ACADEMIC
TECHNOLOGY
NEWSLETTER
IN THIS ISSUE
I. Summer Upgrade
II. Lessons
Replacement
III.Distance Education
Certificate
Recipients
IV.Welcome
Corri Nicoletti!
SAVE THE DATE
2015 August Institute
August 17 - 28, 2015
Two full weeks of
training & workshops
Full Schedule
& Registration
Information will be
available in late July
via our website and
MARFAC
CONTACT US
Call Us at:
845-575-3836
Email us at:
academic.technology@
marist.edu
iLEARN RENOVATION
LESSONS REPLACEMENT
It’s that time of year again! In an effort to
continuously improve and enhance iLearn,
we will be undergoing our annual upgrade
in July 2015. We are currently on target
to upgrade on Tuesday, July 21, 2015.
Beginning in Summer 2015, we will begin
the process of replacing the Lessons tool,
one of the primary content authoring
tools in iLearn, with a new and enhanced
tool called Modules. The Modules tool will
allow an instructor to organize resources,
quizzes, assignments, forums, and media
(e.g. videos, audios and images) in a central
location so that students don’t need to
navigate to different tools within iLearn to
complete tasks. Modules can not only help
you organize materials but streamline
the learning process for students.
What
does
this
mean
for
you?
1. This upgrade will provide new
and enhanced tools such as a new
instant
messaging
tool,
improved
FAQ pages and the implementation of
the Lessons replacement tool called
Modules (further details on Modules is
in the next section of this newsletter).
2.
iLearn will be unavailable for a
window of time on July 21. Please plan
your summer courses accordingly and
avoid having due dates on this day. As
more information becomes available
we will send out a MARFAC with the
final outage schedule. It will also be
available on IT’s outage page found here:
http://www.marist.edu/it/availability.html
Starting in Fall 2015, faculty will be able
to opt in by adding the Modules tool to
their course site manually and moving
materials into Modules via one of two
options. We highly encourage faculty
members to take advantage of the opt in
period to become comfortable with the
new tool as all courses utilizing iLearn
will be adopting Modules by Fall 2016.
Documentation and training will be
available after the July 21 iLearn upgrade.
In addition, we will be holding specific
training sessions for Modules throughout
the 2015-2016 Academic Year starting with
our August Institute (8/17/15 - 8/28/15).
The Academic Technology department
will
also
be
offering
specialized
assistance to programs and faculty
that teach completely online courses.
A BIG THANK YOU to the Marist Community for welcoming our guests from around the world for the
5th International Learning Analytics & Knowledge Conference (LAK15) which took place over Spring Break,
March 16-20, 2015. We hosted 324 delegates from around the globe for a full week of events. Our guests
were blown away by the staff support and customer service that Marist provided and it couldn’t have been
done without our entire community. Special thanks to the entire Information Technology Department,
Media Center, Student Activities, Physical Plant, Human Resources, School of Computer Science and Math,
Admissions and Business Offices!
DISTANCE EDUCATION FACULTY CERTIFICATION RECIPIENTS
CLASS OF 2015
Following positive feedback from the Online
and Distance Education Committee (ODEC)
and Deans Council as well as a successful
pilot, the office of Academic Technology and
eLearning launched a Distance Education
Faculty Certification program, lead by
Dr. Reba-Anna Lee, Associate Director of
Academic Technology, over the 2014-15
academic year. We are pleased to announce
that 12 faculty, listed below, received their
Online Instructor Certificate. Each faculty
member will receive a framed certificate
along with information on how to include
a Digital Badge on their LinkedIn profile.
Congratulations to the 2014-15 Distance
Education Faculty certification recipients!
From the School of Communication &
the Arts:
Ellyn Enisman, Adjunct Professor of Career
Development
From the School of Social & Behavorial
Sciences:
Maureen Fitzgerald-Riker, Assistant
Professor of Education
Doreen Saccomano, Assistant Professor of
Adolescent Literacy
From the School of Liberal Arts:
Sara Dwyer-McNulty, Associate Professor of
History
Joshua Kotzin, Associate Professor of
English
Cathleen Muller, Teaching Associate of
Philosophy
Sasha Shivers, Teaching Associate of
Philosophy
Patricia Tarantello, Visiting Assistant
Professor of English
From the School of Science:
Kristin Dragos, Lecturer of Biology
Brigid Shanley, Director of Memorial Sloan
Kettering Cancer Center Medical Technology
Program
From the School of Management:
Dana Gavin, Adjunct Professor of
Management
Heather Weller, Adjunct Professor of
Management
If you are interested in becoming certified,
we will be running the program over
the 2015-16 academic year and offering
certificates in the following four categories:
1) Online Discussion Leader Certification
- prepares individuals who will be assisting a
primary instructor of an online course with
a focus on facilitating online discussions.
(2)
Online
Instructor
Certification
prepares instructors with the iLearn “best
practice” technical skills and the pedagogical
knowledge needed to successfully transition
from
face-to-face
to
online
teaching.
(3) Online Course Developer Certification
- prepares instructors to develop online
courses that align with Quality Matters
design criteria and provide students with
high quality online learning experiences.
(4) Quality Matters Reviewer Certification prepares instructors to conduct peer-reviews
of online courses and assess their alignment
with the Quality Matters design criteria.
The certification process involves attending
workshops,
successfully
completing
assessments, facilitating and/or developing
online courses and completing a recertification
workshop every 2 years. If you’d like more
information about the certification program
or want to be alerted when the next program
begins, please contact Nicole Maziarz at nicole.
maziarz@marist.edu or at 845-575-3437.
Again,
congratulations
who
received
certificates
to
this
those
year!
UPCOMING
WORKSHOPS
&
TRAINING
Join us! Academic Technology and eLearning
provides a multitude of trainings and
workshops available to faculty and staff
throughout the year. To prepare for Fall 2015,
our office will be hosting our annual August
Institute, which consists of two full weeks of
workshops and trainings on iLearn and various
educational technology topics. The 2015
August Institute will take place in LB305, August
17 - 28, 2015. Full Schedule & Registration
information will be posted in late July 2015 via
MARFAC and our AT website at http://www.
marist.edu/facultystaff/cte/workshops.html
Follow us on
Twitter!
@Marist_AT
WELCOME!
Please join us in
welcoming our newest
team member,
Corri Nicoletti. Corri
will be working in
Academic Technology
& eLearning as our
new Educational
Technology Specialist
in which she will be
providing instructional
technology support
services. In addition,
she will be assisting
faculty with the
pedagogical aspects of
integrating technology
into the teaching and
learning process. Corri
comes to Marist from
Mount Saint Mary
College in Newburgh
where she worked
as their Instructional
Technology Specialist.
Welcome Corri!
“Whether you’ve never taught a class online or you’ve been teaching
‘virtually’ for ages, the ‘Art of Teaching Online’ class is invaluable. You
can learn new discussion techniques, develop your understanding of
education theories and discover new technological advances that can
improve your engagement with your students. You will expand your
knowledge, share ideas with other instructors and have fun!”
- Dana Gavin, feedback after completing The Art of Teaching Online
Workshop