Awards and Publications

2020 Blackboard Awards


Blackboard Catalyst Award Winner 2020 Banner Image

2020 Blackboard Exemplary Course

An Eastern Kentucky University online course created for the Disaster Resilience program has won a 2020 Blackboard Exemplary Course award. Mikah Hughes, an instructional designer with the Office of eCampus Learning, and Dr. Chad Foster, assistant professor in Homeland Security, received the honor for their work on HLS 461 Disaster Resilience. The Exemplary Course Program recognizes instructors and course designers whose courses demonstrate best practices in four major areas: Course Design, Interaction & Collaboration, Assessment, and Learner Support. Click here to watch the 2020 Blackboard Exemplary Course Tutorial.


2020 Blackboard Catalyst Award for “Teaching and Learning”

Instructional Designer Mary Henson, Senior Lecturer Patrick Coen and Lecturer James Grogan won for their work on behalf of the EKU Department of Mathematics and Statistics and the Instructional Design Center. Many students struggle with mathematics, especially online mathematics. Senior Lecturer Patrick Coen and Lecturer James Grogan bring a passion for math and teaching into every class they teach. Translating this to an online format presented some challenges in organizing and developing supportive content for students learning mathematics asynchronously. In collaboration with EKU’s Instructional Design Center, online course design included video mini-lessons, practice material and lightboard videos. EKU Media Producer Sam Williamson helped create lightboard videos which use EKU’s studio as a transparent chalkboard.

Instructors Patrick Coen and James Grogan are representative of so many great EKU faculty. They are student-centered and they love their subject. Their energy talking about mathematics and strategizing to help more students succeed was incredible. Through consistent design, frequent communication via email and announcements and excellent instruction, the MAT 112 course saw notable improvement in the number of students attaining essential skills in mathematics. Click here to watch the submission video for MAT 112.


2020 Blackboard Catalyst Award for “Teaching and Learning”

An Eastern Kentucky University online course created for the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner program (PMHNP) has won a 2020 Blackboard Catalyst Award for Teaching and Learning. Chris Daniel, an instructional designer with the Office of eCampus Learning worked alongside the PMHNP faculty, which includes Program Coordinator Rachael Hovermale, MSN, ARNP, DNP; Aileen Jones, ARNP-BC; Wanda France, APRN-BC; and Anna “Maurine” Hume.  This award recognizes those who have adopted flexible, distance and online delivery, including using mobile technologies to positively impact the educational experience. The winner will have demonstrated innovative use of the Blackboard platforms, increasing flexibility, furthering learner and instructor effectiveness and efficiency.

Chris says “All our nursing faculty, but especially PMHNP faculty, are experts in their own right. These instructors are adept at assessing and treating a range of psychiatric/mental diseases and disorders and have not only many years of experience, but much respect and credibility in their field. I enjoyed getting to see their thought process regarding teaching as well as how well they transmit their knowledge to students. They take themselves lightly, but the job and subject matter seriously.” To view the Blackboard Catalyst video from the PMHNP faculty and Chris, click here.


2020 Blackboard Catalyst Award for Training and Professional Development

Faculty Development Program Manager Nedim Slijepcevic and the Instructional Design Center won the Blackboard Catalyst Award for Training and Professional Development, which recognizes organization-wide dedication to innovative practices. Other winners in this category were from Azerbaijan, Mexico and United Arab Emirates


2020 Publications


Emergency Remote Learning Compared to Online Learning by Steven Shisley

The quick transformation of face-to-face courses to an online format because of COVID-19 has generated a lot of attention to online learning in blogs and news outlets.In this article, Steven Shisley compares online learning to emergency remote learning.

To learn more about the differences in design between emergency remote learning and online learning, click here.


Video Conferencing with Zoom: Online Course Tips & Ideas by Steven Shisley

This article provides educators tips and ideas for using Zoom in online learning. To learn more aout using Zoom in your course, click here.


2019 Blackboard Awards


Blackboard Catalyst Award Winner Logo

2019 Catalyst Award in Teaching and Learning

An Eastern Kentucky University online course created for the master of arts in teaching (MAT) program has won a 2019 Catalyst Award from Blackboard, Inc. Esther Tattershall, an instructional designer with the Office of eCampus Learning, and Dr. April Blakely, director of online programs for the College of Education, received the honor in the category of Teaching and Learning for their work on EGC 820 – Professional Studies I. Catalyst Teaching and Learning awards recognize exemplary achievements in distance and online education that demonstrate innovative use of the Blackboard online education platform, enhance learning and increase flexibility for instructors and students. Click here to read more.


Graduate Nursing Program Earns International Award

A team of faculty and staff at Eastern Kentucky University has earned a 2019 Blackboard Catalyst Award

A team of faculty and staff at Eastern Kentucky University has earned a 2019 Blackboard Catalyst Award in Teaching and Learning for the exemplary design, quality and performance of the EKU Online Rural Health Family Nurse Practitioner Program. The award-winning team includes Dr. Margaret Zoellers, Dr. Alison Connell, Dr. Angela Wood, Dr. Brenda Caudill, and Chris Daniel, an instructional designer with the EKU Office of eCampus Learning, and will be honored at BbWorld 2019 in Austin, Texas. To view the full story, click here.


2018 Blackboard Awards


Team Wins Blackboard Exemplary Course Award

EKU Online Instructional Designer Alix Heintzman and Lecturer Margaret Frozena have been named winners in Blackboard’s Exemplary Course Program. They won for their online course, ENG 101R: Reading, Writing, and Rhetoric.

The Exemplary Course Program, which was established in 2000, recognizes innovation, engagement and best practices in instructional development. Course designers, developers and instructors from schools around the world submit their courses for review by their peers in education. Read more here.


2017 Publications


Mikah Hughes

This paper was published in “Innovations in Teaching & Learnng: Inaugural Proceedings of the 2017 Pedagogicon”. The purpose of this case study was to demonstrate the role of technology in course planning. In this case study, backwards design (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005) was applied to an online graduate career counseling course. Through the use of backwards design (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005), the course development becomes easier and a more effective way to share content with students. Backwards design is comprised of three steps: 1) identifying learning goals 2) proof of learning mastery 3) learning activities (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005). In traditional classrooms, it may be easy to focus on weekly content and dissemination of information. However, faculty may be overwhelmed or excited by technology when transitioning to online classes and allow technology to become the focus of course design. Using a backwards design keeps the content at the forefront when teaching online. In this paper, backwards design is described in a step-by-step process by using an online course as an example to demonstrate its application. Read more about Mikah Hughes’ publication here.


2014 Blackboard Award


EKU Course Developers Receive Prestigious Course Design Award

Two EKU employees are being recognized for their efforts in online course design. Scott Townsend, associate professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, and Jennifer Perkins, EKU Online instructional designer, have received a Blackboard Catalyst Award in Blackboard’s Exemplary Course Program, which recognizes faculty and course designers from schools, colleges and universities worldwide who develop exciting and innovative courses that represent the very best in technology and learning. To read the full story, click here.