Acknowledgments

"No man is an island unto himself" (John Donne, 1623) is often cited to express the interconnectedness of all people with one another. It is this interconnectedness that makes this book possible. I am able to share the ideas presented here because of the innovative environment in which I work, the expertise of IT professionals who entertained my questions and tolerated my learning curve, and the resources provided for me to experiment daily and collaborate with professionals across time and space.

Chief among these is the president of California Baptist University, Dr. Ronald Ellis. Although I have not had the pleasure of working with him directly, I experience the positive effects of his leadership every work day as he provides the direction and resources for the Online and Professional Studies Division. The following individuals are my favorites:

Dr. David Poole, my favorite vice president of the Online and Professional Studies Division. I appreciate the opportunity I've had to share web tools and other teaching strategies as he teaches online while leading a division committed to "The Great Commission."

Dr. Tran Hong, my favorite associate vice president of technology. He's been God's hands in my professional life. In my quest to mentor and support faculty as the only instructional designer for the division, Dr. Hong has never denied me a needed or innovative resource.

Dr. Dirk Davis, my favorite academic dean. He's been an excellent mentor to me. The online teaching skills I've learned and shared with our faculty are in part a result of his mentorship and the vision he has for the online learning experience of students.

The soon-to-be Dr. Robert Shields, my favorite online learning systems administrator. He is the calm in the midst of my "the computer is not doing what it's supposed to" storm. Whenever I frantically scream "Robeeeerrrrt! Help!" he calmly and patiently teaches me how to help myself.

This is also true of Kyle Howlett, my favorite web design developer. I have learned and am still learning how to manipulate iframes, and cascading style sheets (CSS). He's patient and empowering, and he reminds me to "ask Google."

I wish there were space to introduce you to the entire phenomenal group of faculty who teach for the Online and Professional Studies Division. At the time of this writing, the division has entered its fifth year, with forty-eight full-time faculty members. Their willingness to creatively work through pedagogical challenges with me makes it a joy to collaborate with them and experiment with ideas on their behalf. Much of what is shared in this book is the result of that collaboration and experimentation.

My professional practice has also been influenced by the professional associations from which I've gleaned resources and techniques. Because I am challenged to remember the names of all the workshop presenters and colleagues with whom I've engaged in online discussions and peer feedback, it's important for me to share the professional development experiences I've had as a new instructional designer over the past four and a half years, validating the impact of social learning theory (Bandura, 1971) on my professional development:

• @One: Building Community with Social Media 2011
• Computer Using Educators (CUE) Conference, Palm Springs, California 2011
• International Society for Technology Educators (ISTE) Conference, San Diego 2012
• LERN: Building Online Learning Communities 2012
• LERN: Designing Online Instruction 2012
• Quality Matters Rubric Standards and Workbook 2011-2013 Edition
• Association of Training and Development (ATD) 2013
• Video Maker Basics of Video Production 2013
• Blackboard Exemplary Course Program Volunteer Reviewer 2011-2013
• Blackboard Exemplary Course Program Director 2014
• BbWorld 2014 presenter and attendee
• Online Learning Consortium (formerly The Sloan Consortium)-Participated in the following online workshops 2012-2013:
  • Mobile Learning Mastery Series
  • Blended Learning Mastery Series
  • Learning Environments: Teaching and Learning with Online Science Labs
  • Successful Online Outcomes: Improved Discussions
  • Strategies for Successful Group Work

The idea for this book was influenced in part by the collaborative experiences between the Online and Professional Studies Division and the Community Programs division of Blackboard Learn under the directorship of Sheryn Anthes. With the support of the executive leadership of both organizations, access to the Blackboard environments of institutions across continents is shared throughout the book. Many thanks are extended to the following instructional designers, faculty, directors, and university administrators who gave permission to use images from their Blackboard environments, and to the support staff and teams with whom each contributor collaborated.

Dr. Larysa Nadolny, Assistant Professor

Dr. Nadolny is an assistant professor at Iowa State University. Recent awards include an Early Achievement in Teaching Award and a Blackboard Catalyst award.

website: www.drnadolny.com/

Jan G. Neal, Lead Instructional Designer

Jan Neal is Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's (ERAU) lead instructional designer for doctoral studies. Jan has designed and built numerous courses. She is a recipient of seven Blackboard Exemplary Course awards.

Jason Rhode, Ph.D.

Dr. Rhode is the director of the Faculty Development and Instructional Design Center for Northern Illinois University. He oversees all faculty development at NIU.

website: www.jasonrhode.com or www.niu.edu/facdev

Jennifer Perkins, Instructional Designer

Jennifer Perkins is an instructional designer for the Instructional Development Center of Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) Online. She supports faculty members in design and development of courses offered using EKU's e-Campus learning model.

website: http://jenperkins.com/

Dr. Jenny Yeo, Associate Clinical Lecturer

Dr. Yeo is an associate clinical lecturer in the faculty of medical sciences at Newcastle University. She is a module leader and is responsible for development and delivery of her modules, which are wholly e-learning in nature.

Lynne Rawles, Faculty of Medical Sciences E-Learning Coordinator

Lynne Rawles works at Newcastle University. Her course design collaboration with Dr. Jenny Yeo resulted in a 2014 Blackboard Catalyst award for an exemplary course.

Katie R. Evans, Manager of eLearning Instructional Design and Quality Assurance / Humanities Instructor

Katie Evans is a 2013 ECP award winner. She currently manages the instructional design team at Lake-Sumter State College in Florida and teaches online humanities courses.

website: https://twitter.com/KateEvansWrites

Katie Laubengayer, Curriculum Specialist

Katie Laubengayer is a curriculum specialist at Idaho Digital Learning Academy. Katie works with subject matter experts to develop online courses, specializing in copyright issues.

Matthew Acevedo, Instructional Designer

Matt Acevedo is an instructional designer with Florida International University Online. He specializes in collaborating with faculty to create effective and engaging learning experiences in higher education.

Dr. Riste Simnjanovski, Assistant Academic Dean

Dr. Simnjanovski is the assistant academic dean and an assistant professor for the Online and Professional Studies Division of California Baptist University in Riverside, California. He oversees all course development for the division.

Shannon Conley Kurjian, Social Studies Teacher

Shannon Conley-Kurjian is a fifteen-year high school educator interested in making digital natives digital learners. She teaches social studies at Medina High School in Medina County, Ohio.

Wendi M. Kappers, Ph.D.

Dr. Kappers is a network engineer and instructional designer with fifteen years of classroom experience and serves as the director for the Rothwell Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence (CTLE) of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

Sara Ombres, M.Ed.

Sara Ombres is an experienced instructional designer and educational technologist and serves as the assistant director for the Rothwell Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence (CTLE) of the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Worldwide Campus.

Martin Carroll, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Academic

Professor Carroll is pro vice-chancellor at Charles Darwin University in the Northern Territory of Australia. He is a leader in academic quality assurance and a multi-award-winning international speaker, consultant, and author.

Jason Warnick, Associate Professor of Psychology

Professor Warnick is a fellow of the International Stress and Behavior Society and has received national recognition for online education and academic advising. He is an associate professor of psychology at Arkansas Tech University.

Sandra Bennett, Instructional Designer

Sandra Bennett is a twenty-three-year educator with over twelve years as an instructor at Wilmington...