Schedule

Your ticket entitles you to two full days of sessions including a keynote and breakfast and lunch each day, plus networking & social events.


Monday, July 20, 2026

Tuesday, July 21, 2026

8:00 AM to 9:00 AM

Registration and Breakfast
Room #B2007

9:00 AM to 9:15 AM

Opening Remarks, Lee-Anne Akister, #PSEWeb & Red Deer Polytechnic
Room #B2007

9:15 AM to 9:25 AM

Welcome Remarks From Our Co-Hosts, Marie-Claude Renaud, Memorial University
Room #B2007

9:25 AM to 10:25 AM

Keynote Talk
Room #B2007

10:25 AM to 10:45 AM

Coffee Break
Room #B2007

10:45 AM to 11:25 AM

How I Posted 100+ Pieces of User-Generated Content on Instagram in One Year, Nicole Crozier, University of Victoria
Room #B2007

We’ve Been ‘Collabing’ Since Before ‘Collabing’ Was a Thing: How Two Social Media Managers Became Strategic Architects to Better Tell the Laurier Story, Christie Ledgley, Wilfrid Laurier University and Kara McDowell, Wilfrid Laurier University
Room #B2007A

From Noise to Narrative: Building an Institutional Story in a Decentralized University, Cindy Connor, University of British Columbia
Room #1003

11:25 AM to 12:05 PM

12:05 PM to 1:15 PM

Lunch and sponsor remarks
Room #B2007

1:15 PM to 1:55 PM

Can You Post This ASAP?: The Power of Content Calendars, Natasha Mendonca, University of Toronto and Delicia Ansalem, Faculty of Arts & Science, University of Toronto
Room #B2007

Built for Audiences, Not Assumptions, Tim Runtz, University of Manitoba and Heather Saxton, University of Manitoba
Room #B2007A

From Static to Signal: A Student Survey Strategy That Delivers, Jennifer Ross, Queen’s University and Ellie Sadinsky, Queen’s University
Room #1003

2:05 PM to 2:45 PM

We’ve Got You: Using Human-Centered Storytelling to Support First-Year Students through Social Media, Hayley Park, University of Victoria
Room #B2007

Frame by Frame: Building a Repeatable Video Series, Nicholas Carter, University of Toronto
Room #B2007A

A Strategy of Care: Integrating Strategic Communications into Departmental Operation to Optimize Service Delivery, Lisa Marie Nagapen, University of Toronto Scarborough and Sandra Ngan, University of Toronto Mississauga
Room #1003

2:45 PM to 3:45 PM

Ice cream with the sponsors
Sponsor Area

3:45 PM to 4:25 PM

You’re Recruiting. They’re Rewriting Their Lives. Designing Communication for International Students., Dayana Kibilds, SimpsonScarborough
Room #B2007

The Power of a Strategic No: When Everything Matters, What Matters Most?, Tanja Maraj, McMaster University; Hollie Pocsai, McMaster University and Afnan Abdelbaki, McMaster University
Room #B2007A

Stretching Your Story: How to Maximize Impact Across Multiple Digital Platforms, Shayla Vize, McMaster University
Room #1003

4:25 PM to 4:30 PM

Announcements

Wednesday, July 22, 2026

8:00 AM to 9:00 AM

Registration and Breakfast
Room #B2007

9:00 AM to 9:15 AM

Welcome Remarks From Our Co-Hosts, College of the North Atlantic
Room #B2007

9:15 AM to 9:55 AM

From Inbox to Impact: Launching Strategic Newsletters That Engage Students and Staff, Marcy Thomas, Western University and Tricia Starrett, Western University
Room #B2007

Behind the Scenes of Sciographies: A Podcast About the People Who Make Science Happen!, Jocelyn Adams Moss
Manager, Dalhousie University
Room #B2007A

Creative That Converts: How We Used Data to Drive Year-Over-Year Growth in Paid Digital, Rebecca DeShane, University of Toronto and Andrea Villegas Mayorga, University of Toronto
Room #1003

10:00 AM to 10:40 AM

The Secrets to Elevating Your Design Skills in 30 Minutes, Afnan Abdelbaki, McMaster University
Room #B2007

Sound Strategy: Driving Reach, Relevance and Reputation Through Podcasting, Andrea Bilash, University of Manitoba
Room
Room #B2007A

From Clicks to Classrooms: Measuring Paid Media by Enrollment Impact, Jane Harrington, m5 the agency; Adrienne O’Connor, m5 the agency and Tess Phillips, m5 the agency
Room #1003

10:40 AM to 11:00 AM

Coffee Break
Room #B2007

11:00 AM to 12:00 PM

Community Engagement & Training Power Hour
Room #B2007

Web Power Hour
Room #B2007A

Building AI Workflows: A Choose Your Own Adventure Session, Brian Piper, AIreFlow Solutions
Room #1003

12:00 PM to 1:00 PM

Lunch
Room #B2007

1:00 PM to 1:40 PM

From Chaos to Consistency: Building Digital Foundations for AI-Driven Transformation, Joyce Peralta, McGill University
Room #B2007

From Advising to Zen Dens: UX Research Brings Clarity, Findability to All Student Services, Karen Spreng, Concordia University and Sarah Sookman, Concordia University
Room #B2007A

If It’s Important, Make It Understandable: A Strategy for Communicating Complex Work, Kathryn Thomas, Western University
Room #1003

1:50 PM to 2:30 PM

My TMU Breakthrough: How We Reimagined Storytelling By Nurturing the Student Voice, Antoinette Mercurio, Toronto Metropolitan University; Daina Astwood-George, Toronto Metropolitan University and Michelle Barker, Toronto Metropolitan University


Room #B2007

From Site Architecture to Governance: How We Tamed Our Program Pages, Mallory O’Brien, Wilfrid Laurier University
Room #B2007A

Break the Marketing Rut: How Internal Pitching Sparked Our Best Campaign Yet, Katie Bean, NC State University and Jennifer Kendall, NC State University
Room #1003

2:30 PM to 2:50 PM

Coffee Break
Room #B2007

2:50 PM to 3:30 PM

Panel: If Students Ran the Comms Team: Learner Voices Shaping Higher Education Communications, Nicole Squires
Communications Advisor, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador and Lydia Hardy, Memorial University
Room #B2007

“This Bunny Needs a Text Alternative”: Using Empathy and Play to Teach Accessibility and Standards, Kenzie Woodbridge, British Columbia Institute of Technology
Room #B2007A

UX Research without Breaking the Bank: Practical Methods for Higher-Ed Communicators, Ariel Lee, University of British Columbia and Jana Rolland, University of British Columbia
Room #1003

3:40 PM to 4:40 PM

Surprise Guest: Wrap up the conference with a surprise guest from Newfoundland!
Room #B2007

Prizes and Closing Remarks
Room #B2007