Technology Program Administrator

Technology Center Analysis Activity

FRIT 7738 Spring 2013

Autumn B. Roberts 4/14/2013

Table of Contents
Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................... 2 Organizational Chart ............................................................................................................................. 3 Methods ................................................................................................................................................ 4 Center Context and Goals ..................................................................................................................... 5 Center Activities .................................................................................................................................... 7 Evaluation ............................................................................................................................................. 8 Appendix ................................................................................................................................................. 10 Part B: Semester Report Brag Sheet ................................................................................................ 10 Interview Questions A Director of Technology ................................................................................ 11 Interview Questions B Director of Educational Technology ............................................................ 11 Center for Teacher Education and Learning Floor Plans and Site Map .............................................. 12

Executive Summary The College of Coastal Georgia is a SACSCOC approved institution, offering outsourced four-year baccalaureate degree programs since 2008. Established in 1961, the school currently enrolls over 2,400 students with aspirations of increasing this number to over 6,000 students by 2020. A transformative strategic master plan including academic and infrastructure expansions have been set into motion by the college, embarking opportunities to embrace its mission to foster academic excellence and individual development; investigate, capture and disseminate 21st century knowledge and skills; provide accessible and affordable higher education to a wide spectrum of learners; and engage actively with the community and region.

At the heart of this transformation are the technology services offered by the college within the Correll Center for Teacher Education and Learning. This spacious and technologically advanced building made possible through the overall vision and mission of the college, assists the technology team in providing an abundance of individualized training sessions offering growth, advancement, and collaboration for all faculty and staff members. Not only is there education in regard to classroom technology and relevant computer systems, the team also identifies and meets the needs of instructors ensuring that they master the creation and delivery of material through face-to-face design, online classes, and those who combine both methods. Led by Geri Culbreth and directed by Kevin Mobbs, the team also hosts a private wiki offering real-time assistance, blogging opportunities, and a collaborative community that fosters advancement, encouragement, and the use of cutting edge technology.

The services and programs offered by the technology team through the Correll Center for Teacher Education and Learning are essential to ensuring the success of the College of Coastal Georgia and its future growth and advancement. The knowledge of its leaders is an asset to the Golden Isles community and all those who have the pleasure of working with their location.

Organizational Chart

Paul Hearn Web Developer Maira Perdomo Application Systems Analyst

Kevin Mobbs Educational Technology

Ed Grueser
Database Specialist Geri Culbreth Director of the Technology Services Team Gerald Moody Systems Engineer Susan Todd Computer Support Specialist

Faculty & Staff Members

LW Bruce Client Support Specialist

Students

Methods To complete my evaluation, I first visited the location with a student. This student, named Sophie, is a recent graduate of my institution and is currently attending CCGA. I wanted to visit the campus with a person without an administrative title to gain an understanding of the general feel of the location and to gain insight from a students point of view. I introduced myself to the receptionist and obtained a visitors pass before traveling to the building. While I was there, I received a copy of the strategic plan recently made public by the school. I learned about this plan while reading the newspaper when I first relocated to the Golden Isles.

I informally interviewed John Pope, who serves as Director of Advancement at my school, but also serves on many committees in our community and one for the college. (He wishes for my questions/answers to remain anonymous, but understand that his general knowledge is held in high esteem within our community.) This interview gave me insight into where the college has been, where it is going, and the overall general consensus of thoughts, opinions, and the happenings with CCGA. I thought it was very relevant to interview an outside source, in addition to those with ties directly to the school.

I interviewed Geri Culbreth onsite during a second visit, and was able to conduct an additional interview over the phone with Kevin Mobbs, the Director of Educational Technology. I also was able to briefly attend one of the workshops offered by the location that gave me access to informal interviews of 3 of the staff members who were in attendance.

The following documents were also used in my research: print paraphernaila from the college, a copy of A DECADE AND BEYOND- Strategic Master Plan Volume I, and the online website located at, www.ccga.edu.

Center Context and Goals The College of Coastal Georgia was established by the Regents 1961. The institution opened in 1964, with the assistance of Glynn County citizens who provided a $1 million bond issued for construction of buildings and purchase of land. The majority of the buildings were built during the 1970s, covering the 193 acre campus. An additional satellite location serving Camden County was implemented in 1992, which developed into a permanent facility in 2004. The institution offers a variety of Associate of Arts and Science programs, some of which prepare students for transfer to baccalaureate programs elsewhere. The facility also hosts opportunities for the latter, in addition to, masters degree programs offered by Georgia Southern University and Armstrong Atlantics.

Total enrollment for CCGA was 2,459 students in the fall of 2008. A recently published Strategic Master Plan gives a 10 year projection of goals, one of which is to increase enrollment to over 6,000 students by the year 2020. Within this plan, the college identified several key planning principles including focus on technology everywhere and expand faculty/staff experiential options. These motivating factors resulted in the completion of the Correll Center for Teacher Education and Learning in December of 2012. The center is comprised over 32,000 square feet that houses many faculty offices, simulation classrooms, seminar rooms, collaboration rooms, computer labs, and other locations that provide instructional technology support to the college.1

The new facility brings advancement and opportunity to the members of the Technology Services Team employed by CCGA. Led by Geri Culbreth, the nine member team in conjunction with other staff members has a mission to provide access to technology tools, training, and support for all

See Appendix Item: Correll Center for Teacher Education and Learning Floor Plans and Site Map

faculty at the College of Coastal Georgia. They also strive to support faculty in achieving instructional outcomes and their own professional development goals. Mission The mission of Information Technology Services unit is to provide high quality, reliable and responsive information and instructional technology support services to the College of Coastal Georgia community that are consistent with the strategic planning process of the College.

The mission is supported through a multi-faceted program including various services that provide course development and course improvement consultation and support. The center identifies the requirement of good design, whether offered online, face-to-face, or in a blended environment. Several course design tools are offered that inspire teachers to take a backwards design approach, while initially focusing on the outcomes of course objectives and the steps necessary for student success. One-on-one consultations are provided to assist educators with this goal, in addition to, course designing tools, workshops to identify course goals and their implementation, online tutorials on designing rubrics, and other resources that cover topics ranging from Tips to Create Online Courses to free images and trending websites that allow collaboration and sharing of materials.

Not only does the technology team offer assistance with instructional design and implementation of advanced technology, they also provide the staff of CCGA with the training necessary to gain a general understanding and then master the technological changes found during the day-to-day activities required an instructor or faculty member. The team offers a continuously up-dated collaborative wiki, a plethora of workshops requested by staff to support their needs, and an archived database that contains relevant documents and tutorials that are easy to use.

In addition to Geri Culbreth, who serves as director, Paul Hearn and Gerald Moody serve as Web Developer and Systems Engineer, respectively. These members work behind the scenes, ensuring that information is easy to navigate, locate, and discern by its users. Ed Grueser manages the schools COAST program, and works with the rest of the team to manage and offer the following services: Desire2Learn, Blackboard (which is phasing out), Forms, the Helpdesk Ticket System, Outlook webmail, Policies, the Wi-fi system, and the multitude of training opportunities. Kevin Mobbs serves as the Director of Education through the technology team, which oversees the eLearning Campus and all instructional technology efforts. Although team members have titles, they are a collaborative unit that works together to achieve success.

Due to its hardworking staff, advancing campus, and reputation, the College of Coastal Georgia sees an exceptional level of support through community involvement via local businesses, governments, organizations, and the public education systems found in Glynn County. Many of the key leaders of these entities, in addition to several civic leaders, devote their efforts to the achievement of the college and the long-term benefits that reflect directly on its stakeholders- the community of the Golden Isles and all members of the surrounding educational systems. Center Activities The center is the hub for the multitude of educational technology offerings made possible by the technology team. As shown in the Semester Report-Brag Sheet, over 25 online and face-to-face training opportunities have been offered to currently faculty and staff.2 According to Kevin Mobbs, these workshops are considered the center for the technological growth and advancement of the school. It is one thing to find and purchase cutting edge technology, but it is the implementation and training that make it successful. Of these 25 opportunities, only 3 have been cancelled this semester due to lack of

See Appendix item: Semester Report- Brag Sheet

interest/attendance or inadequate timing. There is a minimum requirement of 3 to 4 participants for the workshop to make. This number may seem low, however the school is happy to support a small group setting and some topics are specifically differentiated to the needs of the staff.

How does the team ensure they are offering the appropriate courses? All faculty and staff members are a part of the College of Coastal Georgias Educational Technology Wiki. This repository is home to emerging information that might not be ready or appropriate for the main website. Faculty and staff members only can collaborate through discussion, posts, file sharing, and materials that preface or support the completion of the aforementioned workshops. This online, private collection of thoughts, ideas, and opinions is where the technology team identifies the needs of the learning community and provides the workshop topics for registration.

Lastly, offerings via online support tutorials are also available at the convenience of faculty and staff. The following main topics are addressed by the technology education staff: Blackboard, iClicker Student Response System, Podcast Server, Respondus, Wimba Classroom, and other various tutorials that have been generated at the request of school members via the online collaborative wiki. Evaluation This assignment was an amazing opportunity to gain insight into the College of Coastal Georgia and see the abundance of leadership, growth, and opportunities right in my backyard. The Strategic Master Plan outlines the development and refinement of the campus, targeting the present and future needs of the college. This approach contained a flexible design that allows the general strategies to remain viable regardless of the timing at which each project outlined in the plan is developed.

The technology team has seen a great amount of change within the last few months. I can attest to the positive and forward-facing attitudes of the students, teachers, technology staff, and community

members in terms of the colleges advancements and the efforts being made in the department. With change, however, comes some resistance. I would like to see some of the basic training sessions that are offered to faculty become mandatory. I believe this would increase the numbers of enrollment, and possible lesson the amount of basic level classes needed to be taught in the center. Being that all instructors are participating in learning communities, I think it is hard to micro-manage them in terms of required training at this point.

What is great is that technology is at the forefront of the mission of the school. A staff of educated and capable individuals has been hired and works as a team to create efficient problem solving strategies and techniques. Everyone shares the load and works as a team. Teachers on campus feel like they can ask anyone for help- not just those who may have an official title. The offering the staff is able to provide is extraordinary. The fact that the majority of the classes make in attendance is a testament to the attitude of the staff to take of advantage of the help offered by the team. On average, 3 training sessions are being held a week. Fewer than 1 class a month is being cancelled due to lack of enrollment. There is interest in new programs that place emphasis on backwards design, as well as the programs, that enable staff members to gain the knowledge necessary to master cutting edge technology.

It is simply too soon to gather numerical date, being that the center has yet to complete its first month of existence. In my conclusion, the right attitude is present within the Correll Center for Teacher Education and Learning, and that is more than half the battle needed for success!

Appendix
Part B: Semester Report Brag Sheet
The following appendix is a brief synopsis of the face-to-face workshop and online training offerings taught by the technology team or other qualified personnel for the spring 2013 semester. At this time, there is only a temporary record of who signs up for the classes prior to the event. Ive noted which classes did not make due to lack of attendance. Of the 25 offerings, only 3 failed to make due to lack of attendance. The addition of the Correll Center allows the possibility of the multitude of offerings and repeat classes provide additional training opportunities.
Monday, January 7 8:30am- Correll Center Classroom Technology Basics & 2:00pm- Correll Center Classroom Technology Basics Tuesday, January 8 8:00pm- Correll Center Classroom Technology Basics Friday, January 11 2:00pm- Correll Center Classroom Technology Basics & 3:00pm- Desire2Learn Tips, Tricks, and Hidden Features Tuesday, January 15 6:00pm- Desire2Learn: Getting Started Friday, January 18 2:00pm- Teamboards: Basics and Innovative Uses Thursday, January 24 6:00pm- Desire2Learn: Grade Book Tuesday, February 5 2:00pm- D2L: Introduction to Desire2Learn - Higher Education Wednesday, February 6 2:00pm- D2L: Product Deep Dive - Desire2Learn Capture Wednesday, February 13 3:00pm- iClicker: Teaching with Clickers in Small Classes Friday, February 22 10:00am- Improving the Connection with Online Students Tuesday, March 5 4:00pm- Cengage Learning presents: Engage & 4:00pm- The Digital Difference Wednesday, March 6 1:00pm- The Digital Difference & 4:00pm- Cengage Learning presents: Engage Wednesday, March 13 12:00pm- Acessibility & Disability: Requirements and Individual Accommodation Tuesday, April 2 5:30pm- D2L Grades (Canceled) Thursday, April 4 USG Teaching-Learning Conference Tuesday, April 9 5:30pm- D2L Grades (Advanced- ONLINE) CANCELED Thursday, April 18 3:00pm- iClicker: Using and Teaching with Self-Paced Polling Friday, April 19 2:00pm- Section 508 and Copyright- Implications for You and Your Courses Tuesday, April 23 5:30pm- D2L Content (Advanced)- Creating Rich Content Wednesday, May 1 5:30pm- D2L Power User (Advanced)- New Ways and Tools to Customize a Course Friday, May 10 2:00pm- Teaching Online at CCGA Additional Online Support Tutorial Topics Include:

Blackboard, iClicker Student Response System, Podcast Server, Respondus, Wimba Classroom, and more

Interview Questions A Director of Technology o o o How would you describe the mission of your technology department? How best do you feel your team is working to achieve this mission? According to your website, your technology team is comprised of 7 members, in addition to a web developer and director of Educational Technology. Could you briefly describe the roles of each member of your team? Which members of your team would report to someone other than yourself? Or would you expect them to report directly to you in terms of their position? How would you describe Kevins role as being responsible for Educational Technology? (mention that he will also be interviewed) Who would you identify as the main stakeholders for CCGA? Could you please describe for me the mission and vision of your office. How would you describe the reaction/support of our community to the college now vs 5 years ago?

o o o o o

Interview Questions B Director of Educational Technology o o o o o o o What is a typical day/week like for you in your role as Director of Educational Technology? In your opinion, how has the completion of the new center affected technology on campus? Describe the biggest change in technology that youve seen since youve been on campus. How do you assist educators with new technology required for them to learn? What training options do you offer your faculty and staff? Describe how you notify staff of these sessions and how they would register for them. What changes do you feel are necessary for your team to achieve success?

Center for Teacher Education and Learning Floor Plans and Site Map