INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT
NEWS ARCHIVE


March 21, 2008
Dr. Gayle Davidson-Shivers gave a presentation on the topic What Not to Say or Do (or How to Succeed in Graduate School).   The presentation, which provided practical advice on how to get the most out of graduate school and become a top student, was well attended by IDD Master's and Ph.D. students.

November 12, 2007
A total of 19 IDD faculty, students, and alumni were on the program at the annual Mid-South Educational Research Association conference in Hot Springs, Arkansas in November, 2007.  Several other students attended the conference and particiapted in the sessions.  No other program from any field in the mid-south region was better represented at the conference. This is another great example of the high quality scholarship that is a hallmark of the USA IDD program!

May 12, 2007
The Instructional Design & Development program held an end of the semester Putt Putt party.  G Tahsbin and the IDD Student Group did a great job getting everything organized and set up.

April 3, 2007
Melissa Haab was selected for the Dr. Chandru Hiremath Memorial Award as the Instructional Design & Development Ph.D. Student of the Year
Stephen Sullivan was selected for the Dr. John E. Morrow Memorial Award as the Instructional Design & Development Master's Student of the Year

March 4,  2007
Dr. Gayle Davidson-Shivers just had an article pulished in Eductional Technology Research & Development - One of the leading journals in the field.  Congratulations to her!

The effects of gender interaction patterns on student participation in computer-supported collaborative argumentation by Allan Jeong (Florida State University) and Gayle V. Davidson-Shivers (University of South Alabama).  ETR&D, Volume 54, No. 6. pp 543-568.

January 15, 2007
The second edition of Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology has won the 2006 Award for the Outstanding Book in the Field of Instructional Design, presented by the Division of Design and Development of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology.  Congratulations to Dr. Dempsey (co-editor), Dr. Surry, Dr. Davidson-Shivers, Dr. Johnson, and Dr. Litchfield who wrote chapters. Also, six of our graduates, Dr. Rick Van Eck, Dr. Karen Rasmussen, Dr. Frankie Jeffery, Dr. Arthur Jeffery, Dr. Suzanne Hoffman and Richard Busby collaborated with our faculty and wrote chapters.

This is the second award for the Trends book. The first edition also received the Outstanding Book in the Field of Instructional Design in 2002.

November 2006
The 2006 IDD Picnic & Fun Run was held October 21st at Mobile's Langan Park.  The weather was great and everyone had a good time.  Check out the Fun Run Page for more pictures.

October 1, 2006
The University of South Alabama will award Chandru Hiremath a posthumous Doctor of Philosophy Degree at Graduation on December 9, 2006.  The Instructional Design & Development program extends our deepest gratitude to University of South Alabama President Gordon Moulton, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Pat C. Covey, and College of Education Dean Richard Hayes.  Their assistance and support were critical in enabling Chandru and his family to receive this important honor.

June 30, 2006
Chandru Hiremath, a PhD student in the Instructional Design & Development program was killed in a traffic accident in Mobile.  Chandru was loved and respected by everyone. His intelligence, friendship, work ethic, and kindness will never be forgotten by those who knew him.

May 5, 2006
Mavis Jarrell (M.S.) and Joe'l Lewis (Ph.D.) have been named IDD Students of the Year for 2006!  Congratulations to them both!

April 20, 2006
10 Instructional Design faculty, students, and former students presented papers at the 2006 American Educational Research Association Conference in San Francisco, CA

Self-Regulated Learning Skills in an Online Course Environment
Brenda C. Litchfield (University of South Alabama)
Joel Lewis (University of South Alabama)
Elizabeth Anderton (University of South Alabama)
John V. Dempsey (University of South Alabama)
 
Perspectives on Gender and Online Discussion: Factors That Influence Participation
Gayle V. Davidson-Shivers (University of South Alabama)
Lee Lewis Taylor (Alabama Southern Community College)

Using a Mixed Methods Logic of Inquiry to Build a Case for Causation in Educational Programs
James P. van Haneghan (University of South Alabama)
Burke Johnson (University of South Alabama)
 
The Perceived Importance of Ely’s Eight Conditions: A Comparison of K-12, Higher Education, and Business
David C Ensminger (Loyola University Chicago)
Daniel W. Surry (University of South Alabama)
   
March 15, 2006
Dr. David Merrill, one of the leading figures in the field of instructional design, spoke to the Instructional Design & Development program via videoconference from Hawaii on March 1, 2006.  In his enjoyable and interesting talk, he described the concept of task centered instruction and responded to questions from the attendees. The event was sponsored by the IDD Student Group.

January 30, 2006
Dr. Gayle Davidson-Shivers has co-authored a great new textbook Web-Based Learning: Design, Implementation & Evaluation.  The book is available at Amazon.com and other retailers

December 15, 2005
Dr. Dan Surry served as Guest Editor for a Special Issue of the British Journal of Educational Technology (Nov 2005, Vol 36 No 6) on the topic Change and Learning Technologies.  IDD Alumnus David Ensminger and current IDD Ph.D. student Barry Porter had articles included in the special issue.  The url for the issue is:

http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/toc/bjet/36/6

June 1,  2005
Dr. Kathleen Ingram will be leaving the University of South Alabama at the end of summer, 2005 to accept a position as Senior Instructional Designer at a private training company in Jacksonville, Florida.  Everyone in the IDD family will miss Dr. Ingram and wishes her the best of luck in her future endeavors.

5 Instructional Design & Development students received their degrees at the University of South Alabama's Commencement on Saturday, May 7th, 2005.  Receiving Master's of Science Degrees were Lillian Kimani and Vince Parker.  Receiving Doctor of Philosophy Degrees were David Ensminger, Dhanni Sukhai, and Denise Weiss. Congratulations to all five and good luck in their future careers!

The 1st Southeastern Conference on Instructional Design & Technology was held at the University of South Alabama March 11-13, 2005.  The conference theme was "Challenges to eLearning & IDT".  For more information, visit the conference website: http://www.usouthal.edu/coe/srcidt/

October 15,  2004
IDD Ph.D. student Rosalie Ward has been hired as an Instructional Designer at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.  She will work with the department of Human Performance and Recreation.  Her primary duties will be to work with faculty in the department to develop online courses.  She will also conduct faculty development workshops.  She was previously employed by the United States Sports Academy in Daphne, Alabama. 

September 10,  2004
Kelsey L Henderson of Kelsey L. Henderson Consulting & Training Solutions, LLC  and a Visiting Professor at the University of West Florida spoke to the Instructional Design & Development Student Group on Wednesday, September 8th, 2004. The topic of his talk was "What's an Instructional Designer: Getting Businesses to Recognize the Value of Your ID Skills".  A large group if IDD students and faculty attended the talk.  Dr. Gayle Davidson-Shivers is the IDD Student Group Advisor and Daivd Hall is the Student Group President.  The Student Group's Website is: http://www.southalabama.edu/coe/bset/iddsg/

May 23,  2004
Margaret R. Wright, PhD and Suzanne Hoffman, PhD - graduates of the University of South Alabama's Instructional Design & Development program - were among six instructional designers at Intelligent Decision Systems, Inc. given an award for outstanding instructional product or intervention at the 2004 International Society for Performance Improvement convention in Tampa in April. This award recognizes outstanding results derived from instructional products and interventions developed through systematic approaches to human performance problems, needs, or opportunities
From the ISPI Website:

IDSI: Division Officer at Sea Program
Susan L. Coleman, PhD, CPT, Ellen S. Menaker, PhD, CPT, Marci N. Murawski, EdD, CPT, Michael L. Gillies, MA, MS, Margaret R. Wright, PhD, and Suzanne Hoffman, PhD

The Division Officer At Sea program signals a dramatic change in the way the U.S. Navy trains its Surface Warfare Officers. Designed, developed, and evaluated by IDSI, the Divo At Sea program transitioned junior officer training from a traditional schoolhouse to the at-sea environment. The program presents a performance-based solution to integrating junior officers more quickly and more effectively into the shipboard operating environment in which they are expected to perform. The program employs a variety of tools promoting learning that complements work and qualification processes, and permits a customized self-paced solution for each trainee. Program elements help trainees develop requisite foundational knowledge, engage in practical application, exercise problem-solving skills, and acquire leadership and professional watch-standing competencies

April 16,  2004
Paige Baggett was named the Instructional Design & Development Program's 2004  Ph.D. Student of the Year. Amanda Hecker was named the IDD program 2004 Master's student of the year. A list of all previous Students of the Year can be found at http://www.southalabama.edu/coe/bset/idd/soty.html


January 19,  2004
Dr. Richard L. Hayes of the University of Georgia was recently named Dean of the College of Education.  Dr. Hayes will start his new job on June 1, 2004. He has a background in School Counseling and holds a Doctor of Education degree from Boston University.  He succeeds Interim Dean Dr. Thomas Chilton and longtime Dean Dr. George Uhlig. Everyone in the Instructional Design & Development program welcomes Dr. Hayes and looks forward to working with him.

December 11,  2003
IDD Ph.D. Student  Christina Parker and recent Master's graduate Darryl Hollins were recently hired as Instructional Systems Specialists by the Department of the Army and are now working at Ft. Benning in Georgia. For more information on how you can get a job with the Federal Government, visit the website: http://www.usajobs.opm.gov/

August 15,  2003
Dr. Burke Johnson has been promoted to the rank of Professor beginning in Fall 2003.  Dr. Johnson's contributions to the IDD program over the years  in terms of research, teaching, and service have been invaluable and are a big reason why USA's IDD program is one of  best!  All faculty, staff, students and friends of the IDD program congratulate Dr. Johnson on this outstanding and richly deserved promotion!

March 11,  2003
The USA IDD program will be well represented at SITE 2003 - Albuquerque, New Mexico
March 24-29, 2003.  Six of our PhD students will be conducting 4 sessions at that prestigious conference:
 March 3,  2003
Representatives from Regions Financial visited the IDD program on MONDAY, MARCH 10th to interview candidates for possible internships at their Birmingham office  They are very positive about our students doing internships there now and would like to find a few more great USA IDD interns.

January 23,  2003
Dr. Brenda Litchfield has been named the IDD Internship Coordinator.  In that capacity, she will work with IDD students to develop internship proposals, help locate internship opportunities for students, and assist faculty in coordinating and evaluating internships.

October  23,  2002
IDD Ph.D. student Betsy Anderton conducted a presentation on The Nature of Electronic International Project Development at E-Learn 2002 -- World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, & Higher Education in Montreal, Canada on October 19, 2002.  The conference was organized by the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE) and co-sponsored by the International Journal on E-Learning.

September 5,  2002
IDD Ph.D. student Wanjira Kinuthia is currently working on her dissertation proposal.  Wanjira is planning to conduct a case study of faculty development issues and training needs related to teaching online courses. Dr. Laureen Fregeau of the Department of Educational Leadership is chairing the dissertation committee.

IDD Master's student Piti "Golf" Kanjanapongpaisal is currently  working with Dr. Jack Dempsey to update and improve the ID Workbook.  The project is being done in Authorware and has a projected completion date of October, 2002

June 6,  2002
Three  faculty members from the IDD program  have been awarded tenure and / or promotion by the
 University of South Alabama Board of Trustees effective as of August 15, 2002.

Dr. Brenda Litchfield has been promoted from Associate Professor to Professor.  She holds a Ph.D. in
Instructional Systems from Florida State University  She joined the University of South Alabama in 1990.

Dr. James Van Haneghan has been promoted from Associate Professor to Professor.   He holds a Ph.D. in
Applied Developmental Psychology from the University of Maryland.  He joined the University of  South Alabama in 1995.

Dr. Daniel Surry has been granted tenure and promoted from from Assistant Professor to Associate Professor.  He holds an Ed.D. in Instructional Technology from the University of Georgia.  He joined the University of South Alabama in 1999.

May 3, 2002
Joe'l Lewis and David Ensminger have been named IDD Program Students of the Year for 2002-2002.  Joe'l, the Masters Student of the Year was President of the  IDD Student Group, worked in the OLL, and excelled in all of her courses. David, the Ph.D. Student of the Year, distinguished himself for his research and scholarship, including submitting papers for publication. A list of all the previous students of the year can be found at:  http://www.southalabama.edu/coe/bset/idd/soty.html

January 8, 2002
NEW IDD PROFESSOR! Dr. Kathleen W. Ingram has accepted the position of Assistant Professor in the Instructional Design & Development Program.  Dr. Ingram is currently an Assistant Professor of Organizational Communication, Learning, &  Design at Ithaca College in New York. She has a Ph.D. in Instructional Systems from Florida State University and a M.S. in Instructional Technology from the Univ. of Central Florida.  Her research interests are in the areas of faculty development, change, and performance technology.  Dr. Ingram will be a tremendous asset to the IDD program  - we are all very happy that she has agreed to join our program!

August 8, 2001
Dr. Jack Dempsey has a new book!  The book, Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology, was published by Prentice Hall.  Dr. Robert Reiser of Florida State University is the Co-Editor.  Check out the website for the new book.

July 10, 2001
The IDD Student Group had a successful drive to collect cell phones for the Call to Protect foundation. At least 30 cell phones plus accessories, chargers and batteries were collected. The Call to Protect drive has ended for this year. It will start back up again in the Spring, 2002.  Spearheading the drive were IDD Student Group Officers Joe'l Lewis, Bruce McCarthy, Mohammed Islam and Faculty Advisor Dr. Gayle Davidson-Shivers.

May 8, 2001
Congratulations to Dr. Catherine Cekolin!  She received her Ph.D. in Instructional Design & Development at graduation on May 5, 2001.  Dr. Brenda Litchfield was her dissertation chair.

April 2, 2001
The IDD Student Group is participating in the Call to Protect Program.  The Student Group is collecting cell phones that will be reprogrammed to dial 911 and other emergency numbers.  The phones will be given to victims of domestic violence across the country.  If you have an unused or unwanted cell phone that you would like to donate to this worthy cause, please bring it by the BSET Office - Room 3700 UCOM.  For more information about Call to Protect, visit their website: http://www.wirelessfoundation.org/02call/

March 5, 2001
A very large crowd of students, faculty, staff, and friends of the IDD program gathered at Dr. Burke Johnson's house for the Annual IDD Spring Party on Friday March 2.  There was great music, a ton of good food, great desserts, and lots of "beverages."  Everyone who attended had a good time!  Thanks to Dr. Johnson for hosting this awesome party.

December 3, 2000
The 2000 IDD Fun Run and Picnic was held in Langan Park on Saturday December 2.  Despite cool temperatures and overcast skies, a large group of friends and family attended.  There was an exciting finish in the Fun Run with Sam Johnson finishing first, IDD student Mike Sheehan finishing one second behind and Associate Dean Tom Chilton coming in a close third. For more information and pictures about the 2000 IDD Fun Run - CLICK HERE.

November 14, 2000
Dr. Burke Johnson is chairing a search committee for a new Assistant Professor of Educational Psychology / Instructional Design.  Other members of the search committee are Dr. Joe Law, Dr. Jim Van Haneghan, Dr. Brenda Litchfield, and Dr. Dan Surry. The new person would take the position of Dr. Susan Tucker who left USA at the end of the summer.  While there is no specific timetable, the committee hopes to finish the search process and announce the new Assistant Professor in early 2001.

October 9, 2000
The ID&D faculty held their 2nd Annual Retreat at USA's Brookley complex on Friday, October 6th.  Among the issues discussed were the schedule of courses for upcoming semesters, new online courses, changes to the Master's program and procedures, and strategies for recruiting students.  All ID&D faculty attended the one day event.

September 14, 2000
THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION INVITES YOU TO ATTEND A DISSERTATION DEFENSE BY
Mike Jennings Title: Developing A General Linear Model To Predict Competitive Prices For Corporate Training Events Chair: Dr. John Morrow - October 5, 2000,  1:00 - 3:00 P.M.,  3619 UCOM

August 1, 2000
Dr. Susan Tucker will be leaving the University of South Alabama at the end of summer to pursue other interests.  Dr. Tucker, who joined the university in 1988, has been an integral part of the Behavioral Studies and Educational Technology department and the Instructional Design and Development program since her arrival. Her teaching responsibilities included: program evaluation, needs assessment, qualitative research, cognitive psychology, and psychological principles of learning. In addition to her many other duties, she worked extensively with IDD Ph.D. students on dissertation research and with the Department of Family Practice and Community Medicine.  Before coming to USA, Dr. Tucker worked in a variety of educational organizations, including K-12 teacher, elementary principal, associate superintendent, and evaluation consultant in cross-national programs. In addition, she was active in the American Educational Research Association and worked for the Association for Educational Communications and Technology as Director of Special Projects. All faculty, staff, and students in the department are deeply appreciative of  Dr. Tucker's many contributions and wish her the best of luck in the future!

May 8, 2000
New ID&D Ph.D. Graduates..... Congratulations! Dr. Susan Codone & Dr. Rick Van Eck Spring, 2000 Ph.D. graduates!

April 5, 2000
Admission to Candidacy -
Students must be admitted to Candidacy by the time they complete 18 semester hours.  To be admitted, students must make a written application after the completion of 9 but not more than 18 semester hours.  Failure to do so will result in students being blocked from registering for classes.  IDE 510 is required for candidacy in all Master's degree programs. The only exception will be allow a student to take IDE 510 ---but no other classes.

March 13, 2000
Dissertation Defenses
Susan Codone (March 14 1:00-3:00 pm  UCOM 3903) Learing Through Play: The Effectiveness of Play on Procedural Learning, Learner Enjoyment and Instructional Design

Rick Van Eck (March 17, 10:00 - Noon UCOM 3903) The Effect of Advisement and Mode of Instruction on Transfer, Advisor Use, and Attitude Toward Mathematics Using a Computer-Based Simulation Game

John Morrow Jr. (March 29, 10:30 - 12:30. UCOM 3901) A Comparison of the Effectiveness of Motion-Based Laboratories and Computer-Based  Simulations for Teaching Skills and  Graphing

January 24, 2000
New Master's Degree Concentrations - The ID&D faculty have remodeled the four concentration areas available for M.S. students.  The new concentrations are: eDeveloper; Performance Systems and Training; Applied Research & Evaluation; and Individualized Concentration.  The changes are designed to bring the M.S. curriculum more in line with the current job market.  A description of each can be found by going to the M.S. program page.

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