2026 Utah Rural Schools Conference: Full Schedule

Welcome to URSA 2026 at Southern Utah University! All sessions will be in buildings on the upper campus (east end). Here’s the Campus Map (PDF) if needed.

WiFi: eduroam or SUU-Conference, password "summertimefun"

PLAN AHEAD - Tentative Future Conference Dates
July 7-9, 2027 - Price, UT
July 17-19, 2028 - Richfield, UT

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1:30pm MDT

SchoolAI: Using Ai in the Classroom

Wednesday July 15, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm MDT

CC Vermillion Cliffs - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Vermillion Cliffs Room (100 Level)

Discover how SchoolAI can revolutionize classroom learning across all subjects. This session will explore the dynamic role of AI in education, demonstrating how it can make lessons more engaging, personalized, and effective.
You'll get hands-on experience with SchoolAI's innovative tools, learning how to integrate them seamlessly into your teaching practice. By the end of this presentation, you'll be equipped with practical strategies to use AI to inspire and support your students' learning journey.....starting right now!

Speakers

Jeff Couch

Director of School Growth, School AI

Wednesday July 15, 2026 1:30pm - 2:30pm MDT
CC Vermillion Cliffs - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Vermillion Cliffs Room (100 Level) 351 W. University Blvd., Cedar City, UT 84720

Exhibitor, Beginner - limited to no experience; no prerequisite skills required.

2:50pm MDT

From Chaos to College-Ready: Streamlining MS and HS Research with Scrible

Wednesday July 15, 2026 2:50pm - 3:50pm MDT

CC Red Hills Room - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Red Hills Room (200 Level)

Papers can often feel like a disorganized mess of open tabs and lost citations. Scrible—free for all Utah public and charter schools—is a powerhouse platform designed to scaffold the entire research and writing workflow. Whether you teach 5th-grade ELA or 9th-grade History, Scrible provides the scaffolding your students need to master close reading, organize their thoughts, and cite sources correctly. In this hands-on session, stop by to learn how to manage the chaos of research projects in one simple platform. You’ll hear success stories from Utah classrooms and walk away with a toolkit for tracking student progress and building media literacy skills that stick!

Speakers

DawnRae Smith

Secondary Career & Tech Educator, Iron County School District

DawnRae Smith is a Family and Consumer Sciences and Gaming Concepts teacher who brings 10 years of history teaching and special education experience to the classroom. For the past two years, she's implemented the Modern Classrooms Model, focusing on practical, realistic approaches... Read More →

Shilpa Duvoor

Exhibitor Partner, Scrible

Shilpa has over 20 years of experience in education as a teacher, school leader, leadership coach, and a customer success leader in edtech startups. Shilpa met Victor Karkar, CEO and co-founder of Scrible, and helped pilot early versions of Scrible in her classes! She is now the Head... Read More →

Tiffany Swindlehurst

Teacher, Iron County School District

Wednesday July 15, 2026 2:50pm - 3:50pm MDT
CC Red Hills Room - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Red Hills Room (200 Level) 351 W. University Blvd., Cedar City, UT 84720

Exhibitor

Session Format 1 hour BYOD (Bring Your Own Device): Hands-On-Activities

2:50pm MDT

Human Rights and the American Experience: Local and Global Legacies of the Declaration of Independence in its 250th Anniversary Year

Wednesday July 15, 2026 2:50pm - 3:50pm MDT

CC Vermillion Cliffs - R. Haze Hunter Alumni Center, Vermillion Cliffs Room (100 Level)

Reflect upon the meaning of the Declaration of Independence in the context of both diverse American historical experiences as well as its global resonances. Encounter and explore primary sources, lesson plans, and other curricular resources associated with the “Many Stories, One Nation” produced by Fair For All.

This session will aim to accomplish three primary objectives for an audience of middle and high school teachers:

(1) Expose participants to the multiplicity of American and global perspectives on the culturally relevant anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026;
(2) Provide participants with instructional materials, including a full course outline of the “Many Stories, One Nation,” two lesson plans from the curriculum, and relevant primary source documents that support teaching this topic; and
(3) Engage participants in collaborative conversation that connects learning about historic injustices and neglected stories with building on shared ideas to inspire community.

This session through its emphasis on exploring the inclusive democratic principles articulated or implied by the Declaration of Independence’s statement that “all men are created equal.” It will also provide valuable insights and useful resources for teachers to connect these democratic principles to civic engagement opportunities for their students through the analysis of case studies in which these democratic principles have been applied in U.S. and global history.

Speakers