Lindsay Linsky Reflects on Governor’s Teaching Fellows Experience
Posted: 09-30-2026 by Noël Hahn
The Lumpkin County bicentennial is fast approaching—and with it, an unparalleled opportunity to get your students involved in a research project that will have a lasting impact on the community.
Dr. Lindsay Linsky put the knowledge she learned at the Governor’s Teaching Fellows (GTF) program to use right away as the founding Director of UNG’s Institute for a Future Ready Workforce (IFRW).
The IFRW is a strategic, university-wide platform at the intersection of workforce, national security, and education transformation. It bridges the gap between K-12, higher ed, defense agencies, EdTech leaders, and industry giants to ensure sustained workforce relevance, including the use of AI and emerging technology, according to the website.
“Things are changing faster than many educational institutions can keep up with,” Linsky said. “This new Institute will provide programs that help fill the gaps and explore what works as things continue to shift.”
Linsky, a professor in the College of Education, was “honored and humbled” to be selected as a Governor’s Teaching Fellow. Linsky applied to be a University of North Georgia (UNG) nominee for the GTF program and was one of sixteen faculty members to be selected from across the state to participate in the 2025 May Symposium.
“There are so many great people doing incredible things with Artificial Intelligence (AI) at UNG. I was eager to bring as much back as possible,” Linsky said.
The topic of that year’s symposium, "Artificial Intelligence in the Holistic Classroom," caught her eye. Each year the theme for the May Symposium is different; the upcoming May 2027 theme is “Enhanced Pedagogies: Active Learning, Generative AI, and Gamefied Learning.”
“I had knowledge about AI in K-12 education, but I was eager to hear from my peers in higher ed about how they’re using AI.”
The GTF includes a combination of structured pedagogical and faculty development activities as well as self-directed activities designed to meet individual needs. Participants in the May program attend a one-week symposium, and participants in the academic year program attend a three-day symposium held six times over the academic year. All meetings take place on the UGA Athens campus.
Linsky's biggest takeaway from her time spent in the GTF program was that all the USG schools are “in this together.”
“We are all trying to find our way and figure this AI thing out. Some have more specialized experience in this area than others, but we are all in the same boat and none have ‘mastered’ including AI in the classroom yet. I found that very encouraging. Also, it was so great to hear what everyone’s favorite tools were! There are so many out there, that it’s hard to know where to start sometimes.”
Some of the tools lauded among the GTF faculty were Perusall, Perplexity DeepResearch, and GeminiNotebook (formerly NotebookLM.)
Linsky also helmed two workshops for the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Leadership (CTLL) about AI on the topics of dispelling myths about AI in higher education and the draft AI policy at UNG. The two workshops can be viewed on CTLL’s Video Resource page.
Linsky said she’s “excited to continue partnering with CTLL and others on campus to help our faculty grapple with the many changes facing our institution in light of emerging technology.”
The May 2027 and 2027-2028 Academic Year GTF applications are now open and the deadline to apply is Friday, November 20, 2026. UNG can submit a total of one nominee for the May Symposium and two for the 2027-2028 Academic Year Symposium. This nomination process is being facilitated by CTLL.