Prior Professional Experience

(Learn more about my current academic experience from my academic vita)

Professional Experience Prior to Faculty Apointment

Faculty Development with Academic Technologies/Instructional Design Lead, 12/05 – 9/07
Instructional & Information Technologies, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA

• Lead the faculty development experience for the Designing Online Learning-Centered Environments (DOLCE) Program.  DOLCE is a program funded through the President’s office in which departmental faculty teams, chosen during a highly competitive selection process, redesign large-enrollment “bottleneck” courses into shared and reusable blended learning and online formats that employ sound teaching, learning, and design practices and incorporate current and appropriate electronic media. Participated in all implementation phases of the year-long program.  Direct responsibilities included reviewing current research on learning-centered online course design; participating in faculty team proposal selection for the program; managing the development and redesign processes for the chosen faculty teams; conducting faculty development for the teams as it pertains to blended learning and online course facilitation; and serving as point-of-contact for the faculty teams and the program stakeholders. 

• Lead DOLCE faculty teams through in-depth course development processes during which faculty on each team expressed and negotiated desired student outcomes and behaviors that would exhibit achievement of each topic for the resulting course.  Designed content organizers and facilitated the deliberate organization of the course topics into logical content modules that could be reused and repurposed. Assist faculty with identifying existing content (shared or purchased) that meet the needs of the course and coordinated the development of original multimedia content needed for the course.

• Designed and facilitate the DOLCE eLearning Academy during which faculty learned how to integrate pedagogy and eLearning technologies for student success and to effectively facilitate the online interactions with students.  Facilitate the eLearning Academy in a bended learning format and address the challenges that an online facilitator would encounter or need to consider.  Topics include acknowledging teaching and learning styles; promoting active learning online; informing students of course netiquette; providing FAQ's and a dynamic syllabus; developing course management policies; utilizing eLearning technologies; creating and delivering assessments; ensuring content accessibility for all learners; discouraging plagiarism; and addressing copyright issues.

• Partner with the Faculty Center for Professional Development to offer pedagogy-based faculty development opportunities related to academic technologies.  Workshops, discussions, and presentation topics varied quarterly and reflected current campus trends and events.  

• Researched new hardware and software technologies designed to assist in the teaching and learning process and partner with faculty to evaluate the pedagogical effectiveness of such technologies.  Report to administration in Instructional and Information Technology (I&IT) on the campus-wide implications of the new technologies.

• Served as a member of the Information Technology Governance Executive Committee co-chaired by the President of the University and the Vice President for Instructional and Information Technology. The Executive Committee provides strategic direction and oversight for information technology on the campus by reviewing and approving IT projects that require significant resources or have substantial impact on the campus IT structure.

• Participated as a member on the Teaching, Learning, & Technology Committee, a subcommittee of the IT Governance Executive Committee, that addresses challenges, opportunities, policies and standards related to academic technologies that affect the campus.

• Contributed as a member of the Executive Advisory to Academic Affairs and I&IT Collaborations, a committee designed to explore innovative and pedagogy-based partnership opportunities for Academic Affairs and Instructional and Information Technologies divisions at Cal Poly Pomona.

• Served as consultant for the campus learning management systems (Blackboard) team as needed.

Instructor, 3/06 – 3/07
Cal Poly Pomona, and UC Irvine Joint Ed.D. Program in Educational Administration & Leadership

GED 730 Current Topics in eLearning

• Provided instruction to doctoral students on developing into informed technology leaders who can provide leadership and direction on eLearning topics in their respective professional environments.  The course explores research and practices in current eLearning topics and offers opportunities for learners to develop positions and proposals for actionable eLearning project opportunities in their professional environments. 

GED 578 Alternative Learning Environments

• The course provides an overview of salient advances in theory and practice of distance learning and teaches how to extract the knowledge and pedagogy from the field of distance education and apply it to traditional face-to-face education in order to develop alternative learning environments.

Research Faculty/Functional Lead 1/03 – 12/05
Learning Management System Project, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA

• Provided direct consultation and support to faculty and academic professionals in the area of technology inclusion in the teaching and learning process.  Offered life-cycle assistance for the educational component of technology research projects with faculty including project conceptualization, literature review, instrument design, IRB approval, data collection (quantitative and qualitative), data analysis and synthesis, research presentation and reporting.

• Conducted faculty and support-staff needs assessments to design and suggest development opportunities and actively participate in the planning and development of campus-wide initiatives that involve educational technologies.

• Researched new technologies, authoring tools, media, and content management tools designed to assist in the teaching and learning process and partnered with other constituencies including GT Distance Learning and Professional Education (DLPE) and the Center for the Enrichment of Teaching and Learning (CETL) to research new technologies and the teaching and learning implications of such technologies.  Reported to senior administration in the Office of Information Technology (OIT) on research, active partnerships, proposals, implications and potentials of new campus technologies.

• Facilitated the real-time integration of the campus-wide online LMS, Webct and the SCT Banner student information system, which requires an interdepartmental team of technical and non-technical resources and subject matter experts.  The successful integration has made Georgia Tech one of the few institutions in the world that has accomplished such a task.

• Designed and managed the campus-wide migration toward a new LMS.  Lead the change management initiative for the campus-wide move to the new LMS. Provided communications to and serve as liaison for the teaching faculty at all stages of the project.  Facilitated application and user testing.  Developed and lead implementation of a faculty LMS training program that includes print and online help media.  Managed the provision of user support for the LMS following implementation by supervising the LMS support staff including full time employees and student assistants.

• Partnered with department deans, chairs, managers, and coordinators to assess the learning needs of their constituents and utilize that data to provide appropriate educational technology training situations using the proven instructional design and pedagogy models as well as adult learner and learning style considerations, and time constraints.  Delivered training through methods appropriate for the learners including interactive workshops, group presentations and demonstrations, one-on-one instruction, online course communities, online learning modules and written documentation.  Developed training assessments when requested by the department representative based on learner outcomes, goals, and objectives identified prior to training design.  Designed and delivered assessments in a variety of formats including actual job performance, representative projects, pre- and post-survey that employ appropriate metrics and written or online exams.  Provided training evaluations and considered resulting feedback prior to subsequent training sessions of groups of similar demographics. Provided ongoing support to workshop participants and department contacts following the training.

• Marketed the services of the Academic and Research Technologies directorate of OIT to the various colleges, schools, and departments on campus by meeting with the decision making bodies, presenting to the new faculty at general and department-specific orientations, attending departmental meetings and information sessions, and sending targeted announcements of training sessions and dates.

• Co-conceived and co-chartered the Academic Technologies Advisory Committee (ATAC) on which faculty serve by request of the VP of Student Affairs. The purpose of ATAC is to encourage faculty and OIT to partner and address current and future campus-wide educational technology needs.   Conducted faculty needs assessments and research pedagogical philosophies of the faculty to recommend appropriate technologies to the campus.

• Taught sections of GT1000, the Freshman Experience course required of all students during the first semester of their first year at Georgia Tech.  The course is taught in a blended learning environment (both online and face-to-face instruction).  The course topics relate to academic, social and professional success including learning styles, time management, major and career exploration, leadership and teamwork. Supervise a portion of team leaders for the GT1000 program.

• Worked directly with the Office of the Registrar, the Center for the Enrichment of Teaching and Learning, and the Georgia Tech Legal Department to develop an official online learning management system usage policy that would adhere to federal, state, and Institute standards.

Design Consultant, 1/01 – 5/06
CampusConnex.com, Alpharetta, GA

• Co-designed the online learning management system (LMS) that was the official and exclusive LMS used campus wide at Morehouse College. Lead the project implementation team for the LMS.  Designed online help documentation and trainer materials.  Consulted with the faculty users and offer instructor-user needs assessment data, student user requirements, and information system compatibility feedback. Conducted feature assessments on competitor learning management systems.  Offered product expansion recommendations. Managed the working budget and supervise all contractors, consultants, and vendors for the company.

Instructor, 1/99 – 5/05
Georgia State University, Department of Middle-Secondary and Instructional Technology (M.S.I.T.), Atlanta, GA

IT 7360 Technology for Educators

• Taught courses to Master’s-level in-service teachers on the use of technology as a classroom resource.  Instruction included information on the effective uses of the internet and various productivity software applications as they pertained to technology integration in the classroom. This course fulfills the GA HB 1187 Technology Requirement for all certified educators.

IT 3210 Teachers and Technology

• Taught courses to pre-service teachers on the use of technology as a classroom resource.  Instructed students on using various technological hardware and software to design, plan and produce educational materials within their grade level and discipline.  Created and maintained online environments for the course. 

IT 2010 Introduction to Microcomputing

• Developed and taught courses regarding the inner-workings of the microcomputer, the history and usefulness of the Internet and the application of various university-supported productivity software.  This course is taken by both undergraduate and graduate GSU students.

Instructional Technology Support Specialist, 8/01 – 1/03
Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA

• Offered direct faculty assistance with the use of the campus-wide online learning management system, WebCT.  Developed and presented training courses to the campus on the use of WebCT.  Produced and maintained instructional materials in web and print format. Facilitated the design of web pages within the Educational Technologies website.

Curriculum Designer/Instructional Designer/Lead Instructor, 11/99 – 6/00
Project Success, 100 Black Men of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA

• Assumed responsibility for the design of a themed curriculum regarding the inner-workings of the microcomputer, the history and usefulness of the Internet and the application of various software products in the context of an ongoing project for the seventh through eleventh grade students.  Performed additional activities as lead instructor and technology coordinator for the program by supervising volunteer trainers; serving as an information source for organization members, volunteers and students; and organizing the appearance of guest speakers.

Graduate Research Assistant, 3/00 – 6/00
Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA

• Developed an interactive website for the book, Handbook of Instructional Practices for Literacy Teacher-Educators: Examples and Reflections from the Teaching Lives of Literacy Scholars, and organized and created a filing structure for the future maintenance of the chapters, author information, teacher contributions and related files.

• Developed the course website for EDRD 8610, Supervision of School Literacy Programs.

• Managed the lab component of course EDRD 8610.  Responsibilities included assisting students with converting group projects into web-ready formats and incorporating the student websites into the course website.

• Maintained the online asynchronous communications for EDRD 8610.

Software Trainer, 7/98 – 5/00
TEKnowledge, Inc., Atlanta, GA

• Developed and delivered training for various software application and soft skills courses offered by the company.

Graduate Intern, 6/99 – 8/99
Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA
Department of Middle Secondary Education and Instructional Technology

• Designed web-based applications to assist Instructional Technology Ph.D. and Masters students in maintaining program and committee member information; submitting internship proposals; asking questions; developing meeting times; and sharing opinions about the program.

Graduate Intern, 6/98 - 8/98
Georgia State University, Atlanta, GAUniversity Education and Technology Services

• Developed and delivered training module for features of an online learning management system (WebCT) feature using the Dick and Carey Design Model.

Instructional Media Multimedia Programmer, 6/97 - 6/98
Gulliver Ritchie Associates, Norcross, GA

• Authored multimedia applications for corporate, industrial and marketing clientele.  Created high-impacting presentations and advertisements for training, kiosks and interactive information booths using development software.  Synergized with instructional designers, subject matter experts, and graphic artists to produce creative and effective user interfaces.  Devised and maintained pre-authoring project flows, programming notes and testing sequences.

Training Coordinator, 12/96 - 5/97
Eastman Kodak Company, Atlanta, GA

• Compiled all training course materials.  Updated and created multimedia-based training modules.  Performed trainee icebreakers and informational sessions.  Functioned as sole liaison between the training department and outside trainers, vendors, and departments.  Maintained responsibility for all training assets.

Information Systems Analyst, 08/94 - 12/96
Nortel, Inc., Alpharetta, GA

• Delivered Just-In-Time application training for IS customers and employees.  Accurately resolved system issues by assuming full-cycle responsibility for complex system programs.  Prepared detailed project reports and presentations.

Proposal Engineer, 08/93 - 08/94
Nortel, Inc., Alpharetta, GA

• Designed and prepared telecommunication equipment proposals using Microsoft Office for the regional sales staff which met customers’ network implementation plans.  Designed and implemented software tools using macros that created efficiency and integrity for the sales force and proposal team.