Large-Enrollment Community
The Large-Enrollment Community is an opportunity to connect with colleagues, share experiences, and consider new ideas for teaching large courses. We meet monthly for one hour, typically on Zoom. Our meetings feature short presentations from group members on strategies and practices that they have found successful, as well as provide ample time for full group discussion on challenges and questions facing instructors of large-enrollment courses.
We aim for instructors to share and gain practical advice from colleagues in similar roles. Discussion topics include assessment, belonging, classroom activities, teaching teams, and more.
Fall 2026 Meeting Schedule
Fall Kick-Off
Tuesday, September 15, 3:30-5:00pm, at Memorial Union Terrace (rain location: Memorial Union Rathskeller). Meet other instructors of large courses and enjoy conversation with colleagues.
Friday, October 16, 2-3pm
Topic: Community Conversation: AI, Student Belonging, TA Support
Format: Self-select into breakout groups to discuss issues related to artificial intelligence, student belonging, and TA support
Join Google Group for Zoom link.
Monday, November 2, 1:15-2:15pm
Topic: Discourse-Based Labs
Presenter: Andy Kuemmel, Computer Sciences
Join Google Group for Zoom link.
Friday, November 20, 2-3pm
Topic: Scaling Authentic Engagement: Managing Asynchronous Discussions in Large Online Experiential Courses
Presenter: Sarah Fox, Human Ecology, Advising & Career Center
Join Google Group for Zoom link.
Join the Community
To receive community information, meeting invitations, resources, and follow-up materials, subscribe to our Google Group.
Visit our Google Group page (log in with your wisc.edu email) and click “Join group” or send an email to large-enrollment-community+subscribe@g-groups.wisc.edu.
The Large-Enrollment Community provides a space for instructors from across disciplines and departments to build camaraderie and enthusiasm around teaching large and growing courses, leveraging individual and institutional knowledge to develop and share innovative ideas and practices. In a collaborative and welcoming space, instructors can address challenges specific to large-enrollment instruction, such as managing workload and teaching teams, developing a classroom culture of belonging, facilitating learning at scale, and implementing tools and technology effectively.
The Large-Enrollment Community responds and adapts to the needs and priorities of individual instructors, as well as the college and campus at large. The community embraces elements of both Learning Communities and Communities of Practice to create a space that is welcoming, productive, and driven by the needs, ideas, questions, and experiences of instructors. Presentations and discussions are led by member instructors, while a small staff provides structure through administrative planning.
The Large-Enrollment Community has four goals:
- Maintain a network of large-enrollment course instructors across disciplinary boundaries at UW–Madison.
- Develop a culture of member-driven presentations, discussions, and peer-to-peer support.
- Cultivate and exchange practices and resources rooted in instructor experiences that advance the craft of teaching large-enrollment courses in L&S and beyond.
- Continue building a community in which instructors feel comfortable sharing successes, failures, challenges, and questions and enjoy talking together.
The full membership can access community meeting notes, recordings, slides, and shared resources in the Large-Enrollment Community Google Drive. Individuals must be a member of the Google Group to access the Drive. If you have trouble accessing materials, please contact Molly Harris (molly.harris@wisc.edu).
Large-Enrollment Community Facilitators
The Large-Enrollment Community is a coordinated offering between L&S and CTLM with participation from a campus-wide audience. L&S has a distinct interest in supporting large-enrollment courses, as these courses serve as gateways to academic disciplines and shape the L&S experience for thousands of students every semester. CTLM is connected to a broad campus network of instructors and offers operational expertise that enriches the community.