TechLearn Faculty Conference 2017

Overview

On October 19 faculty from all five schools joined together at the West LA campus to collaborate with their peers at this half-day conference.  It was an exciting opportunity to connect with colleagues, listen to faculty experiences, learn about new tools, and walk away with ideas and approaches for teaching.  The event was free for University faculty and staff and included lunch and a chance to win fun prizes.

Through innovation and collaboration, we made Pepperdine stronger together. 

OPENING KEYNOTE SPEAKER

We were pleased to have welcomed distinguished opening keynote speaker -- Kyle Bowen, Director of Education Technology Services at Penn State University.  In his role, Kyle leads university efforts for effective uses of technology for teaching and learning.  He oversees a portfolio of services including instructional design, faculty research support, learning spaces, digital media development, and the exploration of emerging technologies.  Formerly the Director of Informatics at Purdue University, he shaped and led the university's strategy to advance student success through new and innovative technologies.

PEPPERDINE KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Our closing keynote speaker was Dr. Christopher Heard, Associate Professor of Religion and Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence at Seaver College.  Chris Heard joined the Seaver College Religion Division faculty in 2003 and was named Director of Seaver's Center for Teaching Excellence in 2017.  As a biblical scholar, Chris focuses on the use, influence, and impact of the Bible (especially the book of Genesis) in Western culture, especially pop culture.  When he delivered his closing talk, he had recently published a chapter on the Bible in animated films, and had a chapter on divine and human creativity in sci-fi films and a study of Bible-themed board games in press.  As a budding scholar of teaching and learning, Chris focuses on gameful learning and was soon to publish a chapter on teaching religion with technology that describes a largely unsuccessful experiment with interactive fiction.

Questions? Please reach out to techlearn@pepperdine.edu.