SWAAC 2026 Conference Schedule

Date Time Session Location
WEDNESDAY, MAY 6 6:30pm – 8:30pm Registration & Welcome Reception The Great Hall
THURSDAY, MAY 7 7:30am – 8:15am Registration & Hot Breakfast (Vendor Market) The Pit Lounge/Great Hall
8:20am – 8:35am Welcome & Opening Remarks CE-258 – RBC Lecture Theatre
8:35am – 8:45am Welcome to Unama’ki CE-258 – RBC Lecture Theatre
8:45am – 10:00am Plenary Panel: From Survival to Solidarity: Rewilding Academic Leadership as an Ecology of Care
 Alysha Farrell, Candy Jones & Sherry Baker (Brandon University), Moderator: Lisa Starr (University of Lethbridge)		 CE-258 – RBC Lecture Theatre
10:00am – 10:30am Networking and Break Yvonne LeVert Hospitality Suite/Great Hall
10:30am – 11:45am Concurrent Sessions

CE-311:
Bioenergetics of Conflict: Understanding the impact of conflict on the body
Katerina Standish (University of Northern British Columbia)

Presented by: Griffith Group

CE-325:
Leading through Transition and Uncertainty: Lessons from the Trenches
Brenda Brouwer(Queen’sUniversity)
Tammy Eger (Laurentian University)
Sheila Embleton (Algoma University)

Moderator: Shanthi Johnson (University of Windsor)

CE-318:
Science-Backed Secretsfor Setting and Keeping Boundaries
 Dayna Lee-Baggley

 CE-311 / CE-318 / CE-325
11:45am – 1:00pm Lunch & SWAAC AGM The Pit Lounge
1:00pm – 2:15pm Recruitment Panel with Boyden, Griffith Group, and KBRS

Moderator: Megha Ajmani

 CE-258 – RBC Lecture Theatre
2:15pm – 2:45pm Networking and Break Yvonne LeVert Hospitality Suite/Great Hall
2:45pm – 4:00pm Concurrent Sessions

CE-311:
Taking a Coach Approach
Anna Stuart

Presented by KBRS (Katherine Frank)

CE-318:
Cultivating Collegiality: Transforming Academic Search & Review for Leadership
Tracy Whalen (University of Winnipeg)
Dena McMartin (University of Lethbridge)
Kathleen Matheos (University of Manitoba)
Yabome Gilpin-Jackson (Simon Fraser University)

Presented by Boyden (Kathy Rahme)

CE-325:
The AI Revolution in Education: Insights from Students, Faculty, and Administrators
Allison Boutilier & Tanya Brann-Barrett (Cape Breton University)

Presented by Academica (Bonnie Crocker)

 CE-311 / CE-318 / CE-325
4:30pm Buses leave campus for conference hotels Off-site
6:00pm – 9:00pm Gala & Awards Dinner Flavor on the Water – Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club
FRIDAY, MAY 8 8:00am – 9:00am Hot Breakfast The Pit Lounge
9:00am – 9:15am Welcoming Remarks CE-258 – RBC Lecture Theatre
9:15am – 10:00am Keynote: Laura Lee Langley

Moderator: Ellyn Lyle

 CE-258 – RBC Lecture Theatre
10:00am – 10:30am Networking and Break Yvonne LeVert Hospitality Suite
10:30am – 11:45am President’s Panel:

Susan Tighe (McMaster University)
Joël Dickinson (Mount Saint Vincent University)
Sheila Embleton (Algoma University)
Janis Goldie (Alberta University of the Arts)
Sandra Efu (Canadore College)

Moderator: Donna Kotsopoulos

 CE-258 – RBC Lecture Theatre
11:45am – 1:00pm Closing Remarks & Lunch The Pit Lounge

Shuttle Schedule

Date Time Route Notes
May 6 12:00am Pick up from airport to hotels Exact time to be determined
12:00pm Pick up from airport to hotels Exact time to be determined
6:00pm Pick up from hotels to CBU
8:30pm Pick up from CBU to hotels
May 7 7:00am Pick up from hotels to CBU
4:30pm Pick up from CBU to hotels
May 8 7:00am Pick up from hotels to CBU
1:00pm Pick up from CBU to hotels