Presenters

Marilee Bresciani

Marilee Bresciani has been in higher education administration and faculty positions for more than 18 years, conducting enrollment management research, quantitative and qualitative institutional research, course-embedded assessment, and academic and administrative program assessment. As assistant vice president for institutional assessment at Texas A&M University, Bresciani assists several units and departments with the development of their assessment plans, the identification and development of assessment tools and methods, and the use of their data for continuous improvement of student learning and development. She also coordinates the university processes for the assessment of programs and student learning and development as well as coordinating effective support for the embedding of those processes in faculty and staff's day-to-day operations. In collaboration with others, Bresciani conducts outcomes assessment for specific programs and courses. As visiting associate professor in education administration and human resource development, she teaches courses in the assessment of student learning, advises graduate students, and contributes to other departmental initiatives. Bresciani has been invited to present on assessment nationally and internationally. She has authored a book on assessing student learning and development and is authoring two books on program assessment and general education assessment. She serves on the editorial board of the NASPA Journal and is a reviewer for the Australian Quality Assurance Agency. Bresciani is also a managing partner in an international assessment and enrollment management consulting firm.

Nancy Chism

Nancy Chism is Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Associate Dean of the Faculties at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis. In this role, she provides leadership for the Office for Professional Development, which supports faculty and academic staff as administrators, teachers, and scholars. She is also Professor of Higher Education at Indiana University. Her presentations and publications relevant to this symposium have focused on the evaluation of faculty work, how faculty grow and develop as teachers, and approaches to faculty development.

Chris Dede

Chris Dede is the Timothy E. Wirth Professor of Learning Technologies at Harvard's Graduate School of Education. His fields of scholarship include emerging technologies, policy, and leadership. Dede's funded research includes a grant from the National Science Foundation to aid middle school students in learning science via shared virtual environments and a Star Schools grant from the U.S. Department of Education to help high school students with math and literacy skills using wireless mobile devices to create augmented reality simulations. He has served as a member of the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Foundations of Educational and Psychological Assessment, the U.S. Department of Education's Expert Panel on Technology, and the International Steering Committee for the Second International Technology in Education Study. Dede serves on advisory boards and commissions for PBS TeacherLine, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, the Pittsburgh Science of Learning Center, and several federal research grants. In addition, he is a member of the board of directors of the Boston Tech Academy, an experimental small high school in the Boston public school system, funded by the Gates Foundation. Dede is the editor of the 1998 Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) Yearbook and a coeditor of Scaling Up Success: Lessons Learned from Technology-based Educational Innovation.

George Mehaffy

George Mehaffy is the vice president for academic leadership and change at the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU). His division is responsible for a number of special programs and projects for AASCU presidents and chief academic officers in the areas of leadership and organizational change in higher education, focusing on technology, teacher education, and international education. He organizes and directs two national conferences annually for AASCU chief academic officers and manages a variety of leadership programs and special projects. Prior to coming to AASCU, Mehaffy served as the vice president for academic affairs at Eastern New Mexico University. There he initiated a university-wide focus on the use of technology in teaching and greatly expanded the distance-education program. Before coming to Eastern, Mehaffy served as the director of the School of Teacher Education at San Diego State University, where his work in the design and construction of a professional development school built as a partnership of San Diego State University, the Chula Vista School District, and Cox Cable resulted in national recognition. Mehaffy also served for 33 years in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve, retiring as a captain in 2000. In 1994, he received the Vice President's Award for Reinventing Government for his work in creating an innovative program in San Diego to combine active duty and reserve units.

Diana Oblinger

Diana Oblinger is the vice president for the teaching and learning initiatives at EDUCAUSE and directs the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI). Previously, Oblinger served as the vice president for information resources and the chief information officer for the 16-campus University of North Carolina system and as a senior fellow for the EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research (ECAR). She was the executive director of higher education for Microsoft Corporation and led the Institute for Academic Technology for IBM. Oblinger was on the faculty at Michigan State University and the University of Missouri–Columbia, where she also she served as an academic dean. Oblinger is known for her leadership in teaching and learning with technology. A frequent keynote speaker, she has authored and edited numerous books and publications, including the award-winning What Business Wants from Higher Education. Oblinger has received several awards, including Young Alumnus of the Year from her alma mater, Iowa State University.

Bill Plater

William M. Plater is executive vice chancellor and dean of the faculties of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI). As the chief academic officer, Plater has led campus efforts to improve undergraduate retention, enhance the effective use of technology, develop IUPUI as a model for civic engagement, and increase research productivity as a part of the campus vision to become a leading urban research university. He is responsible for faculty appointments and advancements, academic programs, and academic support services.

George Siemens

George Siemens is an instructor at Red River College in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and the founder and president of CALSystems Inc., an organization devoted to helping corporations and education providers create learning ecologies and structures consistent with the needs of learners, businesses, and institutions of higher education in a digital era. He is active in researching and exploring the changed nature of what it means to learn today. Siemens has keynoted and presented at numerous national and international conferences. His publications and personal blogs can be accessed at www.elearnspace.org and www.connectivism.ca.

Matthew Szulik

Matthew Szulik has been leading early-stage technology companies such as Interleaf, MapInfo, and Red Hat into global, publicly traded firms for more than 20 years. In 1998, Szulik and Red Hat founder Bob Young developed a shared vision that the collaborative approach of open source and a great brand could redistribute the economics of the technology industry from vendor to customer. Today, Red Hat is a leading provider of Linux and open source technology. Passionate about improving the educational opportunities for students worldwide through open source, Szulik speaks to industry, government, and education leaders on open source computing. He is the chairman of the Science and Technology Board for State of North Carolina's Economic Development Board and past chairman and an executive director of the North Carolina Electronics and Information Technologies Association. Szulik was recently recognized by CIO Magazine with its 20/20 Vision Award and was named one of the 50 most powerful people in networking by Network World Magazine.

Student Panel

Tony Caravano

Mary Milan

Mary Caroline Milan is a senior at NC State University and a member of the Park Scholarships Class of 2006. In May 2006, she will receive a bachelor of arts degree in history with honors, with a minor in political science, graduating summa cum laude. Among the honors she has achieved are Golden Chain Society, Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Kappa Phi, and Phi Alpha Theta (History). Milan is the current president of the Alumni Association Student Ambassador Program and a member of the Chancellor's Liaison and President's Roundtable advisory groups. She was cochair of the Park Senior Retreat Committee and has been involved in student government as the assistant director of Government Relations and the Elections Commissioner. Milan has completed internships with the NC State Alumni Association and the Bowles for Senate Campaign. She traveled to Sri Lanka with the Center for Student Leadership, Ethics, and Public Service to help construct seven houses for tsunami victims. After graduation, Milan hopes to secure a position at NC State and plans to pursue a master's degree in higher education administration beginning in 2007.

Nancy Zagbayou

Nancy Zagbayou is a senior majoring in economics, political science, and French literature at North Carolina State University. She is a John T. Caldwell Fellow and the 2005–2006 recipient of the William S. Moore Scholarship. Zagbayou also was selected as one of two Leader of the Pack scholarship recipients in fall 2005 and was awarded an undergraduate research grant from the John W. Pope Foundation. She currently serves as the arch regent for the NC State Golden Chain Honor Society, an organization founded to recognize up to a dozen rising seniors who have demonstrated superior scholarship, exceptional leadership, and remarkable character, and who have made significant service contributions to NC State. She recently interned at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, where she helped investigators enforce federal discrimination laws. Zagbayou was the founding president of SPEL, the Society for Politics Economics and the Law, and is an alumnus of Georgetown's Institute on Political Journalism. She is a member of the prestigious academic honor societies of Phi Beta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi. Zagbayou has served as a resident advisor for E.S. King Village and as an ambassador for Parent and Family Services, University Admissions, and the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. She has also been a first-year college teaching assistant, the cohost of a show on WKNC-radio, and a reporter for the Technician. She plans to pursue a JD/PhD in economics on graduating from NC State.