Dr. Susan Thomason has been involved in the design, development and delivery of instruction since 1990 when she began her career as a television production specialist at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. Since then she has worked as manager of Distance Learning at the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York and as Director of Instructional Technology Services at Spartanburg Technical College in South Carolina.

She has worked with a variety of disciplines in the delivery of distance learning certificate and degree programs and with a broad range of technologies including videoconferencing networks, satellite teleconferencing, online courses, instructional video, multi-media design, adaptive technologies, and others.

Susan has a B.A. in International Studies from Virginia Wesleyan College in Norfolk, Virginia, an M.S. in Instructional Technology / Career and Human Resource Development, from the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, New York, and a Ph.D. in Curriculum Studies from the University of Texas at Austin.

Originally from Ecuador, she has extensive international experience, has lived and traveled throughout South American and Asia, and speaks fluent Spanish.

Neelam has over a decade of experience in a variety of professional environments. Her key strengths include Event Logistics, Communication, Customer Service, Multi-Tasking, and Data Analysis. She graduated from Texas State University with a major in Communication Studies and a minor in Psychology. Currently, she is taking classes to become a licensed Massage Therapist.

Neelam is a hardworking and reliable individual with an extremely positive attitude. She is a self-starter, detail-oriented, and has great communication and organizational skills. The one thing that all her employers will say about her is that she has exceptional customer service skills. She has the ability to make individuals feel at ease, regardless of their age/gender. Because of her diverse background and experience, she is able to look at circumstances or situations in a different perspective; thereby, developing a unique problem-solving and solution-oriented approach to her work situations.

Teresa has been with Austin Community College since 1998. She is a WorkKeys® profiler, a DACUM and ACAP facilitator, and a trainer in WIDS software for curriculum development. She conducts faculty development in competency-based instruction as well as other curriculum development areas, and works with various departments of the college to identify needs for instructional design and faculty development.

Teresa holds a Bachelor of Science in Education—Mathematics from the University of Texas, a Masters of Education from Schreiner University, and Texas State Teaching Certification in General Education and Mathematics. She began her career in Secondary and Adult, Continuing Education classrooms in 1986, and served as curriculum development specialist with Instructional Development Services for 6 years. She has conducted professional development workshops in learner centered instruction, work related education, and curriculum development throughout the state of Texas.

I am an instructional design specialist at the South Austin Campus of Austin Community College. I have been in the instructional technology and design field for over twelve years with strong experience in distance education as an instructional designer. I have developed many online and offline (multimedia) courses collaboratively with faculty in my work at Central Texas College. I have extensive experience in developing and delivering training for online faculty in the use of Blackboard and other related technologies. I am currently teaching Web Authoring as an online adjunct faculty member and have been doing so for six years.

I received my masters in Instructional Technology from the University of Houston at Clear Lake, and received my undergraduate degree in secondary education from the University of Texas in Austin. My interests are in the intersection of technology and education. My focus has always been this question: How do students learn best? To me, this is the leading question that should drive our work in instructional design and technology.

My other interests include watching movies, reading and writing sci-fi and other speculative fiction.

Position to be Filled.

“I am an Instructional Design Specialist at the Cypress campus of Austin Community College campus. I taught computer classes as an adjunct instructor for seven years.

I received my masters in Education, Curriculum and Instruction, specializing in Instructional Technology, from the University of Texas at Austin. I also hold an MBA from Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. In 2007 I earned a certificate in distance education from the University of Wisconsin. My research interests include social networking in education and virtual worlds in education. My outside interests include pencil sketching, editing digital photos, and reading."

Jennifer joined ACC in 2001 as a Media Graphics Specialist. After obtaining her M.Ed. in Educational Technology from UT Brownsville, she joined ACC's Professional Development team. As a Professional Development Specialist she trained faculty and staff on various software applications while honing her Instructional Design skills. Jennifer joined the Instructional Development Services team in 2007.

Outside of ACC Jennifer enjoys watching her son Connor grow.

I have worked in the domain of higher education for ten years as an educator and consultant. After earning an M.A. in Sociology from the University of Texas at Austin, I taught Sociology, Mexican American Studies and Cultural Foundations at the undergraduate level for UT Austin and St. Edward’s University. I then entered the realm of educational software, working as an Implementation Consultant to assist colleges and universities across the country in comprehensively implementing electronic assessment solutions. In this role, I guided faculty and administrators in the collection and analysis of assessment data to inform program improvement and demonstrate compliance with professional and institutional accreditation standards.

I am very interested in the role technology can play in the twenty-first century classroom (whether traditional or virtual) to promote student success. As the Instructional Design Specialist at the Round Rock Campus, I enjoy supporting faculty in the use of technology to enhance the teaching and learning process.

Outside of the office, I am also a Certified Jazzercise Instructor, avid reader, design enthusiast, and loyal patron of the Austin music scene.

Since 2000, Martha has helped ACC faculty learn to use Blackboard, put information into the ACC web template and conducted workshops. She has offered a wide variety of topics that have ranged from "instructional strategies using Virtual Worlds" to "best practices for Using Blogs and Wikis for teaching."

A long-time educator, she looks forward to helping faculty learn and apply new technologies to teaching and learning

"I am an Instructional Design Specialist at the Eastview Campus. As adjunct faculty, I have taught both Computer Science and Pscyhology courses at Austin Community College. Prior to the adjunct faculty position, I've been both a counselor and advisor at Austin Community College.

I completed both my Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts in Speech and Language Pathology at the University of Texas at Austin. In addition, I completed all the coursework for the counseling program in Educational Pscyhology at the University of Texas at Austin, equivalent to a second masters degree. I have been advanced to candidancy in the Ph.D. University of Texas, Curiculum and Development Department, program."

Nancy has over twenty-five years of experience in video and media, and has been a TV producer with ACC for ten years. She has produced over 40 teaching programs for national broadcast on Australian television. Her clients have included the New South Wales Board of Education, NSW Health Department, Human Rights Commission of NSW, and the PBS Adult Learning Service.

Nancy has been a media educator as well as a published still photographer and writer. She has earned a B.A. in Communication Studies from Murdoch University in Australia and a Post-graduate Diploma in Educational Technology from Riverina College of Advanced Education, Australia.

John started his career in 1975 in the production department at KLRN-TV (now KLRU-TV) working on programs such as “Carrascolendas”. He helped with set construction and camera crane operation for the first season of “Austin City Limits”. He went on to work at Channel 7, KTBC-TV in 1976. He held various jobs such as projectionist (loading commercial spots or movies on 16mm film projectors), audio operator, video switcher and moved onto working the production floor as camera operator, lighting, set construction, floor manager and eventually director on the evening newscasts and special events such as telethons.

John came to ACC in 1994 to work at the Pinnacle studio and is currently producing and directing satellite teleconferences and covering college video events with the Instructional Services Department. He is also active in event still photography such as weddings and graduations and occasionally works freelance production for Earl Miller Productions.

Melissa Griffith is a Video Productions Specialist with the IDS Department of Austin Community College. Prior to arriving at ACC in 2001, Melissa was employed as a News and Sports Television Photojournalist, both locally and at network level.

Today, Melissa works with the ACC IDS video team, developing media for instructional support. Her responsibilities include design, development, shooting and editing video, webstreaming, and graphic production.

Away from ACC, Melissa enjoys spending time gardening and a playing a competitive game of soccer. Her favorite food is Catfish Tacos.

Position to Be Filled

Rich studied Film at the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned a Bachelor of Science specializing in animation and visual effects. He enjoys directing and editing both live action and animation, as well as graphic design and traditional art. He has been studying 3D animation heavily since 2004, with a major focus on character animation and photorealism.

His work history ranges from producing educational content at the UT Nursing School's Multimedia Studio, to working directly under the Vice President of Digital Content Development for PBS in their New Media department. His most recent job was as an animator/graphic designer for UTOPIA, where we worked on a broad range of web-based learning modules.

"I hope to utilize my film background to enhance the productions at ACC by using the same software and techniques used by Hollywood feature films. I look forward to sharing my knowledge and learning from the experienced professionals here at ACC."

Originally from Southern California, Robert received his Bachelors degree in Film Production from Chapman University in 2002. After graduation, he moved to Savannah, Georgia for post graduate work. Attending the Savannah College of Art and Design, Robert completed his Masters in Interactive Design and Game Development in 2006.

Robert has had a wide variety of jobs including designer, animator, programmer, audio editor, videographer, teacher and sign maker. Before working as a multimedia developer, Robert worked as a web development specialist and adjunct instructor at ACC.

A graduate from ACC's Department of Visual Communication with a Graphic Design specialization, Shea was introduced to web development while taking additional classes in the department's Interactive area. He enjoys the problem solving of programming, but is also thankful that, as a Multimedia Developer, he can still use his design training. Having worked at a startup, a publicly traded company, and in education, he feels most fulfilled by giving students access to tools that help them accomplish their academic goals.

"As a former student, I feel really connected to the mission of ACC. ACC allowed me to get an affordable education on the GI Bill after leaving the Air Force and gave me the real world skills to enter the workforce after graduating. It feels rewarding to be able to work for an organization that I know from first hand experience, provides opportunities for people to get the education and training they need to better themselves, their families, and their community."

Amanda attended the Art Institute of Boston, earning a BFA in Graphic Design. Upon graduation she freelanced for ad agencies, design firms and educational media publishers gaining vast experience in web and print design. Being self employed for several years exposed her to not only to a wide variety of design projects, but also to project and client management. Amanda excels working alone or in a team environment and has the proven ability to provide artistic and technical direction. Her positive attitude and passion for design provides motivation and inspiration in those she comes in contact with. She is excited about being part of the Instructional Development team at ACC.

When not working, you're liable to find Amanda at Zilker park with her husband and two little boys or dancing at the Continental Club.