development Workshop Series 2025-2026

This series has been created to engage faculty with topics in generative AI relevant to ethics and safety, curriculum integration, teaching practices using generative AI tools, and many other topics over the course of the acdemic year. The AI series is funded by the Adobe Foundation, and CITI is excited to have many national experts serve as guest facilitators for the sessions who will share innovative ways to explore and apply generative AI in teaching and learning.

The sessions are one time per month; days vary, but each are always at 12:00pm-1:00pm. These professional development sessions will be shown in your Outlook Calendars for your convenience along with the other CITI Workshop opportunities this year.

Join us on this AI journey of innovation and transformation as a learning partner. If you have any questions, please reach out to CITI.

RESOURCES FROM OUR UNC-SYSTEM INSTITUTIONS

Are you looking for innovative ways to use AI in your course? Check out how our sister institutions are leveraging AI in their pedagogy:

• Analog Inspiration Sheet
• AI Exemplars from UNC-Asheville

HERE'S WHAT HAPPENING......

IN YOUR CITI

NEW FACULTY SYMPOSIUM RECEPTION

On August 21, CITI hosted the 2025-2026 New Faculty Symposium reception from 3:30 to 5:00 pm at the Center for Design Innovation.

As we begin a new academic year, the New Faculty Symposium is designed to welcome, orient, and support you as you begin your journey with us. The symposium will take place monthly on the 3rd Thursday, and will offer essential insights into our institutional culture, instructional resources, and strategies for professional success in teaching, research, and service.

TECHNOSTRESS

The CITI Blog is a collaborative space to explore innovative instructional techniques, course design, and instructional technology. This month, Dr. Michele Leverett, Instructional Designer in the Center for Innovative and Transformative Instruction, explores the theory of technostress in her blog, "When Tech Takes a Toll: Coping with Technostress in Higher Ed."

When Tech Takes a Toll: Coping with Technostress in Higher Ed

-Dr. Michele R. Leverett It’s 10 p.m., and you’re still answering student emails after a full day of classes, meetings on Zoom, and hours spent grading in Canvas. Just as you’re ready to close your laptop, a system update pops up, followed by another notification from yet another app. You feel exhausted, trapped, irritated, exasperated, and just plain “over it.” Sound familiar? If so, you may be experiencing technostress. The term technostress was coined by the American psychotherapist Craig Brod as "a modern disease of adaptation caused by an inability to cope with the new computer technologies in a healthy manner" (1984). It was first applied to study automation and later, ICT in the workplace. In short, technostress is the strain and fatigue that comes from constant interaction with technology. For faculty in higher education, it can show up as: Anxiety about keeping pace with new platforms or digital tools, especially AI (techno-uncertainty). Frustration with system updates or steep learning curves (techno-complexity) Fatigue from hours of grading, emailing, and meeting online (techno-overload). Feeling “always on,” with no clear boundary between work and personal time (techno-invasion) Insecurity about being replaced or invaluable, particularly with the evolution of AI in the classroom (techno-insecurity) If not addressed, technostress can drain energy, reduce productivity, and even dull the joy of teaching. By taking small, intentional steps, faculty can manage technostress and even model healthier digital practices for their students. Here are some practical ways to start: Set digital boundaries. Decide when you’ll log in—and when you won’t. Make these boundaries clear for students by documenting them in your syllabus or in your Canvas course. Protecting your off-hours is essential for balance. Simplify your toolbox. Focus on the technologies that truly support your teaching goals instead of trying to master everything, even if that technology is not AI-related. Lean on support. Take advantage of faculty development workshops, learning communities, and IT resources. You don’t have to figure everything out alone. Build in screen breaks. Even five minutes away from the computer can help you reset your focus and energy. Adopt a growth mindset. Approach new technologies with curiosity, seeing them as opportunities to experiment and grow rather than burdens to bear. Develop a realistic mindset about the impact technology has made in academia and the digital workforce while keeping in mind that instructor presence always prevails. Technology will always evolve, and higher education will continue to evolve with it. The key is to remember that these tools are meant to serve teaching and learning—not to overwhelm the people at the center of it. By recognizing technostress and practicing balance, faculty can reclaim their energy, protect their well-being, and keep the focus where it belongs: on meaningful connections with students. References Brod C. (1984). Technostress: The Human Cost of Computer Revolution. Reading, M.A., Addison-Wesley. OpenAI. (2025, September 2). When tech takes a toll: Coping with technostress in higher ed [Large language model output]. ChatGPT. https://chat.openai.com/

DON'T FEAR...WE'RE HERE!

The Center for Innovative and Transformative Instruction (CITI) is an inclusive, supportive, and collaborative common area for faculty, staff and administrators to pursue innovation and transformation in higher education teaching and learning, including the scholarship of teaching & learning (SoTL).​ CITI will keep you updated on the latest innovative and transformative instructional methods and technologies.​ CITI Team personnel are all experienced college faculty with a strong background in teaching and learning, course design, instructional technology, and Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). ​