Center for Grading Reform

Grading Conference Organizing Committee

Sun, 16 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Grading Conference Organizing Committee is now accepting applications for new committee members. As the conference continues to grow, we are seeking two additional organizers to enhance the disciplinary diversity of our team and increase our behind-the-scenes capacity.

The Organizing Committee typically meets once per month throughout the year, with additional meetings in the lead-up to the conference in June. Among other things, they are responsible for soliciting abstracts and coordinating abstract reviewers; putting together the conference program; building the conference’s technical and logistical infrastructure; advertising the conference; communicating with presenters and attendees; coordinating conference volunteers; facilitating conference sessions; assessing the efficacy of the conference; and all other conference-related tasks and decisions.

Organizing Committee members typically spend anywhere from 5-10 hours per month on these tasks with hours increasing as the conference draws near, and they also have duties encompassing the entirety of the three-day conference in June. Members are expected (though not required) to serve a minimum of two years on the Committee. In recent years, the Center for Grading Reform has been able to pay Organizing Committee members a small stipend for their service.

We are looking for potential Organizing Committee members who…

Are legally able to work in the US
Can commit to the hours and duties outlined above
Are available to attend the 2027 conference June 15-17
Have experience with implementing alternative grading
Have served as a conference volunteer at least once

Preferred applicants will…

Have previous experience or skills that lend themselves to conference organizing

If you are interested in joining the Organizing Committee, please fill out this form by Wednesday, September 9, 2026. A current member of the committee will follow up with applicants detailing the next steps. For further questions, please email info@thegradingconference.com.

Grading Conference Day 3 Preview

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The final day of this year’s grading conference promises to make us think and help us find inspiration. The keynote by Jesse Stommel is a program highlight for me as Jesse’s writings and social media presence first introduced me to alternative grading almost a decade ago (as I discussed on the grading podcast). As a long time leader in the development and dissemination of alternative grading approaches, I’m excited to hear his case for why the language we use matters and particularly what it means to approach this work through the lens of “ungrading” and the rich context that comes with using that frame.

Stommel’s introduction will lead in excellently to a panel discussion led by JuliA Metzker about the narrative evaluation process at Evergreen State College, an institution that throughout its 50+ year history has embraced an alternative approach to assessment, and for us to learn from scholars and practitioners across disciplines living and teaching in this system every day. Concurrent with this are a number of presentations that look at ways to expand the scope of alternative grading practices through scaling up for large classes, engaging with broader teaching teams, and preparing the next generation of teachers.

Following the example from Evergreen State College in the 2:15 session, Kimberly Hall, one of the conference co-organizers, will share insights from assessment practices in the arts, drawing on her background without grading as a student (as discussed in Episode 150 of the grading podcast), and how we can take these lessons to think about learning portfolios. Concurrently, attendees can explore different modes of implementation. I’m particularly interested in Arden Ashley-Wurtmann’s discussion about standards-based grading in a 15-day J-term, as my institution has seen rapid growth in our J-term with only 11 instructional days.

The final set of presentations includes some that I am looking forward to most throughout the conference. As an educational developer, I’m intrigued by Melissa Ko and Rachel Weiher’s presentation on approaching alternative grading through small changes. Similarly, as someone very interested in self-determination theory as a framework for understanding alternative grading, I’m really excited for Rosemary Fisher and colleagues to share their approach to developing and entrepreneurial mindset by meeting students’ basic psychological needs. And what better way to wrap up the conference experience and be excited for a quickly approaching new semester than Michelle Abbott’s journey of rediscovering joy through ungrading.

Dan Guberman is the Assistant Director for Student Centered Pedagogy in the Center for Instructional Excellence at Purdue University. He is a member of the organizing team for the Grading Conference.

Grading Conference Day 2 Preview

Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Building on yesterday’s post previewing the first day of our 2026 Grading Conference, today we are taking a look at Day 2.

We kick off with a keynote from Brie Tripp. I am very excited about this talk, as I was recently back at the University of South Alabama just after Brie had given the keynote at their Conference on Teaching and Learning. I was there a week after her talk, but the faculty I was working with were still raving about it—they were all talking about some small tweaks to assessments they were going to make to their fall classes based on things they took away from her talk.

The second day of the conference is unique because it features our poster session from 12:30–1:30 EDT. The poster gallery will be linked from the schedule page a few days before the conference for asynchronous viewing, and during this time our poster presenters will be live on Zoom to have conversations with folks about their posters. Our presenters will be there the whole hour, but feel free to drop by any time during that hour to talk to a few presenters.

Our day then dives into parallel sessions. In the first block, I am very intrigued to see a panel on retesting without penalties in large enrollment courses. We frequently hear from folks who are interested in alternative grading, but struggle to find ways to integrate it into the large courses they teach. This panel also reminds me of last year’s keynote address from Eden Tanner, who spoke about exam retakes in her large enrollment chemistry courses.

Day two also involves a few sessions near and dear to my heart on faculty learning communities. Having just today wrapped up co-leading an inter-institution learning community (through the RIOS Institute and the Center for Grading Reform), I am curious to hear from Sarah Justice and Sarah Klanderman about the lessons they learned from leading their learning community. The day closes out with a session of workshops and panels, including a workshop on how to develop a grading-focused community of practice at your institution.

Check back tomorrow for a look at Day 3!

Drew Lewis is an independent higher education consultant and the Director of Research for the Center for Grading Reform. He is a member of the organizing team for the Grading Conference.

Grading Conference Day 1 Preview

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The 2026 Grading Conference is only a week away, and we’re excited for another great year of sharing knowledge and building community around alternative grading. Here’s a preview of what you can expect on day 1:

After a brief conference orientation, we’ll welcome Sarah E. Silverman for our first keynote on “Access friction in grading: Navigating conflicting student (and instructor) needs in student assessment.” Sarah is an independent faculty developer and instructor of Disability Studies. You may recognize her from past sessions at the Grading Conference, where she’s given presentations on the intersections between alternative grading and disability. Her keynote will tackle a thorny problem: what to do when our approaches to assessment work for some students and not for others.

Speaking of thorny problems, day 1 also features several sessions on how to scale the implementation of alternative grading for large classes or multiple sections of a course. (True to the conference’s roots, much of this work comes from the discipline of math!) Those teaching large classes may also be interested in the many sessions on specifications grading during day 1—including one from the specs grading sage herself, Linda Nilson.

Additionally, we’re excited to bring back a series of sessions from past conferences designed specifically for those who are new to alternative grading. On the first day, conference organizer Ashleigh Fox and friend-of-the-conference Adriana Streifer will host workshops that cover the problems with traditional grading and the basics of alternative grading. While these sessions are open to anyone, they’ll be especially useful to those who are looking for some background on the main ideas of the conference.

Some of our most popular sessions at past conferences have been our student panels, and we expect that to continue this year. The last slot of day 1 will feature a panel of students from Syracuse University reflecting on their experiences in an honors seminar about the “Problems with Grades.” Its goal is not only to bring student voices into the scholarly conversation about assessment but also to give instructors some insight into how we can help our students think more productively about grades.

That’s not all you’ll see on day 1: there are also sessions on student motivation, peer feedback, AI and alternative grading, aligning grading with our values, teaching Generation Alpha, preparing faculty for ungrading, and more. Plus, all attendees are welcome to join us for the first conference social hour from 6:00-7:00 pm EDT.

There’s a little something for everyone on day 1—we hope to see you there!

Emily Pitts Donahoe is the Associate Director of Instructional Support in the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning and a Lecturer of Writing and Rhetoric at the University of Mississippi. She is a member of the organizing team of the Grading Conference, and writes regularly about alternative grading on her blog Unmaking the Grade.

2026 Grading Conference

Thu, 28 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The 2026 Grading Conference is scheduled for June 16–18, 2026. This year we are excited to feature keynotes from Sarah Silverman, Brie Tripp, and Jesse Stommel. You can peruse the full schedule here, and don’t forget to register!