2020 Educause Conference Moves Entirely Online

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 08/12/20

The Educause annual conference will be online this year. The organization does professional development for IT leaders in higher education.

The event, taking place Oct. 27-29, will include 250 sessions in a mix of "live-streamed, 'simulive' and on-demand formats, according to Educause President John O'Brien. (A simulive event plays a pre-recorded session at a scheduled time, with the presenters in attendance to answer questions that come up during the presentation.) The conference will also feature virtual networking activities, mentoring opportunities and a "community day" on Oct. 23 to bring together groups to connect before the official event kicks off. Attendees will be able to do "live-chatting" with presenters, O'Brien said, and use LinkedIn connections to expand their professional networks outside of the conference.

To replace pre-conference workshops, Educause will host virtual "learning labs," in which participants will spend time with subject-matter experts and colleagues to learn more about specific topics of interest. "Experience summits" will explore themes, including diversity, equity and inclusion; teaching and learning; cybersecurity and privacy; and enterprise/analytics.

Educause is expecting to host 150 virtual exhibits, which will offer "deep-dives" with exhibitors, online product demonstrations and "digital swag," O'Brien said.

Conference registration by Sept. 16 is $495 for Educause members and $995 for non-members. The learning labs will have various prices, ranging up to $239 for members and $339 for non-members. The experience summits will be $195 for members registered for the whole conference and $395 for nonmembers registered for the full event.

Learn more at the Educause conference website.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • computer with a red warning icon on its screen, surrounded by digital grids, glowing neural network patterns, and a holographic brain

    Report Highlights Security Risks of Open Source AI

    In these days of rampant ransomware and other cybersecurity exploits, security is paramount to both proprietary and open source AI approaches — and here the open source movement might be susceptible to some inherent drawbacks, such as use of possibly insecure code from unknown sources.

  • The AI Show

    Register for Free to Attend the World's Greatest Show for All Things AI in EDU

    The AI Show @ ASU+GSV, held April 5–7, 2025, at the San Diego Convention Center, is a free event designed to help educators, students, and parents navigate AI's role in education. Featuring hands-on workshops, AI-powered networking, live demos from 125+ EdTech exhibitors, and keynote speakers like Colin Kaepernick and Stevie Van Zandt, the event offers practical insights into AI-driven teaching, learning, and career opportunities. Attendees will gain actionable strategies to integrate AI into classrooms while exploring innovations that promote equity, accessibility, and student success.

  • a professional worker in business casual attire interacting with a large screen displaying a generative AI interface in a modern office

    Study: Generative AI Could Inhibit Critical Thinking

    A new study on how knowledge workers engage in critical thinking found that workers with higher confidence in generative AI technology tend to employ less critical thinking to AI-generated outputs than workers with higher confidence in personal skills.

  • university building with classical columns and a triangular roof displayed on a computer screen, surrounded by minimalist tech elements like circuit lines and abstract digital shapes

    Pima Community College Launches New Portal for a Unified Digital Campus Experience

    Arizona's Pima Community College is elevating the digital campus experience for students, faculty, and staff with a new portal built on the Pathify digital engagement platform.