Call for Proposals 2025
We are now accepting proposals from individuals, organizations and institutions interested in presenting at CAEL’s annual hybrid conference November 11th to 14th, 2025 in Memphis, TN and online! Presenters will have the opportunity to share their expertise with a diverse audience of thought leaders from throughout the education-employment ecosystem. Our attendees represent workforce and economic developers; chambers of commerce; postsecondary educators; training organizations; employers and industry groups; and foundations and other mission-aligned organizations.
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Hybrid Event: The 2025 CAEL Conference is planned as a hybrid event experience - we hope that many choose to join us in person in Memphis, but will have engaging participation and presentation options for those who prefer to participate virtually.
All session proposals must be submitted by March 31, 2025 via our online submission form. We will notify selected presenters in July.
NOTE: All accepted presenters (virtual or in person) are required to register for the CAEL conference.
Workshops
A 50-minute session on a timely topic aligned to one or more Learning Tracks and are designed to introduce colleagues to a topic the presenter is expert in. Workshops must include interactive elements and are designed to introduce colleagues to a topic the presenter is expert in. Attendees can expect to gain actionable takeaways from participating in a workshop. Workshops are not meant to get feedback on a program, product, or service.
Formats Available:
EdTalks and WorkforceTalks
Quick-fire, 7-minute sessions with strict guidelines. These rapid presentations are scheduled sequentially in one space and provide CAEL’s audience with a concise introduction to an intriguing topic.
Formats Available:
Networking Roundtables
An informal 45-minute facilitated discussion, where multiple presentations occur concurrently. Roundtables are designed for informal and engaging conversation.
Formats Available:
*IMPORTANT NOTES: Your proposal will undergo careful evaluation by the conference committee and will be assigned to any of the formats based on the content’s scope and proposed engagement strategies. Ensure your submission aligns with the session guidelines to maximize its impact.
Submit your proposal today to inspire and engage our audience!
2025 Learning Tracks
The wide range of topics and ideas to be explored at the 2025 conference align with CAEL's mission and vision, as supported by CAEL's key organizational priorities: access and innovation, credit for prior learning (CPL), industry partnerships and career pathways, public policy, and adult learner engagement.
Focused on how AI, data and analytics can inform education practices, including the benefits, challenges, and thoughtful utilization in postsecondary and the workforce ecosystem, includes topics such as: recognizing student patterns, supporting persistence and completion, marketing, & data-driven credit for prior learning (CPL) approaches.
- How AI is reshaping the work-learn-earn ecosystem
- Applying generative AI and communicative AI for postsecondary and employers
- AI enhanced decision making and reporting
- Worker and Learner Skill development in the age of digital transformation and AI automation
Focused on strategies to expand access to postsecondary education, and remove obstacles that adult learners face, such as development of skills, acquisition of stackable credentials, connections to high-quality employment, earnings, career advancement, and other outcomes.
- How successful adult learners can uplift entire communities
- Providing meaningful support opportunities for education around obstacles that adult leaners face
- How attracting, educating and upskilling adult learners and earners helps advance economic mobility for individuals and their communities
- Financial Aid
- Breaking barriers for adult learner access
Focused on a holistic learning experience for adult learners by aligning education and curricula with various models: credit for prior learning (CPL), CBE, Accelerated Learning and the changing face of credentials (micro, stackable, work/skills-based, etc) that support personalized pathways for adult learners and workers.
- CPL best practices, programs and models
- Outcomes driven online and hybrid learning best practices
- Roadmap for non credit credentials/continuing education
- High School to College: Innovative Programs
Focused on an education-to-employment ecosystem that fuels economic mobility and community prosperity for adult learners and workers through aligning stakeholders: education and training providers, employers, industry groups, workforce developers, government agencies, and mission-aligned organizations to make a positive difference for adult learners, workers, and communities.
- Regional Strategies
- Apprenticeships
- Working across sectors successfully
- Worker voices
Focused on bridging the gap between academic learning and industry needs. Includes topics such as strategies for fostering collaboration between educational institutions and industries, understanding current and future workforce demands, developing career-oriented educational programs, and empowering adult learners to be equipped with the skills and knowledge for a career with evolving industries
- Understanding and/or responding to industry needs
- Designing career pathways
- Creating access to training
- Building effective partnerships
Focused on higher education and workforce innovation and reform at the state, regional, and national levels by looking at increasing policy and advocacy that target adults through: Centering the Adult Learner; Enhancing Accessibility Through Affordability, and Unleashing the Power of Transformative Partnerships.
- Affordability, ie innovative financing, Pell Grant, FAFSA etc
- Higher Education policy trends, specifically as they relate to adult learners & CPL
- Grant funded work and outcomes the skills ecosystem can learn from
- Removing punitive barriers to re-enrollment, such as transfer holds for unpaid fees
- Expanding earn-and-learn programs such as registered apprenticeship
- Expanding work-based learning programs that have close connections with employers
Focused on addressing the strategies and unique challenges faced by adult learners (including special populations: parents, veterans, first-generation, incarcerates, etc) enrollment, persistence and completion.
- Supporting adults with limited resources
- Supporting adult learner well-being and mental health
- Adult learner generational approaches: Gen Z, Millenials, Gen X and beyond
- International/Global learners
- The enrollment cliff
- Attracting and graduating the some college, no credential population
Timeline
FAQs
Proposal Requirements
- Proposals should emphasize a relevant subject and investigate the trends and advancements at the intersection of the postsecondary & workforce and economic development space. They should also aim to showcase inventive solutions, distribute research findings, and explore emerging or exemplary practices.
- Proposals are required to present specific learning outcomes/goals along with a well-defined strategy to actively involve the audience.
- The titles and descriptions of accepted proposals will be featured on the CAEL conference website.
- The CAEL conference committee will evaluate and assess proposals based on a rubric which emphasizes clarity, timeliness, quality of content & learning outcomes.
- The conference committee has the option to reject a submitter’s preferred format and propose an alternative. Before choosing the preferred presentation format for submission, please thoroughly review the available options provided.
- All requested speaker information should be included in the proposal submission. If selected, this information will be displayed on the conference website.
- Proposals are evaluated by committee and rated on the following criteria: completion; clarity; interactivity; content; learning outcomes; relevance and alignment with CAEL's theory of change, specifically the ultimate outcome that all adult learners have an equitable opportunity for, and success in, obtaining credentials and skills that lead to well-paying, good quality jobs, increased earnings and economic mobility, and an improved quality of life.
- Deadline for submission will be March 31, 2025. Accepted proposals will be announced by mid-July.
Presentation Formats
- What is a Workshop? - Workshops will consist of 50-minute sessions aligned with seven learning tracks, running concurrently with one live-streamed session. These workshops aim to encourage interaction and collaboration among conference attendees. Workshop attendees can expect to gain actionable takeaways from participating in a workshop. They are not intended for soliciting feedback on programs, products, or services, nor do they follow a lecture-style presentation format. Virtual workshops can be presented in real time or pre-recorded.
- What are The Talks? - EdTalks and WorkforceTalks are quick-fire sessions, each lasting 7 minutes, conducted with precise guidelines, offering CAEL's collective audience a brief exploration of compelling topics within our field. These talks are sequentially arranged in a single space and moderated. Presentations must adhere to a maximum of 7 minutes and utilize no more than 14 slides, ensuring legibility with a minimum font size of 28pt.
- Virtual Opportunities - The 2025 CAEL Conference is designed to offer a hybrid event experience, providing opportunities for both in-person attendance in Memphis and engaging participation and presentation options for those who prefer to join virtually.
Speakers
- The speakers chosen for the event are accountable for covering all expenses related to participation, encompassing registration fees, accommodation, and travel costs. No discounts, beyond those available to CAEL members, are offered to speakers.
- To be considered for the selection of their proposal, speakers are required to remain available for the entirety of the conference duration across all days. CAEL will attempt to accommodate schedule conflicts, but cannot guarantee session placement on a preferred date or time.
- All selected speakers must register and pay to attend the 2025 CAEL Conference by August 31st, 2025.
- Accepted speakers will receive access to the speaker resource center, allowing them to review their accepted proposal, update contact information, and upload presentation resources. The deadline for these actions is October 18th.
For any additional questions, please contact conference@cael.org