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2025 Utah Rural Schools Conference

Welcome to URSA 2025 at Park City High School!

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9:45am MDT

Thursday July 16, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT

ED 102 - Emma Eccles Jones Education Building, Room 102

Move beyond static slides and embrace active learning! Join us for an immersive look into Canva’s Magic Studio. We’ll show you how to use Magic Media and Magic Design to transform K-12 lessons into personalized, interactive experiences. Plus, discover "next level" tools like Magic Activities, Canva Sheets, and Code for me—empowering students to build apps and games without writing code. Turn students into creators and unlock a world of magic that makes school future-ready.

Participants MUST HAVE one of the following platforms/devices in order to participate in this session: Mac Laptop; Windows Laptop; Android Tablet / Smartphone; iPad / iPhone; Windows Tablet / Smartphone; Chromebook

Participants MAY FIND IT USEFUL to have one or more of the following platforms/devices during this session: Mac Laptop; Windows Laptop; Chromebook

Speakers

Kayla Towner

Senior Product Trainer, UEN - Utah Education Network

Kayla Towner is a Senior Product Trainer at the Utah Education Network (UEN) and, first and foremost, a passionate educator. She loves spending time with her family—playing soccer ⚽️, reading books 📚, hiking 🥾, and adventuring across Utah 🏔️. Kayla is dedicated to... Read More →

Thursday July 16, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT
ED 102 - Emma Eccles Jones Education Building, Room 102 351 W. University Blvd., Cedar City, UT 84720

Educational Technology - including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Intermediate - basic core competency; some prerequisite skills required.

Learning Strand or Track 1 hour traditional lecture/audience participation
Subject Area 3-4, 5-6, Middle School / Jr. High - grades 6 - 8, High School - grades 9 - 12
Audience Teachers, Library Media Specialists, EdTech Coach / Digital Teaching & Learning Specialists, Instructional Coaches
Grade Level Other, Not Applicable

9:45am MDT

Making Sheets Work For You

Thursday July 16, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT

ED 203 - Emma Eccles Jones Education Building, Room 203

Go beyond the basics and learn some ways to have Google Sheets do some of the busy work for you so that you can narrow in on the important things. We will talk about several formulas for organizing data and even throw in some AI helps to get things just how you want them!

Participants MAY FIND IT USEFUL to have one or more of the following platforms/devices during this session: Mac Laptop; Windows Laptop; Chromebook

Speakers

Stacey King

Thursday July 16, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT
ED 203 - Emma Eccles Jones Education Building, Room 203 351 W. University Blvd., Cedar City, UT 84720

Educational Technology - including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Intermediate - basic core competency; some prerequisite skills required. | Assessment & Data Management, Intermediate - basic core competency; some prerequisite skills required.

Learning Strand or Track 1 hour BYOD (Bring Your Own Device): Hands-On-Activities
Subject Area All Grade Levels
Audience Teachers, EdTech Coach / Digital Teaching & Learning Specialists, Instructional Coaches
Grade Level Not Applicable

9:45am MDT

AI, Bloom, and the Cognitive Gap in Educational Technology

Thursday July 16, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT

CC Whiting Room - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Whiting Room Room (200 Level)

Most technology integration frameworks—SAMR, TPACK, TIM—focus on tool function, not on how students think and learn. As a result, even well-intentioned ed tech use can bypass the most important question: What kind of thinking does this tool actually support?This session explores how AI and other digital tools intersect with cognition and learning. Participants will revisit Anderson and Krathwohl’s revised Bloom’s taxonomy as a cognitive framework to evaluate technology use, recognizing common pitfalls such as surface-level engagement, cognitive overload, and misplaced focus on tool novelty over mental processes. Together, we’ll analyze practical classroom examples and discuss how ed tech and AI tools can either enhance or inhibit student thinking, depending on how they’re designed into instruction.

Participants MUST HAVE one of the following platforms/devices in order to participate in this session: None

Participants MAY FIND IT USEFUL to have one or more of the following platforms/devices during this session: None

Speakers

Valarie O'Bryan

Thursday July 16, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT
CC Whiting Room - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Whiting Room Room (200 Level) 351 W. University Blvd., Cedar City, UT 84720

Educational Technology - including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Beginner - limited to no experience; no prerequisite skills required. | Instructional Coaching, Beginner - limited to no experience; no prerequisite skills required.

Learning Strand or Track 1 hour traditional lecture/audience participation
Subject Area All Grade Levels
Audience Instructional Coaches, EdTech Coach / Digital Teaching & Learning Specialists
Grade Level Instructional Coaching

9:45am MDT

Commemorate America250 Utah with History, Civics, and Heart

Thursday July 16, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT

CC Sage Valley - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Sage Valley Room (100 Level)

It's been 250 years since the pivotal events of 1776. The student activities, lesson plans, and resources from America250 Utah will help you connect to the our nation's founding and our state's rich history no matter what content you teach! This session will introduce key resources for elementary, middle, and high school, with a focus on events that connect to Utah in 1776, and the individuals, groups, ideas, and actions that shaped the Revolutionary Era.America250 Utah offers hands-on opportunities to explore history, create shared experiences, and engage with this milestone celebration. You can create powerful opportunities for your students and school community to reflect on our nation’s past, honor the contributions of all Americans, and look together toward the future. Presenters: Wendy Rex Atzet, PhD, and Rebecca Kirkman, Curriculum Specialist, Utah Historical Society

Participants MUST HAVE one of the following platforms/devices in order to participate in this session: None

Participants MAY FIND IT USEFUL to have one or more of the following platforms/devices during this session: Any of these

Speakers

Wendy Rex Atzet

Manager of K-12 Initiatives, Utah Historical Society

Wendy Rex Atzet earned her doctorate in U.S. History at the University of Colorado at Boulder, where she also served for four years as a coordinator for the state National History Day program. She was thrilled to return to National History Day in 2013 when she took the helm of this... Read More →

Rebecca Kirkman

Thursday July 16, 2026 9:45am - 10:45am MDT
CC Sage Valley - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Sage Valley Room (100 Level) 351 W. University Blvd., Cedar City, UT 84720

Utah Core Curriculum, Beginner - limited to no experience; no prerequisite skills required.

Learning Strand or Track 1 hour traditional lecture/audience participation
Subject Area All Grade Levels
Audience Teachers, Library Media Specialists, Instructional Coaches, Curriculum Specialists, Everyone, Technology Coordinators / Facilitators, District / School Administrators, EdTech Coach / Digital Teaching & Learning Specialists, Counselors or School-based Ment
Grade Level Social Science, Language Arts

11:10am MDT

Scam Academy - Teaching Students to Outsmart the Algorithms

Thursday July 16, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm MDT

CC Shooting Star - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Shooting Star Room (100 Level)

This session moves beyond basic digital safety checklists to teach students the crucial skill of healthy skepticism. We will introduce \"Scam Academy\" resources, which implement Civic Online Reasoning’s Three Questions. These questions help move students from being vulnerable to online manipulation to being digital detectives. Resources available for all grade levels (K-12). Let’s teach students to be smarter than the bots, influencers, and algorithms that exist to trick them!

Participants MUST HAVE one of the following platforms/devices in order to participate in this session: None

Participants MAY FIND IT USEFUL to have one or more of the following platforms/devices during this session: None

Speakers

Dani Sloan

IT Product Manager, UEN - Utah Education Network

Dr. Dani Sloan helps educators lead, research, and teach digital citizenship. She's a UEN Product Manager and Instructor at the University of Utah. She is a former Elementary Teacher and current mom to a seventh grader. Dani is passionate about preparing students for a digital world... Read More →

Thursday July 16, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm MDT
CC Shooting Star - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Shooting Star Room (100 Level) 351 W. University Blvd., Cedar City, UT 84720

Educational Technology - including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Beginner - limited to no experience; no prerequisite skills required. | Utah Core Curriculum, Beginner - limited to no experience; no prerequisite skills required. | Digital Citizenship & Media Literacy, Beginner - limited to no experience; no prerequisite skills required.

Learning Strand or Track 1 hour traditional lecture/audience participation
Subject Area All Grade Levels
Audience Teachers, Library Media Specialists, Counselors or School-based Mental / Behavioral Health Professionals, District / School Administrators, EdTech Coach / Digital Teaching & Learning Specialists, Instructional Coaches, Everyone, Technology Coordinators /
Grade Level Media Literacy

11:10am MDT

Intro to PCBL: Guiding Principles & Strategies for Improving Learning

Thursday July 16, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm MDT

ED 102 - Emma Eccles Jones Education Building, Room 102

Join us for an insightful presentation on Personalized Competency-Based Learning (PCBL) to explore effective strategies for enhancing student learning. You'll learn to set clear learning goals, establish measurable objectives, and leverage intrinsic motivators to foster a personalized learning environment. The session will also cover goal-setting, progress monitoring, and curating resources, providing practical strategies you can immediately implement in your classroom.

Participants MUST HAVE one of the following platforms/devices in order to participate in this session: Mac Laptop; Windows Laptop; Android Tablet / Smartphone; iPad / iPhone; Windows Tablet / Smartphone; Chromebook

Participants MAY FIND IT USEFUL to have one or more of the following platforms/devices during this session: Mac Laptop; Windows Laptop; Chromebook

Speakers

Kayla Towner

Senior Product Trainer, UEN - Utah Education Network

Thursday July 16, 2026 11:10am - 12:10pm MDT
ED 102 - Emma Eccles Jones Education Building, Room 102 351 W. University Blvd., Cedar City, UT 84720

Other, Beginner - limited to no experience; no prerequisite skills required.

Learning Strand or Track 1 hour traditional lecture/audience participation
Subject Area All Grade Levels
Audience Teachers, District / School Administrators, EdTech Coach / Digital Teaching & Learning Specialists, Instructional Coaches, Technology Coordinators / Facilitators, Curriculum Specialists
Grade Level Other

1:30pm MDT

Great Grading!

Thursday July 16, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm MDT

CC Charles Hunter - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Charles Hunter Room (100 Level)

In this session, we will share how data, assessments, and grading can be intentionally designed to focus on student centered learning, provide an accurate picture of student strengths and areas for growth, and accurately communicate student proficiency to stakeholders using systems and processes each clearly understand and connect with.

Participants MUST HAVE one of the following platforms/devices in order to participate in this session: None

Participants MAY FIND IT USEFUL to have one or more of the following platforms/devices during this session: Any of these

Speakers

Learning Strand or Track 1 hour traditional lecture/audience participation
Subject Area All Grade Levels
Audience EdTech Coach / Digital Teaching & Learning Specialists, District / School Administrators
Grade Level Leadership

2025 Utah Rural Schools Conference

9:45am MDT

Kayla Towner

9:45am MDT

Stacey King

9:45am MDT

Valarie O'Bryan

9:45am MDT

Wendy Rex Atzet

Rebecca Kirkman

11:10am MDT

Dani Sloan

11:10am MDT

Kayla Towner

1:30pm MDT

Tony Campbell

Angela Poulton

Jared Wilkinson

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