Upcoming Virtual Events from ISA HQ and our Sections
See Past Events Here
ISA Virtual Programming operates year-round and offers a wide array of webinars on topics ranging from practical career advice and professional training to current event discussions. With a growing list of 362 speakers, 132 past events, and an audience that has joined us from 110 countries, ISA Virtual Programming is dedicated to making the latest resources and cutting-edge scholarship accessible for a global network of scholars and practitioners. Catch up on past events in our YouTube Library. Playlists are organized by topic, to make your browsing easier.
OCTOBER
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2026, 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM (EASTERN TIME) (UTC: 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM). There is a hidden curriculum of administrative and other skills necessary for new and early-career faculty that are generally not taught during doctoral programs. Some of the skills needed include how to balance workload, including teaching, research, and service; how to navigate department politics and expectations; how to work with the grants office for funding; and how to support students and build a positive advising system. This roundtable discussion will allow early career faculty to share the lessons that they have learned and offer guidance for others.
PANELISTS: Charmaine Willis (Old Dominion University), Gabriela Okundaye (University of North Texas), and Alex Waterman (University of Bradford). Click here for session details and registration.
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2026, 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM (EASTERN TIME) (UTC: 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM). Open to ISA Members. Traveling to the United States has become more complicated than ever before. We hope to provide you with the information you need to ensure your travel is without impediment as you plan your visit to Atlanta this coming March. Our Virtual Travel Information Session includes immigration attorney Dan Berger for insights into what to expect when traveling to the United States, Devika Misra, Chair of the Committee on the Status of Engagement with the Global South Members, for perspective on the other side of the visa process, and Director of Professional Development, Sarah Dorr. This session is only open to ISA members. Have a specific question in mind? Submit it when you register so we can make sure to address your concerns or queries. The ISA Annual Convention is a key event for the ISA community, bringing us together to network, learn, and advance the important scholarly work we do. We look forward to doing everything we can to make your participation possible.
PANELISTS: Dan Berger (Partner, Green & Spiegel, and Academic Fellow, Cornell Law School), Dr. Devika Misra (OP Jindal Global University, Chair of ISA's Committee on the Status of Engagement with the Global South Members), and Dr. Sarah Dorr (Director of Professional Development, ISA). Click here for session details and registration.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2026, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM (EASTERN TIME) (UTC: 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM). Part Two in Academic Chutes & Ladders. If academia is a game, the hidden curriculum is a secret map that shows where the opportunities and pitfalls are. This second session in a four-session series of roundtables will explore the obstacles and opportunities related to caregiving and parenthood in the academy. The roundtable will feature the editors of Academic Chutes & Ladders and several contributing authors, who will share insights from the book and their lived experiences in the profession. This roundtable will highlight some of the book’s themes, including parenthood in the academy, research support networks, and the need for inclusive campus policies.
MODERATORS: Kerry Crawford (James Madison University) and Leah Windsor (University of Memphis). PANELISTS: Karen Sobel (University of Colorado Denver), Melissa Bowles-Terry (University of Nevada, Las Vegas), Lesley Thornton-Cronin (Humber Polytechnic), Jennifer Greene-Rooks (Texas State University), Lynn Bielski (Ball State University), Kathi Azim (California Institute of Integral Studies), Amanda Harmon (Sacred Heart University), and Colleen Myles-Baltzy (Texas State University). Click here for session details and registration.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2026, 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM (EASTERN TIME) (UTC: 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM). Part of the Professional Advancement Seminar Series (PASS). Open to ISA Members and non-members. Cost: $40 USD. How can political science instructors leverage simulations to create engaging and meaningful learning experiences while advancing key learning objectives and professional skills development in subjects such as environmental politics or international relations?
Many instructors in higher education have come across challenges when teaching political science courses in environmental politics, international relations, or comparative politics: How do I get my students to care about the topics? How do I make my course more engaging or exciting? How do I teach students skills and professional development related to the topics? Ensuring students have developed skills that they can apply in their careers is a high priority for political science courses and majors. Simulations are a key to achieving such success. In this workshop, simulations are defined as experiential learning opportunities in a classroom where students apply substantive knowledge and practical skills by participating in a simplified representation of a real-world decision-making procedure or institutional system.
Planning and implementing simulations in the classroom can be a daunting task, even for those who have done it multiple times. This workshop equips instructors to design and implement simulations of varying lengths, from short-form simulations that fit within a single class session to extended simulations over multiple weeks. On substantive issues, the workshop introduces how to teach about environmental politics using simulations which can be applied to political science courses more broadly, especially international relations or comparative politics. The workshop prepares instructors to design simulations that align with course learning objectives and skills-development goals with a focus on decision-making skills and processes, policy-making procedures, and multilateral negotiation and diplomacy more generally. Workshop attendees gain insight into planning and implementing a simulation from beginning to end and gain tools and tactics for how to include students in the planning and implementation process.
INSTRUCTOR: Roni Kay M. O'Dell (California State University San Marcos). Click here for session details and registration.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2026, 10:30 AM - 12:00 PM (EASTERN TIME) (UTC: 2:30 PM - 4:00 PM). Part of the Professional Advancement Seminar Series (PASS). Open to ISA Members and non-members. Cost: $40 USD. AI can now write a policy memo, analyze a case study, and produce a polished research paper in minutes. For international studies faculty, the essays, briefs, and take-home exams that once showed learning no longer prove a student did the thinking. This course offers a practical response. Instead of trying to catch AI use, it moves assessment toward something AI cannot supply: a student's ability to explain, adapt, and defend their own work.
The goal is to help faculty verify student understanding in any course format, including fully online and asynchronous courses. Participants will explore four strategies from the "Grade the Human, Not the Homework" framework. Each one evaluates a student's understanding of their submitted work rather than grading the artifact alone.
Each strategy is illustrated with international studies examples, so participants can apply the strategies to their own courses right away. The session also addresses the questions faculty raise most often: how much instructor time these methods take, how to score them consistently, and how to keep them fair and accessible for all students.
INSTRUCTOR: Ashley Evans (Teach AI Ready and Valencia College). Click here for session details and registration.
NOVEMBER
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2026, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM (EASTERN TIME) (UTC: 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM). Part Three in Academic Chutes & Ladders. If academia is a game, the hidden curriculum is a secret map that shows where the opportunities and pitfalls are. This third session in a four-session series of roundtables will explore the importance of developing a mentorship network and supporting students and early career scholars. The roundtable will feature the editors of Academic Chutes & Ladders and several contributing authors, who will share insights from the book and their lived experiences in the profession. This roundtable will highlight some of the book’s themes, including intentional networking, early career scholar support, and supporting international students.
MODERATORS: Kerry Crawford (James Madison University) and Leah Windsor (University of Memphis). PANELISTS: Zora Wolfe (Widener University), Claudio Villalobos Dintrans (National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke), Crystal Machado (Indiana University of Pennsylvania) and Kelly Bauer (George Washington University). Click here for session details and registration.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2026, 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM (EASTERN TIME) (UTC: 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM). Part Four in Academic Chutes & Ladders. If academia is a game, the hidden curriculum is a secret map that shows where the opportunities and pitfalls are. This final session in a four-session series of roundtables will explore service burdens and the call to help others succeed. The roundtable will feature the editors of Academic Chutes & Ladders and several contributing authors, who will share insights from the book and their lived experiences in the profession. This roundtable will highlight some of the book’s themes, including disproportionate service burdens for BIPOC faculty, the importance of supporting undergraduate students, and ways to “pay it forward” and help the next generation of scholars succeed.
MODERATORS: Kerry Crawford (James Madison University) and Leah Windsor (University of Memphis). PANELISTS: Crystal White (University of Memphis), LaSheba Hilliard (University of Memphis), Gina Tillis (University of Memphis), Tera Warfield (University of Memphis), Carrie Liu Currier (Texas Christian University (service and BIPOC faculty taking on too much)), Jamie Scalera Elliott (Kennesaw State University, and Sean Giovanello (Elon University (working with undergraduates)). Click here for session details and registration.
JANUARY
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2027, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM (EASTERN TIME) (UTC: 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM). With official diplomacy increasingly stretched and struggling to address a range of global issues from intractable conflicts to adversarial relations, the potential for Track 1.5 and 2 Diplomacy to contribute to effective and successful diplomacy is seemingly significant. Yet clear tensions remain over the field's future direction, both in theory and in practice. Will Track 1.5 and 2 continue to serve as a supplementary mechanism as “classic” practitioners envisaged? Will there be a messy separation between “traditional” approaches focused on transfer to elites and “newer approaches” focused on issues of inclusion and norm development? Will Track 1.5/2 avoid submission to official positions in both institutionalised and ad-hoc contexts? Or will the future be one of synergy in a new multitrack approach to diplomacy? Building on recent research in the field, this roundtable brings together leading voices who straddle the scholar-practitioner space to reflect on what we know about Track 1.5/2 diplomacy and the role it can play now and in the future in a changing international environment.
SPEAKERS: Peter Jones (University of Ottawa; Ottawa Dialogue), Jusaima Moaid-azm Peregrina (University of Granada), and Julia Palmiano Federer (University of Ottawa; Ottawa Dialogue). Click here for session details and registration.