What should the Information Technology community at Cornell be talking about this fall? The Emerging Tech Dialogues planning team is seeking breakout session ideas and facilitators for the October 13 event.

Suggest ideas and facilitators now for the Tuesday, October 13, 2026 event. Held at Statler Hall and on Zoom, the day-long gathering will explore the theme, From Ideas to Impact: Celebrating IT innovation across Cornell and the people bringing it to life. Now is the time for community members to help shape the agenda through breakout session suggestions.

“While the senior executive summary descriptions are important to get the ‘big picture,’ the breakout sessions are where you meet the people that are deep in the weeds, digging out the trenches, and getting things done,” said Joel Bender, a programmer/analyst supporting Facilities and Campus Services. “These aren't listen-only mode sessions; bring your questions and get engaged, you won't be disappointed!”

Previous breakout sessions have explored everything from emerging technologies and service innovations to practical solutions that participants later adopted within their own teams.

Breakout sessions are designed to spark conversation. Facilitators introduce a topic, opportunity, or emerging practice and invite participants to exchange ideas, share experiences, and explore solutions together. Session formats can be equally diverse. In addition to traditional presentations, organizers welcome panel discussions, demonstrations, workshops, interactive activities, lightning talks, and collaborative problem-solving sessions.

What's Your Problem?

Some of the most engaging breakout sessions begin with a question, a curiosity, or a work in progress. Ideas already under consideration range from AI-assisted knowledge management and institutional privacy practices to hands-on technology workshops, collaborative innovation sprints, and lessons learned from campus technology standardization efforts.

What bottleneck are you working to overcome? Have you developed an approach that others could learn from? What problem do you wish someone at Cornell would help solve? The answers to those questions could become the next great breakout session.

Not every breakout session needs to showcase a completed project. Participants have previously engaged in enthusiastic discussions about works in progress, lessons learned, and emerging challenges that could benefit from collective thinking.

Several ideas have already been submitted, but the planning team is looking for additional perspectives to help create a dynamic mix of topics, formats, and facilitators.

"We're looking for sessions that help colleagues learn from one another," said Shari Sprole, chair of the event planning team. "It could be a creative solution, a process improvement, a lesson learned from experimentation, or a new way of working that others might adapt."

Make Your Pitch or Suggest an Engaging Topic

Whether you have a successful project to showcase, a question you'd like colleagues to help solve, or an emerging technology worth exploring, the planning team wants to hear from you. The most impactful conversations often begin with a single idea. Help bring this year's Emerging Tech Dialogues theme, From Ideas to Impact, to life by suggesting a topic or volunteering to facilitate a breakout session.

Volunteer to facilitate a breakout session or suggest a topic by emailing itevents@cornell.edu or including your idea when you register for the event.