Speaker: Linda Beith

Dr. Linda Beith is the Director of the Instructional Design and Technologies department under the Academic Affairs division at Roger Williams University. She has spent 25 years among five different institutions involved with teaching and learning in higher education, specifically in the areas of faculty development, instructional technology and adult learning. In addition to supporting faculty initiatives, Linda also has an interest in alternative delivery methods of instruction and has been teaching online since 2001 in the graduate program for instructional design at University of Massachusetts at Boston and University of Massachusetts Online. Her educational background includes a doctorate in instructional design from Capella University in Minnesota, a Master’s degree in instructional design from University of Massachusetts at Boston, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Bridgewater State University in Massachusetts.

Speaker: David Blezard

David Blezard is a Senior IT Manager at University of New Hampshire within the Academic Technology department. He is involved in implementation, management, and administration of a range of academic-related technologies including computer labs and classrooms, web hosting services, media production and delivery, and application hosting. David has presented numerous times for NERCOMP professional development sessions and at the annual conference. In addition, he teaches a course on network and system administration in the University's Information Technology major.

Speaker: Linda Bruenjes

Linda Bruenjes is the Associate Director for Technology Innovation in Learning and Teaching, Center for Teaching and Scholarly Excellence, at Suffolk University. Her primary role is to work collaboratively with faculty in the Schools of Business, Arts & Science and Law in their efforts to transform conventional courses to online or hybrid modes of instruction, integrate learner-centered technology tools into traditional face-to-face courses, and identify appropriate learning tools to achieve course objectives based on educational research and best practices. Linda’s research interests are strongly embedded in adult learning theory and are focused on faculty development, the use of technology as a teaching and learning tool, and the science learning.

Speaker: George Claffey

Dr. Claffey has been involved in technology and technology education for the past twenty years. George is currently serves as the Chief Information Officer for Charter Oak State College, Connecticut’s largest provider of online learning, and also the Connecticut Distance Learning Consortium, a consortia providing ASP based eLearning, ePortfolio, and eTutoring collaborative environments to K-12 and Higher Education entities nationally. Throughout his career, George has lead the selection, deployment and adoption of emerging technology solutions to meet evolving academic and administrative goals of education institutions.

Speaker: Bill Krysinski

Bill Krysinski has been involved in technology and technology education for over fifteen years. He is a former Captain in the United States Air Force, who served as a Communications and Information Security Officer. Bill has private sector experience, working in IT Project Management at Fortune 100 organizations, prior to joining Charter Oak State College. He is currently the Assistant Director of Academic Technology at Charter Oak State College. Bill continues to help shape the technology vision and leadership by developing and implementing IT initiatives that create and maintain our ability to extend Charter Oak’s mission – “A dynamic community of online learners advancing the nation's workforce one graduate at a time.”

Speaker: Phil Lombardi

Philip Lombardi is the director of Academic Computing & Media Services for Bryant University. His area of focus is strategic planning and support for all campus computing and media technologies associated with teaching and learning. Responsibilities include oversight of campus Media Services, Classrooms/Labs, Communication Complex (HD TV Studio/Radio Station) and the Financial Market Center. Additionally, he serves as lead technology project manager for many campus initiative including eLearning, classroom renovations, 3D printing, new buildings and the development of a new campus in China. Phil has over 25 years of technology management experience including 17yrs dedicated to higher education

Speaker: Brian McDermott

Brian McDermott has been with Suffolk University in 1999. Since that time, he has lead several groups within the University all of which were focused on delivering outstanding services in support of the educational and administrative mission of the University. His work in the information technology and facilities management areas includes operations management, implementation and support of educational technologies, implementation of programs to ensure superior customer service and policy development. Brian is currently Director of University Media Services overseeing a team supporting all classroom and events spaces including integrated media and presentation technology as well as providing major event management to the University.

Speaker: Jack Trifts

Jack Trifts is Professor of Finance at Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island and previously served as Dean of the College of Business from 2005 to 2010. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Florida (U.S.A) in Finance, an MBA from Dalhousie University (Canada), and a BBA in Accounting from the University of New Brunswick (Canada). Prior to coming to Bryant, he served as Dean of the School of Business at the University of Southern Maine and, prior to that, was a member of the faculty of the Crummer Graduate School, Rollins College, where he had served in a number of roles including associate dean, interim dean and MBA program director. He began his academic career at The University of South Carolina.

While continuing to be active in discipline-based research, Trifts is currently focused on developing active learning pedagogies and helping other faculty members make the transition from traditional lectures to more active forms of teaching and learning. Over his career he has won numerous teaching awards including being named "Outstanding Professor" several times and, most recently was the 2015 recipient of Bryant University’s Distinguished Faculty Award.