HSB Teaching Symposium Highlights Teaching Excellence

Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business (HSB) hosted the third annual HSB Teaching Symposium on Friday, Oct. 3. 

“Our faculty are doing outstanding work in the classroom,” said Chris Pullig, PhD, the associate dean for Faculty Excellence. “Activities such as the Teaching Symposium empower them to continue to shape the future of business education.” 

It was a full day focused on teaching. Prior to the symposium, faculty participated in a “lunch and learn” featuring a presentation from Breakout Learning, an artificial intelligence (AI) education platform designed to ignite student discussions moderated and graded by AI. Steven Walters, the chief innovation officer for Breakout Learning and a Baylor graduate, shared how the technology is currently used at the Business School and how other universities incorporate it into their classrooms. 

Cari Edison, a senior lecturer for Accounting and Business Law, enjoyed the presentation and sees the value in introducing Breakout Learning into her courses. 

“Grading group discussions takes a lot of time,” Edison said. “I love anything that’s going to help my students and also save me time in the process.” 

The Teaching Symposium began with a panel of HSB professors who discussed how they integrate their faith into the classroom. Matt Quade, PhD, the associate dean for Values-Based Leadership, hosted the panel, with professors Stephanie Mangus, PhD, and Erik Davidson, DBA, sharing their experiences.

Mangus, an associate professor of Marketing, acknowledges that while evangelism isn’t a spiritual gift she would claim to possess, she knows God equips people for where He has them. In her case, it’s in the classroom, building relationships and sharing the gospel message in what she phrases as “consultative evangelism.” Davidson, a clinical associate professor of Finance, said he was encouraged to incorporate faith into his job, as it creates an opportunity to educate students on how to be a Christian in secular workplace settings.

The symposium concluded with a panel of Baylor faculty members who are incorporating AI into their teaching. Ashley Barrett, PhD, from the Department of Communications and Michael Thompson, PhD, from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, shared their experiences with AI as a teaching tool, which sparked discussion among those in attendance. 

“It is always encouraging to hear the faith aspect,” Edison said. “This is something we constantly need to be reminded of so that we don’t become complacent. Then, to bring in the piece with emerging technologies is important, as we need to be integrating AI into our classrooms. This was a big reward.” 

Edison appreciated the opportunity to break out of her disciplinary bubble and brainstorm with other professors in the Business School and across Baylor’s campus.

“Baylor is really great at teaching,” she said. “It is exciting to hear what others are doing and to be able to learn from them.”