With the new school year in full gear for most of us, we are getting closer and closer to meeting at the Annual Conference on Teaching in October! We highlighted the things that the Early Career Psychology (ECP) Committee will be participating in or hosting last month, so we wanted to share our favorite things about the ACT this month. [We also asked some STP members what their favorite thing about ACT is, and you can see what they said below.]

Dina: I particularly appreciate the Welcome Reception on the first day of ACT and the organized dinners offered on Friday night at ACT since everyone who attends is so collegial and friendly.  I highly recommend attending both to meet and socialize with other passionate teachers of psychology, from early career psychologists like us to well-established/lauded experts in the scholarship of teaching and learning.

Vishal: I have only attended ACT in-person twice so far, and I cannot wait to be in Louisville in October! Across both times I have attended, one of my favorite parts is consistently the Friday night dinners. This gives everyone a chance to meet people and make new friends while enjoying some great food! I was nervous attending one my first time at ACT (2022 in Pittsburgh), but I ended up staying there for quite some time and had a blast learning and talking. Another favorite part (which requires an application ahead of time) was the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Workshop. Understanding and being exposed to SoTL work was really insightful and meaningful for me, since no one had ever introduced me to this work before.

Amanda: I think the Welcome Reception before ACT programming gets started is really helpful. It’s nice to be able to reconnect with people I know and to meet new people. The first year I went to ACT, it was really helpful because then I knew some people around the conference and found a group to sit with at lunch. I also really like the Speed Mentoring event on the last day. It’s so helpful to connect with mentors and get advice on whatever issues are most important at that stage of my career. Finally, like Vishal, I really enjoyed taking part in the SoTL workshop. It was nice to get feedback on ideas and figure out what resources are available for doing a SoTL project.

As always, please do reach out with any questions, and we hope to see some of you in Louisville!