Limed: Teaching with a Twist – Season 3, Episode 6

The first-year seminar is a challenging, yet impactful, space to introduce habits of mind that lead to long-term student success. In this episode, Adam Keul, Associate Professor of Tourism and Hospitality Management at Plymouth State University, discusses how he employs democratic practices in his first-year seminar course. He hopes to instill the power of agency and advocacy within an educational context that will allow his students to be critical thinkers and engaged citizens. He’s found that his students seem to prefer being told what to do and not having choices in their own education. Our panel – Sophia Abbot from the University of Rhode Island, Riley Alkove, an Elon University first-year economics major, and Anine Kelly, from the University of Cincinnati – share ideas about student engagement, how to form better personal connections with first year students, and the implications of co-creation at an early developmental stage for college students. 

View a transcript of this episode.

About Our Guest

Adam Keul is a tourism geographer who serves as an Associate Professor and coordinator of Tourism & Hospitality Management at Plymouth State University (PSU) in Plymouth, New Hampshire. While directing the tourism related programs at PSU, he teaches introductory to upper-level courses in tourism development and sustainability, ecotourism, cultural and heritage tourism as well as courses related to globalization and economic geography. His research analyzes the production of tourism cultures and spaces. Specifically, he has published on swamp tourism, beach privatization, the roles of animals in tourism, and the emergence of cannabis tourism. Keul works with a variety of sites and destinations in New England to show students how to create memorable experiences in this vibrant region. He and his family live in the woods on the side of a mountain with more wild animals than people. 

Meet Our Panel

Sophia Abbot is a faculty development specialist focused on supporting the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) at the University of Rhode Island. She has studied SoTL, inclusive pedagogy, and students’ perspectives on higher education for the last decade, focusing particularly on pedagogical partnerships and co-creation among students and faculty. Sophia began her professional career in faculty development, founding a pedagogical partnership program at Trinity University before returning to graduate study in higher education at Elon University (M.A.) and George Mason University (Ph.D.). She is the co-editor (with Lucy Mercer-Mapstone) of The Power of Partnerships: Students, Staff, and Faculty Revolutionizing Higher Education (2020) and her doctoral dissertation (2024) examined approaches to whole-class co-creation with students in feminist classrooms. Sophia currently serves on the advisory board for the International Journal for Students as Partners, and co-chairs the Convenings Committee for the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (ISSOTL). 

Riley Alkove is a first-year student at Elon University, studying Economics. Raised in the Pacific Northwest, Riley attended a Waldorf School, where education was approached holistically and experientially. The emphasis on learning through real-life experience inspired Riley to seek a similar approach in college. At Elon, Riley has found that the university’s focus on fostering an open relationship between professors and students, coupled with its encouragement of active participation, aligns well with their desire for an alternative educational experience. 

Annie Kelly, EdD, serves as an Assistant Professor & Course Director of First year Seminars in the College of Cooperative Education and Professional Studies (CCPS) at the University of Cincinnati. In her role, she coordinates a first-year seminar course, including faculty development, peer education, curriculum resources, and assessment initiatives. Outside of UC when she isn’t chasing her two-year old or listening to Taylor Swift (usually simultaneously), Annie serves as a faculty affiliate at the annual Appreciative Advising Institute at Florida Atlantic University and Editor of Insights for College Transitions for the National Resource Center for the First year Experience and Students in Transition. 

Episode Credits

This episode was hosted by Matt Wittstein, edited by Olivia Taylor and Matt Wittstein, and produced by Olivia Taylor and Matt Wittstein in collaboration with the Elon University Center for Engaged Learning. 

Resources Related to this Episode

Center for Engaged Learning Resources

Center for Engaged Learning. (n.d.). “Students as Partners.” https://www.centerforengagedlearning.org/resources/students-as-partners/.  

Mercer-Mapstone, Lucy, and Sophia Abbot. 2020. The Power of Partnership: Students, Staff, and Faculty Revolutionizing Higher Education. Elon, NC: Elon University Center for Engaged Learning. https://doi.org/10.36284/celelon.oa2.

Other Resources

“Active Learning Library – Teaching Tools.” Active Learning Library. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://teaching.tools/activities.  

Bovill, Catherine. 2020. “Co-Creation in Learning and Teaching: The Case for a Whole-Class Approach in Higher Education.” Higher Education 79 (6): 1023–37. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-019-00453-w.  

“Collaborate & Annotate with Hypothesis: Online Annotation Tool.” Hypothesis, August 15, 2024. https://web.hypothes.is/.  

Cooper, Katelyn M., Brian Haney, Anna Krieg, and Sara E. Brownell. 2017. “What’s in a Name? The Importance of Students Perceiving That an Instructor Knows Their Names in a High-Enrollment Biology Classroom.” CBE Life Sciences Education 16 (1): ar8. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.16-08-0265. 

Hopkins, Katie, Sandy Greene, and Dan Friedman. “V. 20 (1): A Model for Building Community in a First year Seminar.” V. 20 (1): A Model for Building Community in a First year Seminar, September 9, 2024. https://insightsforcollegetransitions.substack.com/p/a-model-for-building-community-in.  

Lesnick, Alice, Sabea K. Evans, Margo Schall, and Alison Cook-Sather. 2024. “Midterm Conversations as Co-Creation of Equitable and Inclusive Formative Assessment.” International Journal for Students as Partners 8 (1): 180–89. https://doi.org/10.15173/ijsap.v8i1.5466  

“Office of Appreciative Education – Research Based Professional Development for Thriving Spaces.” FAU Office of Appreciative Education. Accessed February 10, 2025. https://www.fau.edu/education/centersandprograms/oae/.