7. Colleagues who contributed to the e-Learning Program: Tom On-board ... and Overboard!

Tom Braziunas in AD 2000

Consider reading this narrative in the order in which it was composed, starting with Post #1.

Before a deeper look into the history of distance learning / e-learning at North Seattle College, I want to share a few personal comments on my own beginning.

I started teaching part-time at South Seattle Community College in Winter 1994, using my geology and paleontology degrees to teach in-person classes (including some telecourses) in physical and historical geology, oceanography, geography and dinosaurs.  Along the way, I was encouraged by two IT (Information Technology) folks, Frances Brooks and Dennis Colgan, to consider designing an online version of the Physical Geology lab-science class.  In the distant past, I had wanted to get into museum exhibit design work and this was something like that.  As Dennis said at the time:  "No one else is doing this in the Seattle College District."  However, there were actions happening at North Seattle Community College at around the same time or shortly after.  More on that later. 

Dennis Colgan with co-workers and colleagues in 2012

 

So, for a stipend of $600, in Fall 1995, I built a several-hundred-webpage class website, complete with lessons, assignments and labs, and with email communication, from scratch using HTML.  The stipend was nominal for the several hundreds of hours that were labored to create that class.  But, by coding in HTML, I gained a good understanding and confidence in web design.  At one point, I learned about "thumbnails" and how these little images could point to full photos of rock samples without needing to build all 20 full-sized rock photos into one webpage that would take minutes to load on 14.4 kbps modems!  With these thumbnails and the advancement of modem speeds (to the "quick-at-the-time" 28.8 and 56 kbps modems!), students (and myself) were now able to wait less and work on class faster.  I used to like to joke that I was "ahead of my time" in creating webpages before the internet was ready for them!

A somewhat later version of the original online physical geology class homepage 

I taught the Winter Quarter 1996 version of Physical Geology 101 lab-science class to on-campus students and a few fully online students simultaneously.  I put together a rock and mineral kit for the online students to borrow from the samples we had in South Seattle Community College's collection.  The online students had to come to campus and take the same text-and-lab midterm and final exams as the on-campus students... and, on average, they performed better than the average of the on-campus group.  I used to say that this meant that the less you heard me teach in-person, the better you learned!  However, I also think that the online group (mostly from Microsoft) was especially tech savvy and also too small a number to be able to make a significant comparison.

The next year, Dennis informed me that a full-time distance-learning coordinator position was opening up at North Seattle Community College, where I had been teaching some geology courses along with ones at South Seattle Community College (as well as holding a research position at the University of Washington).  And, with Jane, I was co-parenting Kristin and Erik, 11 and 13.  I was a busy guy, but especially excited about the idea of working with others to develop online curriculum... and the idea of having perhaps a more stable full-time job that fit with my teaching disposition and desire to stay in Seattle. 

John Backes, Library Dean at North Seattle Community College, interviewed and hired me in November 1997 to start immediately.  The distance learning operation had recently shifted from the Continuing Education division to the Library division.  In a series of meetings with John, with outgoing distance learning coordinator Parker Lindner and office assistant Chris Russ wrapping up their roles in the Distance Learning Office, and with other key players in the Seattle District and the Washington State Board, I was filled in (and overwhelmed!) with all that was happening in Distance Learning at the college and around the state.  My first "to-do list" (see image below), written up on my 46th birthday, was five pages long.  I was also still teaching courses at South Seattle College and contributing to research at the University of Washington.  I was a busy guy (did I mention that?). 

The first page of my first five-page task-list as distance learning coordinator

Two weeks later, John left for a position at Shoreline Community College.  Distance Learning returned to the Continuing Education division under the supervision of Dean Katherine Riley, as it had been.  And Parker and Chris left shortly after that, as planned.  Katherine hired Carol Howe as front-desk office assistant and told me that I needed to stop my teaching (although I had already signed on to teach courses for the Winter 1998 quarter) in order to focus fully on my new role at North.  It was difficult to give up my classes for this new position for which I felt a bit "overboard" and uncertain that it was a good fit, but Katherine's insistence turned out to be a very crucial step that, once followed, opened up a whole new and wonderful career for me!  Since my mentor and supervisor for research at University of Washington, Dr. Minze Stuiver, was also retiring in the upcoming year, it was natural for me to end my contributions to the UW isotope program as well. 

Over the years, my role expanded and, through the much appreciated support of those who supervised me, my job description was re-evaluated several times and my position title changed appropriately.  I transitioned from coordinator to manager to director and, finally, to associate dean of e-learning.  Along the way, I received the Trustees Lifelong Learning Award in 2001.  I even was eventually able to occasionally teach online again (especially the dinosaurs course), which provided me with the first-hand experiences (and issues) of using our course technologies that I could learn from and pass on to other faculty.  

In particular, I was thrilled to be "starred" in 2007 in a surprise pop-in visit and "ceremony", complete with confetti (see photos below), led by President Ron LaFayette and many other of my favorite colleagues (including Jean Kent, Jane Lister Reis, Alan Ward, and -- in the funny hat -- David Bittenbender).  More wonderful moments and silly times will be shared ahead. 

Tom being "starred" in 2007