• More than molecules
• Flirting with democracy

When it comes to new technology, college professors are likely to feel like pupils in their own classrooms.

Few educators question the potential of instructional technology for enhancing learning, but there can be a considerable gap between picking up a new tool and deftly wielding it.

At Wittenberg, a four-year effort has worked to develop faculty technology mentors who can help flatten their fellow professors’ learning curves.

Funded through grants totaling approximately $300,000 from the Teagle Foundation, Charles E. Culpeper Foundation (now Rockefeller Brothers Fund), Ameritech, Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges and Aid Association for Lutherans, the program has offered 19 faculty members the opportunity to develop expertise in using technology.

Designated information-technology mentors or ITMs, the faculty members were selected by their respective departments and were asked to serve for two years.

Those selected included Jim Swindler, professor of philosophy and department chair; Staci Rhine, assistant professor of political science; Al Frasca, professor of physics; Robert Davis, associate professor of English; Pam Schindler, professor of management; Tim Wilkerson, associate professor of languages, Ken Bladh, professor of geology; Tom Martin, professor of health, fitness and sport; Jeff Ankrom, professor of economics; Olga Medvedkov, professor of geography and director of Russian Area Studies; Cliff Brown, professor of psychology; Robert Cutler, associate professor emeritus of history; Rochelle Millen, associate professor of religion; Margaret Goodman, assistant professor of biology; Jerry Pankhurst, professor of sociology; James Humphries Jr., associate professor of theatre and dance; and Stephen Siek, adjunct associate professor of music.

The program allowed each participant to determine his or her own course of study, but it emphasized the following responsibilities: to incorporate technology into their classes and professional work, to assist their colleagues in learning the technology, to help their departments as a whole understand the technology and to lead by example in the hopes of influencing and inspiring those around them.

The ITMs would also aid in both easing and leading the university’s transition to a technology-rich environment.

“The areas studied ranged from elementary software programs to advanced web work,” explained Gary Gaffield, assistant provost for academic programs.

Pamela Schindler, professor of management, for example, started studying web-related technology three summers ago. She now incorporates the web in all of her courses and uses Powerpoint in her lectures.

Olga Medvedkov participated in the program by studying new geographical information systems or GIS. She attended conferences and workshops on GIS, and then combined resources with Schindler to teach business geographics.

The 200-level course explored how to apply basic GIS to businesses. Students in the course learned about spatial marketing and how to perform a trade analysis using detailed maps created from customer data supplied by local companies.

“We looked for potential customers and segmentation of the market,” Medvedkov explained, noting that there is an increased demand for micro marketing in today’s business environment.

During her time as an ITM for her department, Medvedkov also taught nine faculty members from the departments of geography, geology, management, biology and political science how to use GIS.

In fact, Medvedkov’s workshop helped Robert Baker, associate professor of political science and department chair, complete a research project with Scott Meinke, ’97, on Springfield neighborhood associations.

In addition, Medvedkov’s advanced GIS class worked with the Springfield Fire Department to determine the best location for a new firehouse.

“The target was to reach the locations within eight minutes, and we determined that a station on Selma Road in south Springfield looked the best,” Medvedkov explained.

The chair of the committee of mentors, James Swindler, researched and/or tested several software packages specific to the field of philosophy and to instruction in general.

“As we made the transition to Ethernet and Eudora, I helped install software and re-train users.

I’ve also kept busy helping troubleshoot problems as they arise in day-to-day operations, and I’ve helped bring users up to speed on Netscape, Filemaker Pro, Microsoft Word and Mac OS,” Swindler said.

Workshops offered through Wittenberg’s Thomas Library also helped the ITM mentors.

“The library-sponsored workshops made a key contribution to the project because so much of our use of technology relates to learning how to gain access to library and other on-line resources on the World Wide Web,” Gaffield explained.

Wittenberg plans to evaluate the program at the conclusion of the year, according to Gaffield.

“We need to review what we’ve accomplished during the last four years, and I think it will show that we have made some tremendous advances and, now that we’re ready, also show us how to move to the next level so that technology will truly be integrated into teaching and learning across the entire curriculum.”

— Karen Gerboth