NSU’s CEC Participates at Online Learning Consortium’s Accelerate Conference

Left to Right: Nall, Oviawe, Schubert, and Snyder

The Online Learning Consortium-OLC (formerly known as Sloan-C), Accelerate conference is devoted to driving quality online learning, advancing best practice guidance and accelerating innovation in learning for academic leaders, educators, administrators, online learning professionals and organizations around the world. In its 22nd year, OLC Accelerate is recognized as the premier international conference in online and blended learning. NSU was well represented at this year’s conference:

Laurie P. Dringus, Ph.D., Professor, and Marti M. Snyder, Ph.D., Associate Professor, served on the conference committee and presented papers with their students at the conference. Dringus served as Program Co-Chair of the 2016 OLC Accelerate Conference. Laurie also served on the selection committee for the inaugural graduate student discovery session. She also served as a judge for the final battle of the Technology Test Kitchen’s (TTK) Iron Chef Battles Competition. Laurie was also a co-presenter with Dr. Janice Orcutt on the paper, Beyond Being There: Teaching Presence Practices that Inspire Intellectual Curiosity in A Structured Online Environment.

Left to Right: Laurie, Dringus and Tomsic

Snyder served as the 2016 OLC Accelerate Conference Learning Effectiveness Strand Co-Chair and moderated the Learning Effectiveness Strand Town Hall Meeting. Marti also co-presented with Dr. Julie Hewitt on the papers Toward Effective Practice in Blended Course Design: An Adjunct Faculty Professional Development Case Using Knowledge Management Principles and Research Highlights: The Application of Knowledge Management Principles to the Design of Blended Learning Professional Development for Adjunct Faculty and with Dr. Robin Hill on the paper Community College Faculty Dispositions Towards Blended Learning.
Four doctoral students from NSU’s College of Engineering and Computing (CEC) presented at the Online Learning Journal Inaugural Graduate Student Discovery Session during the conference This was a competitive review process with only 15 submissions selected for presentation. Students were honored at the awards luncheon by Dr. Peter Shea, Online Learning Journal’s editor, and Dr. Jill Buban, OLC’s Sr. Director of Research and Innovation.

Graduate student-presenters from NSU CEC were:

• La Keshia (Keshia) Nall: How Are Instructional Designers Managing Their Learning Projects?,. Nall is the vice president of CEC’s Student Government Association (SGA) and a Sr. Instructional Designer in the healthcare industry where she designs and develops instructor-led, online, and hybrid training.

• Janice Orcutt, Ph.D.: In the Zone: Instructors’ Experiences of Teaching Presence Practices in Structured Online Environments. Orcutt is the online/distance learning instructional specialist at the University of the West Indies Open Campus.

• Elizabeth (Liz) Oviawe: Electronic Health Information Technology: Design and Development of a Simulation-Based Instructional Module for Students in An Inter-Professional Team-Based Learning Environment. Oviawe is the Assistant Director for Simulation Technologies, Analysis and Development in the Department of Medical Education at NSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine.

• David Schubert: Toward a Competency Framework for the Advanced Instructional Design of Complex Learning Solutions . Schubert is an independent learning consultant with experience in development of networked simulations, 3D environments, online scenario-based learning, and both rule and algorithmic-based adaptive learning solutions.

A team from NSU participated in the Technology Test Kitchen Iron Chef Battles at the conference The Iron Chef Battles is zesty combo of popular TV cooking competition shows (Iron Chef, Chopped, etc.), where exhibitors and educators form teams to battle for bragging rights over who can create the most exciting new recipe for technology.

The NSU SharkChef team was coordinated by CEC alum Dr. Julie Hewitt. Hewitt is the program coordinator for faculty development, research, and assessment in the Distance Learning Center at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Teammates included CEC doctoral students Dave Schubert and LaKeshia Nall. Adam Larson, Academic Solutions Director at Schoology joined the team as a vendor partner. While the team did not make it to the final battle, they won the popular vote in their heat..

Four alumni from NSU’s College of Engineering and Computing, who defended their dissertations in 2016, presented their research at the conference. Presenters included:

• Julie Hewitt, Ph.D., program coordinator for faculty development, research, and assessment in the Distance Learning Center at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Co-presenter: Marti Snyder, Ph.D., Associate Professor, NSU-CEC. Toward Effective Practice in Blended Course Design: An Adjunct Faculty Professional Development Case Using Knowledge Management Principles and Research Highlights – The Application of Knowledge Management Principles to the Design of Blended Learning Professional Development for Adjunct Faculty.

• Robin Hill, Ph.D., Coordinator of Instructional Design, Suffolk County Community College, State University of New York, Office of Instructional Technology. Community College Faculty Dispositions Towards Blended Learning. Co-presenter: Marti Snyder, Ph.D., Associate Professor, NSU-CEC.

• Holly McKee, Ph.D., Instructor of Computer Science and Entrepreneurship, Everett Dobson School of Business and Technology at Southwestern Oklahoma State University. Research Highlights – The Construction and Validation of an Instructor Learning Analytics Implementation Model to Support At-Risk Students.

• Janice Orcutt, Ph.D., Online/Distance Learning Instructional Specialist, University of the West Indies Open Campus. Research Highlights: Beyond Being There: Teaching Presence Practices that Inspire Intellectual Curiosity in A Structured Online Environment. Co-presenter: Laurie Dringus, Ph.D., Professor, College of Engineering and Computing, NSU.

• Frank Tomsic, M.S., Director of the McCormick Educational Technology Center at Rush University Medical Center. Served as Co-Program Chair, Accelerate 2016, and presented a panel on the Technology Test Kitchen.