Dr. Cat Mahaffey

Opening Plenary, Session 1.1, 11:00 am - 12:30 pm EST (February 6)

Cat Mahaffey is a Teaching Professor in the Department of Writing, Rhetoric and Digital Studies (WRDS) at UNC Charlotte. She teaches first-year writing and courses such as Digital Design Theory and Practice and The Rhetoric of Digital Design. Her research interests include AI, online privacy, accessibility, digital rhetoric, and technical and professional writing. She has a forthcoming book titled ACCESS: Accessible Course Construction for Every Student’s Success. Her other work and research are published in PARS in Practice: More Resources and Strategies for Online Writing Instructors(2021) and Emerging Technologies in Virtual Learning Environments (2019).

"From Quills to Quantum: AI and the New Digital Divide”

In this plenary session, we will explore the evolution of the digital divide from the 1990s to today, highlighting gaps in computer and internet access and skills. Significant disparities emerged in the 90s and early 2000s largely due to socioeconomic factors, affecting students’ literacy with digital tools. Fear and anxiety about technology also contributed to these gaps. Today, we face new anxieties and a digital divide centered around GenAI. We will discuss AI’s potential to democratize educational resources and support personalized learning, while also addressing the risk of exacerbating existing inequities if not implemented thoughtfully.

Dr. Sarah Z. Johnson

Second Plenary, Session 2.2, 11:15 am - 12:15 pm EST (February 7)

Sarah Z Johnson is the Academic Integrity Officer, Chair of First Year Composition, and Writing Center Director at Madison College in Madison, WI. She is a member of the MLA-CCCC Joint Task Force on AI and Writing, and co-chair of the International Writing Center Association [IWCA] genAI Task Force. Sarah has held leadership roles with the Conference on College Composition and Communication [CCCC], Two Year College English Association [TYCA], and National Council of Teachers of English [NCTE]. Her research interests include genAI, writing program administration, state policy, and dual enrollment. Sarah’s most recent publications include chapters in the forthcoming books, Community College 2.0 and Writing Centers and AI as well as articles in TETYC, JWPA, TYCASE Journal, the NCTE Blog, and others.

"Terms of Engagement: Centering a Pedagogy of Hope and Humanity in a Post-GPT World"

This plenary address will examine the difficulties we face as online literacy educators in the age of AI. As a member of the Joint Task Force on AI and Writing and a co-chair of the IWCA AI Task Force, I recognize that many of us are wading through multiple layers of promise, potential harm, and exhausting labor as we engage in this new teaching reality. But our field, our experience and expertise, is more important than it’s ever been. Good online literacy education has always been about building rapport, community, and genuine engagement in virtual spaces. If there’s anyone who can help our field—and, I’d argue, the world—understand how to value the human in an ocean of bot-created prose, we are the ones who can begin to teach others how to center hope and humanity in a post-GPT world.