Welcome to the 2025 Health & Wellness Summit!
Presentations听
Nov. 13, 2025 | 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.听
UMC Ballroom, Hybrid and Virtual
Schedule
| Time 听 听 听 听 听 | Session Information | Description |
| Nov. 12, 2025 | ||
| 11 a.m.-12 p.m. | Accessibili-TEA Location: Access + (Center for Community, Room N200) | The Disability Services office invites students, faculty, and staff to join us for an afternoon tea dedicated to meaningful dialogue around ableism and its impact on individuals and society. This event will feature personal essays and narratives shared by people with disabilities, providing authentic insights into lived experiences. Guided discussion questions will help foster thoughtful, inclusive conversations in a welcoming environment.听听 Tea and light refreshments will be served.听 |
| Nov. 13, 2025 | ||
| 8:30 a.m. | Morning Keynote: Understanding and Supporting Gen Z in Work and Learning Environments Presenter: | Gen Z has entered both the workplace and the classroom, bringing with them a new and often nuanced culture. This session will examine generational trends in optimism, risk-taking, expectations, independence, motivation, and mental health鈥攆actors that shape how Gen Z learns, works, and experiences well-being.听 听Drawing on the research of Dr. Jean Twenge, we will examine mental health trends, workplace attitudes, and the evolving needs of this generation. The conversation will highlight strategies for teaching, guiding, and supporting Gen Z students and employees, with a focus on fostering resilience, engagement, and well-being. Participants will leave with practical insights on how to better understand generational differences, adapt environments, and create conditions that promote success and holistic well-being for this emerging generation. |
| 10-10:50 a.m. | Rest & Recenter: A Sound Bath Experience Presenter: Dr. Ashley Cartun Format: In-Person Location: UMC Ballroom | Be welcomed with soothing herbal tea and warm aromatherapy-infused washcloths to ease you into this restorative experience. We鈥檒l begin with a gentle grounding meditation before moving into a full-body listening journey with crystal singing bowls, chimes, and other calming instruments. No experience with meditation or sound healing is necessary鈥攋ust come as you are. Feel free to bring your own yoga mat, blanket, and anything else that helps you feel cozy, supported, and at ease.听 This session is co-sponsored by the CALM Center and WorkWell. Yoga mats will be provided by the CALM Center for anyone in need. |
| 10-10:50 a.m. | New Frontiers in Zero Waste: Intersections with Wellness Presenter: Barry Sparks Format: | Adopting Zero Waste habits are a proven component in sustaining our individual, community, and planetary wellness. We'll talk about overcoming the barriers that keep us from adopting and practicing more of those habits, while offering sensible tips for reinforcing good habit formation. Attendees are encouraged to bring specific questions, and will leave with the latest information about new campus initiatives that include single-use plastic bans, and important public-facing composting updates. |
| 10-10:50 a.m. | Assessing Employee Culture of Wellbeing: UCCS鈥檚 Story Presenters: Dr. Paige Whitney (PhD; Assistant Dean for Interprofessional Education | Assistant Clinical Professor | Director of the Center for Active Living Health Sciences)听 Format: | Higher education employee wellbeing is more important than ever to ensure the best talent remains on campus to provide the most effective support to students. This session focuses on findings from a study about perceptions of employee wellbeing at UCCS. Based on focus group data from faculty and staff on campus, we will present strategies to enhance employee wellbeing. |
| 11-11:50 a.m. | Headshots Format: In-Person Location: UMC Ballroom | Get Your Professional Headshot at the Health and Wellness Summit听 Faculty and staff鈥攕top by our headshot session at the H&W Summit! Whether you're updating your profile, refreshing your LinkedIn, or just want a sharp new photo, we've got you covered.听 |
| 11-11:50 a.m. | Mindful Communication Workshop Presenter: Format: | In this interactive workshop, participants will learn how stress impacts effective communication, mindfulness strategies for stress management, and will learn and practice tools and strategies to increase mindful, effective communication at work with friends/family or other social environments. |
| 11-11:50 a.m. | Storytelling to find passion and purpose of work: The Buffs One Read Program Presenters: Amanda Rybin Koob (Literature and Humanities Librarian)听 Format: | The presenters will provide a brief background of the Buffs One Read program which is designed to foster intellectual community and cultural exchange among students, faculty, and staff on campus. Next, attendees will be invited to engage with this year鈥檚 Buff鈥檚 One Read, Callings: The purpose and passion of work, through multimedia, activities, and discussion. As participants become familiar with the varied stories about finding rewarding work represented in Callings, they will also reflect on what activities they find most energizing and enriching in their own lives. |
| 12-1:30 p.m. | Flourishing through Change Presenter: Format: (UMC Glenn Miller Ballroom) | Change is constant, but it doesn鈥檛 have to create turbulence. This session reframes change as an opportunity for personal resilience and professional growth. Through practical strategies and reflective insights, we will explore how to move from coping to flourishing in change.听 Equipped with tools to foster a culture of adaptability, purpose, and well-being, we are better able to help ourselves and others. |
| 2-2:50 p.m. | GRIT: the Greater Resilience Information Toolkit Presenter: Dr. Lauren Shaw Format: | Learn about the free online GRIT program and learn how to enhance social support in times of stress and community disaster! Attendees will learn about the creation of the innovative GRIT Program, learn a few of the key skills featured, and hear about the impact GRIT has had across the world. |
| 2-2:50 p.m. | Fueling for Activity: A Guide to Basic Sports Nutrition Presenter: Dr. Nicole Stob Format: 听 | This presentation examines the fundamentals of sports nutrition, offering strategies to fuel your body for optimal performance and recovery. We'll cover the macronutrients 鈥 carbohydrates, proteins, and fats 鈥 and explain how to effectively time your intake around your activity. If you are looking for sports nutrition guidance as casual exerciser or a dedicated athlete this presentation can get you started. |
| 2-2:50 p.m. | The Warning Signs for Violence and Strategies for Bystander Reporting Presenter: Format: | To raise awareness about the warning signs for violence and strategies for prevention, CU鈥檚 Prevention Science Program will present an educational and interactive program on keeping CU safe as part of the Fall 2025 Health and Wellness Summit. |
| 3-3:50 p.m. | Joy and Meaning: A Talk on Happiness and Evidence-Based Presenter: Stanley Ly Format: | The pursuit of happiness and the drive for a meaning life are two of the most coveted and motivating goals for people, yet cultivating happiness and purpose continue to be subject of great debate, philosophy, and, as of the 1990's, the source of rigorous scientific research. This talk explores the science of happiness and evidence-based happiness tools emerged from the science of Positive Psychology. |
| 3-3:50 p.m. | Practical Self-Care for Peri/Menopause Presenter: Format: | This session is designed for women who are navigating peri/menopause, or soon will be, and just want their wellness routine to be simple, easy, effective, and uncomplicated. In this interactive discussion and practice, participants will leave with simple and effective tools and practical techniques designed to help improve quality of life, based in Yogic science, Ayurvedic medicine, and modern, evidence-based western medicine. |
| 3-3:50 p.m. | Trauma in the Classroom: Supporting Survivors Presenter: Jessica Ladd-Webert Format: | Trauma is in your classroom, even if you do not know it. The majority of college students report exposure to at least one potentially traumatic event over the course of their lifetime, with rates ranging from 52 to 85 percent (Shebuski, Bowie & Ashby, 2020). To adequately teach, guide and mentor the next generation of scholars, it鈥檚 important for you to know how traumatic events can impact your students. This session will help you understand what is going on inside of a victim/survivor鈥檚 brain and body and help explain their behaviors after a traumatic event. We will also discuss important considerations for classroom management and student support, including 鈥渢rigger warnings鈥 and how to provide appropriate academic support. |
| 4-4:50 p.m. | Beyond the Game: How Gambling Affects Emotional, Individual, Financial, and Social Wellness Presenter: Format: | Sports Betting and Gambling is expanding around the state. This session will explore the emerging issues on college campuses while helping people explore their relationships with gambling. |
| 4-4:50 p.m. | Learn to Like Your Job and Love Your Life Before You're Dead Presenter: Jordan Maness Format: | Are you like so many people who are not completely happy in their jobs? Sometimes thinking about death can bring you back to life and help you contextualize your career identity. In this workshop, we'll discuss this and how to avoid the most common regrets in life as well as some strategic approaches to your job that could bring you much more fulfillment. |
| 4-4:50 p.m. | Bringing the Okanagan Charter to Life: Advancing the Health Presenters: Kathryn Dailey, Asst VC Health and Wellness Services听 Format: | The Okanagan Charter provides a powerful framework for embedding health and wellbeing into the fabric of higher education from individual skills to policy and institutional culture. This session will explore the historical context of the Charter and its role in shaping the global health promoting campus movement. Presenters will share successes and lessons learned from implementation at CU, highlighting the impact of campus-wide strategies that foster both institutional change and individual wellbeing. Participants will also learn about the Limerick Framework for Action and how it is advancing the operationalization of the Charter. Finally, we will discuss practical ways the Charter鈥檚 principles can support faculty and staff wellbeing, empowering individuals to thrive while contributing to a healthier campus culture. |