Initi8: Improving Ethical Reasoning at Scale
Initi8 is an intensive, five-day IN-PERSON workshop co-hosted by the Center for Assessment and Research Studies (CARS) and Ethical Reasoning in Action (ERiA). Attendees will learn how to integrate content knowledge/skills in ethical reasoning with pedagogy, assessment and faculty development to create an improvement plan. The process can be adapted to any knowledge or skill area. The workshop is hands-on and collaborative.
Click here for more information including upcoming dates, cost, and registration.
About: Initi8: Improving Ethical Reasoning at Scale
Initi8 is an intensive, five-day IN-PERSON workshop co-hosted by the Center for Assessment and Research Studies (CARS) and Ethical Reasoning in Action (ERiA). Attendees will learn how to integrate content knowledge/skills in ethical reasoning with pedagogy, assessment and faculty development to create an improvement plan. The process can be adapted to any knowledge or skill area. The workshop is hands-on and collaborative.
WHEN: to be determinded for 2026WHERE: James Madison University in Harrisonburg, VA (click here for the Initi8 travel guide)
WHO: This workshop is designed for individuals looking to improve learning at scale OR teams of 4-6 who can jointly contribute to a program-level project.
COST: about $2,000 per team member. Includes…
- Pre-conference interview.
- 5-day workshop; breakfast and lunch each day.
- Post-workshop plan analysis.
- Use of ER rubric within designated program.
Over the course of five days, participants will develop a detailed learning improvement plan for an ethical reasoning intervention tailored to their own program. Along the way, participants will learn:
- Effective strategies for teaching ethical reasoning skills
- Methods for assessing ethical reasoning skills
- Strategies for implementing a program level ethical reasoning intervention
- A general framework for implementing any learning improvement project
FAQs about CARS Events
You can register for as many people as will attend as long as payment is completed for each person by the enrollment deadline. The person sitting for the workshop does not have to be the one completing the registration.
You may cancel your registration up to two weeks prior to the program start date and receive a refund of course registration fees, less a $25 administrative fee. To withdrawal from this course you must send a request to cpdtraining@jmu.edu. Requests received beyond the deadline will receive no refund. For more information, please visit Policies & Notices.
As part of Assessment 101, each participant completes an individual or group project. These projects usually pertain to some aspect of the assessment cycle. For example, an individual may choose to focus on writing student learning outcomes for an academic degree program or identifying an appropriate instrument to measure such outcomes.
Here a few examples from previous projects:
While you can expect to receive an orientation email sent the week prior to the session, there is no formal pre-workshop preparation material. However, participants new to assessment may benefit from exploring the CARS Professional Development in Assessment webpage to learn more about the Assessment Skills Framework and other freely available resources.
