2024 Summit Schedule
University of Tennessee Grand Challenges Summit
February 13 – 14, 2025
Embassy Suites, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Due to the volume of sessions, the summit schedule is broken down by day and presentation focus areas. All times are CST.
State of the University Address
Presentation by UT System President Randy Boyd
11:30 AM – 1:00 PM
Time Block 1
Building a Bridge to an Inclusive Future: UTK CLEE’s commitment to advancing education through belonging, inclusion, and equity in the classroom
30-minute Session
1:30-2:00 PM
Room: Cambridge A
Equipping Tennessee Teachers with Tools to Support Students’ Behavioral Successes
1-hour Session
1:30-2:35 PM
Room: Oakleigh B
Access to and Success in Secondary Advanced STEM: The State of AP® Programming in Tennessee’s Rural Public High Schools
1-hour Session
1:30-2:35 PM
Room: Cambridge B
I.D.E.A.L. Citizenry: Innovative Designs that Engage Active Learning for Citizenry
30-minute Session
2:05-2:35 PM
Room: Cambridge A
Time Block 2
Beyond Traditional Boundaries: Introducing 4-H students to Gen-AI Through Immersive Learning Experiences (ILEs)
30-minute Session
2:45-3:15 PM
Room: Cambridge B
Empowering Honors Students to Address Tennessee’s Grand Challenges Through Design Thinking
30-minute Session
2:45-3:15 PM
Room: Oakleigh A
Enhancing Parenting Practices and Child Well-Being: Assessing the Impact of Trauma-Informed Parenting Training through a University-School Collaboration
1-hour Session
2:45-3:50 PM
Room: Oakleigh B
From Goals to Graphs: Bridging STEM Education Gaps with Soccer Analytics
30-minute Session
3:20-3:50 PM
Room: Cambridge B
Addressing Tennessee’s Teacher Shortage: How UT PLAYS and the Be One UT Values are Advancing K-12 Education
30-minute Session
3:20-3:50 PM
Room: Oakleigh A
Time Block 3
Access + Content + Language = STEM Learning for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Youths (ACL=STEM)
30-minute Session
4:00-4:30 PM
Room: Cambridge B
Thriving in Tennessee: Empowering Students through MTSS and School Behavioral Health
1-hour Session
4:00-5:05 PM
Room: Oakleigh B
Machine Learning Approach to Studying the Intersection of SDoH, Physiological Psychological Well-being, and Academic Performance, and Subsequent Holistic Intervention Development (TennWell Project)
30-minute Session
4:35-5:05 PM
Room: Cambridge B
State of the University Address
Presentation by UT System President Randy Boyd
11:30 AM – 1:00 PM
Time Block 1
Rural Expansion of Access to Genetic Counseling and Healthcare through AI Innovations (REACH)
30-minute Session
1:30-2:00 PM
Room: Mirabella G
Strengthening Rural Communities: Using Drones to Delivery Healthcare Services
30-minute Session
1:30-2:00 PM
Room: Mirabella H
Mobile Interprofessional Tandem Service (MITS) Model to Enhance Audiology and Speech Pathology Care and Outcomes in Rural East Tennessee
30-minute Session
1:30-2:00 PM
Room: Mirabella I
Tempo Spatial Analysis of Rural Gentrification in Tennessee
30-minute Session
2:05-2:35 PM
Room: Mirabella G
Workforce Challenges in Tennessee’s Water and Wastewater Industry
30-minute Session
2:05-2:35 PM
Room: Mirabella H
Wellness on Wheels: Bringing Care to Your Community
30-minute Session
2:05-2:35 PM
Room: Mirabella I
Time Block 2
Strengthening Rural Communities: Using Drones to Delivery Healthcare Services
1-hour Session
2:45-3:50 PM
Room: Mirabella G
Creating People-Centric Workplaces in Rural Communities
1-hour Session
2:45-3:50 PM
Room: Mirabella H
On the Road to Better Rural Health: Outreach, Education, and Training to Strengthen Health and Health Care
1-hour Session
2:45-3:50 PM
Room: Mirabella I
The Be More Tennessee Initiative: Sustainably Reducing Obesity in 7 Rural Tennessee Counties using Policy, Systems, and Environmental Change
1-hour Session
2:45-3:50 PM
Room: Cambridge A
Time Block 3
Enhancing Healthcare Access and Training Future Nursing Leaders Through a Mobile Health Program
30-minute Session
4:00-4:30 PM
Room: Mirabella G
Empowering Rural Communities: Leadership Development and Volunteer Engagement for Enhanced Community Capacity
30-minute Session
4:00-4:30 PM
Room: Mirabella H
Feasibility of Implementing Personalized eHealth Program through Fitness Wearable and Application Among Rural Cancer Survivors
30-minute Session
4:00-4:30 PM
Room: Mirabella I
AI-Driven Precision Medicine: Tackling Rural Healthcare Disparities with EHR Insights
30-minute Session
4:00-4:30 PM
Room: Cambridge A
Rural Health and Older Adult Interprofessional Mobile Health Program: Forging Collaborative Partnerships
30-minute Session
4:35-5:05 PM
Room: Mirabella G
Connecting Opportunities Through a Global and Local Lens for Rural Tennessee
30-minute Session
4:35-5:05 PM
Room: Mirabella H
“We’re All in This Together”: Exploring Tennessee Farm Family Stress and Mental Health Management
30-minute Session
4:35-5:05 PM
Room: Mirabella I
Improving rural patient outcomes by optimizing targeted social drivers of health: An EHR-AI systems engineering simulation approach to Precision Health
30-minute Session
4:35-5:05 PM
Room: Cambridge A
State of the University Address
Presentation by UT System President Randy Boyd
11:30 AM – 1:00 PM
Time Block 1
Bridging the Gap: Tailored Distance Education for Rural Addiction Counseling in Tennessee
30-minute Session
1:30-2:00 PM
Room: Oakleigh A
Pain sensitivity, pain affect, pain catastrophizing, and chronic stress as predictors of quantity of substance use in people who use methamphetamine and opioids
30-minute Session
1:30-2:00 PM
Room: Broadlands B
The HEALing Communities Study: Effectiveness of a Community-Engaged Data-Driven Process to Reduce Opioid Overdoses
1-hour Session
1:30-2:35 PM
Room: Broadlands A
Counselors on the Front: Increasing Tennessee’s Addiction Counseling Workforce
30-minute Session
2:05-2:35 PM
Room: Oakleigh A
Biomarkers predictive of vulnerability to progress from early opioid use to misuse and addiction
30-minute Session
2:05-2:35 PM
Room: Broadlands B
Time Block 2
The Efficient Allocation of Harm Reduction Resources to Prevent Overdose Deaths
1-hour Session
2:45-3:50 PM
Room: Broadlands A
Opioid-Induced Epigenetic and Visuocognitive Changes Associated with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome
1-hour Session
2:45-3:50 PM
Room: Broadlands B
Time Block 3
Mapping Recovery Ecosystems at the Local Level to Overcome Addiction
30-minute Session
4:00-4:30 PM
Room: Broadlands B
Leveraging the Right Partnerships at the Local Level
1-hour Session
4:00-5:05 PM
Room: Oakleigh A
Nourish Recovery: A Nutrition Education Program for Individuals with Substance Use Disorders.
1-hour Session
4:00-5:05 PM
Room: Broadlands A
A mathematics-based approach to opioid epidemiology in Tennessee
30-minute Session
4:35-5:05 PM
Room: Broadlands B
State of the University Address
Presentation by UT System President Randy Boyd
11:30 AM – 1:00 PM
Time Block 1
Transitioning Gaps, Executive Functioning Impacts, and Assessing the Needs of Neurodivergent Students
30-minute Session
1:30-2:00 PM
Room: Mirabella J
The Mosaic Program and Neurodivergent Education Transition (NET)
30-minute Session
2:05-2:35 PM
Room: Mirabella J
Time Block 2
Embracing Neurodiversity: Addressing Stigma and Promoting Neuroinclusivity in Elementary Education
1-hour Session
2:45-3:50 PM
Room: Mirabella J
Time Block 3
Connecting Families in Rural Tennessee with Disability Resources: Rural Disability Resource Network
1-hour Session
4:00-5:05 PM
Room: Mirabella J
Time Block 1
Thermal runaway in electronic devices: a transformational PBL unit for high school chemistry
30-minute Session
8:00-8:30 AM
Room: Broadlands A
The Community Schools Solution
1-hour Session
8:00-9:05 AM
Room: Cambridge B
Addressing K-12 financial education challenges in rural Tennessee
1-hour Session
8:00-9:05 AM
Room: Cambridge A
Building Efficacy and Collective Leadership with K-12 Teachers
1-hour Session
8:00-9:05 AM
Room: Broadlands B
Innocrate for innovative K-12 education in advanced materials and manufacturing on a National Scale
30-minute Session
8:35-9:05 AM
Room: Broadlands A
Time Block 2
Equipping Educators for Excellence (E3)
30-minute Session
9:15-9:45 AM
Room: Broadlands B
Transformative Test Prep: TCAPS test prep in community schools
1-hour Session
9:15-10:20 AM
Room: Cambridge B
Establishing Quality on Rural Schools’ Professional Development Choices
1-hour Session
9:15-10:20 AM
Room: Cambridge A
Changing Addictive Landscape with Knowledge Qualification and Exchange in Integrated Social Media Interactions
30-minute Session
9:50-10:20 AM
Room: Broadlands B
Closing Keynote
Presentation by Dr. Joe Sanfelippo
30-minute Session
1:30-2:05 PM
Room: Oakleigh
Time Block 1
The RAIL (Rural Assessment and Intervention Library) System
1-hour Session
8:00-9:05 AM
Room: Mirabella D
Time Block 2
Addressing Access to Employment and Resources for Individuals with Barriers in Rural Communities toward Workforce Pipeline Development
30-minute Session
9:15-9:45 AM
Room: Broadlands A
Project RAISE: An Innovative Partnership to Strengthen Mental Health in Rural Tennessee Schools
1-hour Session
9:15-10:20 AM
Room: Mirabella D
Promising Pathways for Career and Technical Education in Rural Tennessee
30-minute Session
9:50-10:20 AM
Room: Broadlands A
Closing Keynote
Presentation by Dr. Joe Sanfelippo
30-minute Session
1:30-2:05 PM
Room: Oakleigh
Time Block 1
It takes a village: An ecological approach to youth substance use prevention in East Tennessees
1-hour Session
8:00-9:05 AM
Room: Mirabella C
The role of business organizations and impact of business practices on the creation of the opioid crisis in the Appalachian region
1-hour Session
8:00-9:05 AM
Room: Mirabella B
Unraveling the Interconnection: Substance Use and Health-Related Behaviors among Youth in Tennessee
1-hour Session
8:00-9:05 AM
Room: Mirabella A
Time Block 2
The Opposite of Addiction is Connection
30-minute Session
9:15-9:45 AM
Room: Mirabella C
Getting Things Done Through Relationships
1-hour Session
9:15-10:20 AM
Room: Mirabella B
Merging Recovery and Education in K-12 and beyond
1-hour Session
9:15-10:20 AM
Room: Mirabella A
Expanding Recovery Supports on College Campuses
30-minute Session
9:50-10:20 AM
Room: Mirabella C
Closing Keynote
Presentation by Dr. Joe Sanfelippo
30-minute Session
1:30-2:05 PM
Room: Oakleigh