Engage! Vol. 5, No. 3


JANKE | UNCONFERENCE PLANNING

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PAPER 9

While this segment is typically reserved for students, 
as a recent graduate and future law student, I believe 
that my proximity to student life offers a valuable 
perspective.  

 I joined the Center for Rural Engagement as 
the team's administrative project manager just days 
after my graduation in May 2023. It wasn't long 
before I heard of the looming "Unconference" event 
that I would help plan.  

 Initially, I was quite skeptical of the idea. In 
true Gen-Z fashion, I am used to relying on email, 
Zoom, and other forms of internet connection to 
bridge gaps. Much of my university experience, 
including my first day of freshman year, was spent in 
a Zoom classroom. Before too long, however, I 
began to see the need for an Unconference.

 The breadth and reach of Indiana University 
is part of its beauty, but it can be overly Byzantine, 
too. Local campuses can feel disconnected and 
sometimes even rivalrous. There is a lack of a sense 
of unity and connectedness between campuses, units, 
departments, and even titles.  

 As a student, I was hardly cognizant of my 
fellow IU peers outside of Bloomington. Some 
departments and programs do a far better job at 
ensuring connection between geographic campuses, 
but overall, IU is lacking in this area. As a 
professional staff member, there can feel like an 
invisible wall between faculty and staff.  

 At the Unconference, all bets are off. From 
the very first planning stages, there is no hierarchy of 
importance, no pecking order. Of course, the 
experience that comes with time and achievement 
cannot and should not be ignored, but the 
Unconference celebrates the expertise and 
importance of each member regardless of title.  

 Looking around the room filled wall-to-wall 
with university members from many different walks 
of life, it was incredible to see the diversity of 
conversation and input. Watching folks from different 
campuses compare their experiences brought shared 
struggles to light, and interdisciplinary conversations 
led to some very creative ideas, including concocting 
a rich metaphor likening the Unconference work to 
dating.   

Annalise Janke
Administrative Project Manager, Center on Rural Engagement 
Indiana University Bloomington  

Speaking Up and Speaking Out:
Unconference Planning 



PAPER 9

 Aside from the brilliant conversations that 
arose naturally from Unconference attendees, the 
programming of the event tackled difficult issues in a 
way I admired. Susan Sciame-Giesecke spoke on her 
prior experience leading a regional campus. She 
addressed the struggles and the strengths of regional 
campuses with refreshing honesty.

 Dr. Sciame-Giesecke also spoke on the power 
that each of us have to impact the incredibly 
bureaucratic system that we exist within at IU in a 
way that encouraged and inspired the audience. 
Phaedra Corso discussed research at IU, which 
resulted in a passionate discussion on IU's blind spot 
toward community engaged research and a need for 
true change, communication, and transparency. I left 
the Unconference feeling refreshed and energized, 
which I believe should be the goal of every 
conference event. Watching my colleagues connect, 
ideate, and advance their positions inspires me to do 
the same.  

 While I am not actively engaging in 
community based research or directly working in 
communities, I support a team of incredible people 
who do, and in my future legal career, community-
engaged work is of the utmost importance to me. I 
am grateful for the space the Unconference created 
for folks to connect without the barrier of a screen. 
The laughter and stories shared at the in-person 
sessions cultivated a familiarity that enriched the 
traditional Zoom meetings that continued on the next 
week.  

 Now more than ever, it is important for us to 
create spaces to connect across silos in person and 
online. I am thankful to have been a part of the 
Unconference, and I'm excited to begin working on 
its next iteration—the Statewide Indiana University 
Community Engaged Institute.  

Watching folks from different 
campuses compare their 

experiences brought shared 
struggles to light, and 

interdisciplinary conversations 
led to some very creative ideas, 

including concocting a rich 
metaphor likening the 

Unconference work to dating.

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JANKE | UNCONFERENCE PLANNING