This essay reflects upon lessons learned from engaging students as partners in the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL). The pedagogical research question addressed by this project was: Does the case study teaching method promote student engagement and learning in an introductory biology course? Student partners were actively involved in synthesis of course materials, discussion of research methods, and the peer review and publication process. Although largely successful, a number of challenges involving communication issues, time constraints, and project management were encountered. Based on the lessons learned from working through these challenges, tips are provided here that may be useful for in a variety of educational and research scenarios.