How it started

Like most aspects of my life, my journey in pursuit of a professional degree took an unlikely path. Initial attempts in achieving a college education proved daunting as the demands of motherhood along with early marital bliss consumed me. Thirteen-years later I returned to higher education determined to earn a degree in business administration. During this time, my experiences as an online student, many not so pleasant, sparked an interest in improving online learning. This new passion led me to complete a Master of Education degree in Learning Systems Technology (LSTE) and garnered curiosity in Adult Education. However, I quickly realized obtaining a second master’s degree was simply a delay in my pursuit of earning a doctoral degree. After much research, not only of the program but also of the faculty, I applied to the University of North Texas Learning Technologies (LTEC) Doctoral program. Thus the marathon began...

....the Journey

Attending my first distributed program annual meeting was confirmation that the LTEC program was a good fit. Most of what I learned through the foundational coursework was directly related to my daily work and professional role as an instructional designer, facilitator/trainer, and coordinator. Since 2016 I have been blessed to lead and work alongside a team of dedicated professionals whose mission has been to develop and support faculty excellence in the online learning environment. I have overseen the revision of our course development process by integrating Online Course Design Quality Assurance Standards while helping faculty understand the pedagogical underpinnings of online course design. Collaboratively, we have developed the Online Course Design and Online Course Delivery Certificate series. Further, for our faculty’s professional development the inaugural Summer Academy for Online Teaching Excellence. Most recently, due to the pandemic, our efforts shifted to meet the urgent need to transition swiftly to remote learning. Nearly all of the projects I lead are intertwined with my LTEC coursework and affords me numerous opportunities to immediately apply what I have learned.