A.J. O’Connell is a journalist, author, and former adjunct who lives in New England. She’s written for Campus Technology, Electric Literature, and The Establishment. A.J. won a second place journalism award for her CHEL article, How Administrators Can Support Adoption of Open Educational Resources on Campus.
Alicia Betz earned her bachelor’s in education from Penn State University and her master’s in education from Michigan State University, where she also earned her certificate in online teaching and learning. She is a high school English teacher as well as a professional writer specializing in education. She uses her experience in the classroom both as a teacher and a student to write actionable and authentic pieces for various educational publications. Alicia can be reached at www.saiwriting.com.
Chris Mayer is Associate Dean for Strategy and Initiatives and an Associate Professor at the United States Military Academy (West Point). He teaches courses in the areas of moral philosophy, the ethics of war, political philosophy, and the philosophy of religion, and his research focuses on ethical theory, the ethics of war, and higher education. He serves as an evaluator and workshop leader for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and was a Teagle Assessment Scholar with the Center of Inquiry at Wabash College from 2011-2018. He has a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Virginia, an M.A. in philosophy from Virginia Tech, and a B.S from the United States Military Academy.
Gordon Freedman is President of the National Laboratory for Education Transformation (www.NLET.org), a California-based 501(c)(3) non-profit committed to transforming 20th century education into 21st century learning and workforce development. Freedman also manages Knowledge Base, LLC, a consulting firm established in 1998 to provide services to institutions, publishers and education technology companies. Freedman formerly served as Vice President Global Education Strategy of Blackboard Inc.
Lisa R. Hunter is Vice President, Solutions Architect at Ad Astra Information Systems where she consults with institutional leaders to help them improve student success and institutional effectiveness by optimizing their academic operations, course scheduling, and curriculum. She has served higher education for over 15 years and has held full time administrative positions of associate provost, associate dean, assistant dean, and achieved the rank of full professor. She is passionate about advancing student success and equitable outcomes at scale.
Iris Manning earned her MBA from Northeastern University and studied journalism at Boston University. Her articles have appeared in the Boston Business Journal, Fundbox.com, the Colibri Group, the Worcester Gazette and insomnicat.com.
Isabel Thottam is a freelance writer based in Seattle, WA. A graduate from Emerson College, Isabel has self-published two books, “The Labradoodle Who Lost His Doodle,” and “Joy Comes In The Morning.” She writes on the topics of career, technology, sustainable food, mental health and has been published in Fast Company, Glassdoor, Monster.com, Fortune, Edible Seattle, Paste Magazine, and more. In addition to writing, Isabel works for a small, family orchard in Washington State selling fruit!
Jonathan Friedman is the project director for campus free speech at PEN America where he oversees advocacy, analysis, and outreach in the national debate around free speech and inclusion in higher education. Prior to joining PEN America, Friedman was an adjunct professor at NYU and Columbia University, teaching courses in comparative and international education, higher education, and social theory. His research on American and international higher education looks at such topics as university administration, organizational cultures, nationalism, and cross-cultural understanding. Friedman holds a Ph.D. in International Education from NYU, and has received awards for his teaching, research, and leadership.
Jim Vanides is a senior education and industry advisor to organizations around the world that are passionate about creating extraordinary learning experiences for students. His consulting practice focuses on working with education and industry organizations to create new possibilities through partnerships. Jim’s experience includes more than a decade of leadership in Corporate Philanthropy for HP. He serves as an advisor for the California Science Project advancing Next Generation Science Standards in California, and for 15 years has been teaching science teachers online through Montana State University. Jim is also an adjunct faculty member for the Krause Center for Innovation at Foothill College. He serves as a Senior Advisor to the National Laboratory for Education Transformation, as well as the International Journal for Innovations in Online Education. Jim holds a BS in Engineering and a MA in Education, both from Stanford University.
Kristen Lee received a B.A. from UC Davis and began her interest in education at San Francisco State where she obtained her multiple subject credential. With the encouragement from faculty, she went on to pursue a MA from Penn State where she continued for a dual-doctorate in Educational Theory and Policy, and Comparative International Education. With a combination of experience in assessment and institutional research, she utilizes her skills to combine data, research, and assessment to create sustainable and scalable processes for better decision-making.
Kimberly Yavorski is a freelance writer who loves finding answers to obscure questions. She has always been a reader and believes that there is always something new to discover and learn, if we only take the time to look. She believes that we all can and should be part of the solution by contributing in whatever way we can. Her writing covers topics such as parenting, education, history, science, social issues and travel.
Lindsay Curtis is a freelance writer based in Toronto, Canada, where she also works as a Communications Officer for the University of Toronto. She writes about higher education, healthcare, research, parenting, and LGBTQ issues. She spends her spare time tending to her indoor plants, cycling, and volunteering for hospice. Learn more about Lindsay at www.curtiscommunications.org
Madeleine Deliee is a veteran educator and writer. Her bylines include the Washington Post, CNN, Pacific Standard, Parents, and others. Follow her on Twitter at @MMDeliee.
Miriam Feldblum is co-founder and executive director of the Presidents’ Alliance. She previously served as vice president for student affairs and professor of politics at Pomona College (2007-2018) and as special assistant to the president, faculty research associate, and senior director at Caltech (1995-2007), and is a non-resident fellow at the Migration Policy Institute. She is the author of Reconstructing Citizenship: The Politics of Nationality Reform and Immigration in Contemporary France, has written articles and delivered presentations on immigration and higher education, highly skilled labor in the United States, and has written articles and conducted workshops on supporting undocumented students.
Rosetta Clay is the Assistant Vice President of Engagement at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Illinois. She has served in leadership roles in development and alumni relations at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. Rosetta earned a B.S. in Mass Communications from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville and an M.S. in Marketing Management from The Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School.
Robert Kelchen is an assistant professor of higher education in the Department of Education Leadership, Management and Policy at Seton Hall University. He has written for Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, The Journal of Higher Education, and Educational Researcher; and is the author of Higher Education Accountability. He is frequently quoted in the media, including The Washington Post, National Public Radio, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and Politico, and has been recognized as one of the most influential faculty members on social media by Education Week and The Chronicle of Higher Education. Professor Kelchen holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and finance from Truman State University, a master’s degree in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a PhD in educational policy studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Professor Steve Joordens in the Director of the Advanced Learning Technologies Lab at the University of Toronto Scarborough. He teaches a very large Introduction to Psychology class at his institution, and also on Coursera.org. His research focuses primarily on the creation and assessment of educational technologies, especially those focused on formal approaches to skill development. His teaching and research have won him a number of institutional, provincial and national awards recognize a sustained and significant impact on higher education in Canada.
Dr. Tammi Cooper, PhD, has over a decade of experience as an educator and leader in higher education. She began her career in higher education as a management faculty member and went on to serve in a variety of higher education leadership positions including as a vice-president for innovation, associate provost, and in various dean roles. Her experience includes leading and designing university-wide assessment processes, strategic planning, accreditation, online learning, competency-based education (CBE), innovative change, faculty leadership, program development, retention and student success efforts. Dr. Cooper is an active supporter of innovations in higher education, having participated in the Educause Breakthrough Models Academy, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s CBE work group, and earning a Stanford Innovation and Entrepreneurship Certificate.
Thomas J. Tobin is the Conference Programming Chair and Faculty Associate on the Learning Design, Development, & Innovation (LDDI) team at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as an internationally-recognized speaker and author on quality in technology-enhanced education, especially copyright, evaluation of teaching practice, academic integrity, and accessibility/universal design for learning. He holds a Ph.D. in English literature, a second master’s degree in information science, and professional certifications in project management (PMP), online teaching (MOT), Quality Matters (QM), and accessibility core competencies (CPACC). Tom serves on the editorial boards of InSight: A Journal of Scholarly Teaching, the Journal of Interactive Online Learning, and the Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration.
William Devine leads the Corporation in Society practice at William Devine Esquire, and is Adjunct Professor of Law at Menlo College, where he teaches Legal & Societal Issues in Sport Management.