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About
The Second Annual Community Collab Summit
Date: September 12, 2025
Time: 8:30am to 1:30 pm
Location: Tivoli Turnhalle!
We are excited to announce the second annual MSU Denver Community Collab Summit will take place on September 12, 2025 from 8:30am to 1:30 pm in the Tivoli Turnhalle!
The MSU Denver Community Collab Summit is an annual community-building event for faculty, staff, chairs, deans, and senior leaders. Rather than a research-driven conference, this summit builds campus community by facilitating the tough but necessary conversations that move us forward together.
The Summit is proudly created by MSU Denver employees, for MSU Denver employees—with all programming submissions, topic selections, and session leaders coming from within our campus community.
Last year’s inaugural Summit brought together over 200 faculty and staff for a day of authentic dialogue, networking, and connection. Participants praised the event for its meaningful interactions with senior leaders, engaging Community Circle discussions, and renewed focus on collaboration and belonging across campus. Based on overwhelmingly positive feedback, the Summit is becoming a valued tradition that sets the tone for the academic year.
Click here to view the 2024 Early Bird article and to read more about the creation of the event.
2025 Keynote Speaker - Dr. Elizabeth Kleinfeld
We are pleased to announce that this year’s Keynote Address will be given by Dr. Elizabeth Kleinfeld whose role as both faculty and administrator make her particularly qualified to speak at this collaborative event.
Kleinfeld developed early interests in writing and social justice that shaped her academic career. Her commitment to accessibility and inclusive education led her to MSU Denver, where she serves as Professor of English and Writing Center Director. After earning her PhD in Rhetoric and Composition from Illinois State University, where she focused on writing center pedagogy and rhetoric, she built a career combining scholarly work with advocacy for accessible education.
Her work bridges academic and public writing, from scholarly publications on disability in higher education to her memoir-writing and blog about navigating widowhood. She finds teaching disability studies especially rewarding, as it gives her the opportunity to challenge ableist assumptions while fostering more inclusive academic spaces.
English Professor and Writing Center Director
RSVP For the 2025 Community Collab Summit
2025 Program
- 8:30-9:30am – Breakfast and check-in
- 9:30-9:55am – Welcome
- 9:55-10:00am – Transition to Speed Networking
- 10:00-11:15am – Speed Networking with Senior Leaders
- Four 15-minute rounds of networking with a five minute buffer between each round
- Network with MSU Denver senior leaders like Matt Makely, Provost; Jim Carpenter, CFO; Will Simpkins, AVP for Student Affairs; Andrea Smith, AVP for Strategic Communications and more…
- 11:15-11:30 – Transition to Community Circles
- 11:30-12:30 – Community Circles
- Community Circles foster open, inclusive dialogue on campus-wide issues—like workload, culture, and community—to build connection and belonging as we begin a new academic year.
- 12:30-1:00 – Keynote & Lunch
- Keynote speaker: Elizabeth Kleinfeld
- 1:00-1:30 – Community Time
- Note that most senior leaders will be in attendance for informal networking
Check back later to submit your proposal!
2024 Keynote
Watch the 2024 Keynote Conversation with Matt Makley & Katia Campbell
Program Archive
2024 Program:
| Coffee/Check-In | 7:30-8:00am | Tivoli Turnhalle |
| Welcome and Opening Remarks | 8:15-8:30am | Tivoli Turnhalle |
| Speed Networking “Before” | 8:30-9:15am | Tivoli Turnhalle |
| Transition Time | 9:15-9:30am |
| Community Circles & Location | 9:30-11:30am | Description |
| Topic #1: Defining a culture of belonging at MSU Denver | Lead by: Christina Foust, Ph.D. – Associate Chair and Professor, Department of Communication Studies | |
| Topic #2: Trust in Organizations | Lead by: Katia Campbell, Ph.D. – Associate Dean for Faculty and Student Affairs, College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences | |
| Topic #3: Free Speech & Democracy | Lead by: Shayla Bischoff – Assistant to the Associate VP for Undergraduate Studies, and Elizabeth Parmalee, Ph.D. – Associate VP for Undergraduate Studies | |
| Topic #4: Restorative Justice at MSU Denver | Lead by: Elise Krumholz – Associate Director, Restorative Justice & Student Conflict Resolution, and the Restorative Justice Coalition |
| Keynote Lunch | 11:45am-1:15pm | Tivoli Turnhalle |
| Speakers: Matt Makley, Ph.D., Professor & Chair – Department of History & Katia Campbell, Ph.D., Professor & Associate Dean for Faculty and Student Affairs, CLAS | ||
| Leadership Development Sessions & Location | 1:30-3:30pm | Description |
| Session #1: Managing Conflict: How to have Restorative Conversations | Lead by: Elise Krumholz, Assistant Director, Restorative Justice & Student Conflict Resolution, and Andrew McGeehan, Associate Dean of Students | |
| Session #2: Cultural Humility: What is it and why it matters | Lead by: Christine Sheikh, Ph.D. – Student Academic Services Specialist, Student Academic Services and the JEDI Committee. | |
| Session #3: Dare to Lead Primer | Lead by: Marlys Rybchenko, Senior Program Manager, Leadership and Organizational Engagement, Human Resources and Rachel Hawley, Ph.D. – Coordinator of Supplemental Instruction, Student Academic Services | |
| Session #4: Sharing Your Story to get Results | Lead by: John Arnold, Senior Director of Communications at MSU Denver |
| Transition Time | 3:30-3:45pm |
| Speed Networking “After” | 3:45-4:45pm | Tivoli Turnhalle |
| Closing remarks | 4:45-5:00pm | Tivoli Turnhalle |
| Social Hour | 5:00-6:30pm | Tivoli Turnhalle |
Community Circles: Community circles are spaces where individuals come together to engage in open dialogue, share experiences, and build connections. These types of circles are often characterized by their inclusive and democratic nature, where everyone’s voice is valued equally. The goal of the Summit’s Community Circles is to foster a sense of belonging and solidarity on the MSU Denver campus as we kick start a new academic year. Topics can range from specific problems on campus to campus-wide issues. Topic examples: faculty and staff workload, culture across campus, affiliate faculty community, etc.
Leadership Development: Leadership development session ideas should ultimately empower participants with the knowledge, skills, and insights needed to become more effective and impactful leaders in the classroom, on campus, and within our communities.
*All community circle and leadership development submissions are reviewed by a small working group comprised of staff and faculty.
Summit Point of Contact
Office of the President
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 303-615-0060