Schedule — Fall 2026
Recurring deadlines
| What | When | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Prep reading and Forum Post | Typically before Monday’s class | Excludes week 1; D2L discussion board |
| Peer responses to Forum Post (if desired) | Thursdays, 11:59 PM | Excludes week 1; D2L discussion board |
| Exit ticket | End of each class meeting | In class Monday, Wednesday, Friday |
| Case Study (group) and Reflection post (individual) | Sundays, 11:59 PM | D2L assignments |
Unit Arc
Following the chronological inquiry in the learning goals:
| Unit | Weeks | Question |
|---|---|---|
| I | 1–4 | Where have we been? Foundations, mechanics, and the history that produced these systems |
| II | 5–10 | Where are we now? Contemporary deployments, domain by domain |
| III | 11–15 | Where are we going? Futures, governance, and your own proposals |
Week by Week
Week 1 · Aug 31 – Sep 4
Week 1 - Case Study Information
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Aug 31 | Introduction to CMSE 101 | Discuss Course Syllabus; Answer Questions; Group Activity |
| W | Sep 2 | Concept & Case | Data Collection and Encoding; Census of Populations; W.E.B Dubois |
| F | Sep 4 | Case (Data Focus) | Census of Populations; W.E.B Dubois |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 1 Case Study & Week 1 Reflection (Sun Sep 6)
Week 2 · Sep 7 – 11
Week 2 - Case Study Information
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | — | 🚫 No class — Labor Day, University closed | |
| W | Sep 9 | Concept | Neural Networks & Image Recognition |
| F | Sep 11 | Case (Tools Focus) | Mail Systems; Facial Recognition |
Due: Exit ticket ×2 · Week 2 Forum Post (Tue Sep 8) · Week 2 Case Study & Week 2 Reflection (Sun Sep 13) · Week 2 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Sep 10)
Week 3 · Sep 14 – 18
Week 3 - Case Study Information
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Sep 14 | Concept | Transformers & LLMs |
| W | Sep 16 | Case (Practice Focus) | ChatGPT and Generating Text |
| F | Sep 18 | Case (Practice Focus) | ChatGPT and Generating Text |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 3 Forum Post (Sun Sep 13) · Week 3 Case Study & Week 3 Reflection (Sun Sep 20) · Week 3 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Sep 19)
Week 4 · Sep 21 – 25
Week 4 - Case Study Information
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Sep 21 | Case (Action Focus) - No Class Meeting | Taking Action with Generative AI |
| W | Sep 23 | Concept | Automated Decision Making |
| F | Sep 25 | Case (Action Focus) | Taking Action with Generative AI |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 4 Forum Post (Sun Sep 20) · Week 4 Case Study & Week 4 Reflection (Sun Sep 27) · Week 4 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Sep 24)
Week 5 · Sep 28 – Oct 2
Weeks 5 and 6 - Full Case II Information
- This week you may select your groups for Full Case I.
- This week you must select your groups for the Case Design.
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Sep 28 | Introducing Case Design/Full Case I - Intro | Healthcare, Art, Education, Athletics & Sports, or Politics & Government |
| W | Sep 30 | Full Case I | Healthcare, Art, Education, Athletics & Sports, or Politics & Government |
| F | Oct 2 | Full Case I | Healthcare, Art, Education, Athletics & Sports, or Politics & Government |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 5 Forum Post (Sun Sep 27) · Week 5 Full Case I Update & Week 5 Reflection (Sun Oct 4) · Week 5 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Sep 29)
Week 6 · Oct 5 – 9
Weeks 5 and 6 - Full Case II Information
- This week you must continue your groups for Full Case I.
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Oct 5 | Full Case I | Healthcare, Art, Education, Athletics & Sports, or Politics & Government |
| W | Oct 7 | Full Case I | Healthcare, Art, Education, Athletics & Sports, or Politics & Government |
| F | Oct 9 | Full Case I | Healthcare, Art, Education, Athletics & Sports, or Politics & Government |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 6 Forum Post (Sun Oct 4) · Week 6 Full Case I Complete & Week 6 Reflection (Sun Oct 11) · Week 6 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Oct 8)
🎯 IMPORTANT DUE DATE: Case Design Plan I (Fri Oct 9)
Week 7 · Oct 12 – 16
Weeks 7 and 8 - Full Case II Information
- This week you may select new groups for Full Case II.
- You may stay in the same groups.
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 7 Forum Post (Sun Oct 11) · Week 7 Full Case II Update & Week 7 Reflection (Sun Oct 18) · Week 7 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Oct 15)
Week 8 · Oct 19 – 23
Weeks 7 and 8 - Full Case II Information
- This week you must stay in your groups for Full Case II.
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 8 Forum Post (Sun Oct 18) · Week 8 Full Case II Complete & Week 8 Reflection (Sun Oct 25) · Week 8 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Oct 22)
Week 9 · Oct 26 – 30
Weeks 9 and 10 - Full Case III Information
- This week you may select new groups for Full Case III.
- You may stay in the same groups.
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | — | 🚫 No class — Fall Break (Mon Oct 26 – Tue Oct 27) | |
| W | Oct 28 | Full Case III - intro | Agriculture, Transportation, Retail & Consumer, Entertainment & Gaming, Environmental & Climate Science, or Un-discussed Area of Your Choosing |
| F | Oct 30 | Full Case III | Agriculture, Transportation, Retail & Consumer, Entertainment & Gaming, Environmental & Climate Science, or Un-discussed Area of Your Choosing |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 9 Forum Post (Tue Oct 27) · Week 9 Full Case III Update & Week 9 Reflection (Sun Nov 1) · Week 9 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Oct 29)
Week 10 · Nov 2 – 6
Weeks 9 and 10 - Full Case III Information
- This week you must stay in your groups for Full Case III.
- This week you must stay in your groups for the Case Design.
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 10 Forum Post (Sun Nov 1) · Week 10 Full Case III Complete & Week 10 Reflection (Sun Nov 8) · Week 10 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Nov 5) · 🎯 Case Design Scaffold 2 (Fri Nov 6)
Week 11 · Nov 9 – 13
Groups may sign up to lead half of Monday or Wednesday class with a Full Case presentation; see available slots and sign-up. The rest of Monday/Wednesday, and all of Friday, is Case Design work time.
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Nov 9 | Lead / Studio | Group-led Full Case presentation (if signed up, first half) + Case Design work |
| W | Nov 11 | Lead / Studio | Group-led Full Case presentation (if signed up, first half) + Case Design work |
| F | Nov 13 | Studio | Full-period Case Design work |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 11 Forum Post (Sun Nov 8) · Week 11 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Nov 12)
Week 12 · Nov 16 – 20
Unit III
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Nov 16 | Lead / Studio | Group-led Full Case presentation (if signed up, first half) + Case Design work |
| W | Nov 18 | Lead / Studio | Group-led Full Case presentation (if signed up, first half) + Case Design work |
| F | Nov 20 | Studio | Full-period Case Design work |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 12 Forum Post (Sun Nov 15) · Week 12 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Nov 19)
Week 13 · Nov 23 – 27
Unit III — short week
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Nov 23 | Lead / Studio | Group-led Full Case presentation (if signed up, first half) + Case Design work |
| W | Nov 25 | Studio | Low-stakes work session — day before Thanksgiving, expect thin attendance; no lead slot this day |
| F | — | 🚫 No class — University closed |
Due: Exit ticket ×2 · No forum post this week (holiday)
Week 14 · Nov 30 – Dec 4
Unit III
| Day | Date | Role | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | Nov 30 | Lead / Studio | Group-led Full Case presentation (if signed up, first half) + Case Design work |
| W | Dec 2 | Lead / Studio | Group-led Full Case presentation (if signed up, first half) + Case Design work |
| F | Dec 4 | Studio | 🎯 Final Case Design due · last work session before Showcase |
Due: Exit ticket ×3 · Week 14 Forum Post (Sun Nov 29) · Week 14 Forum Replies (optional, Thu Dec 3) · 🎯 Final Case Design (Fri Dec 4)