"I want students to learn something about how and why we would want to use different kinds of systems from a business perspective, when it makes sense for a business to invest in systems and when not, and some of the challenges associated with using IS effectively."
Worked in consulting for over 15 years before becoming an academic; have only had one job since getting my PhD - starting 12th year at SIUE; have published 5 articles in our field's best journals (#6 coming real soon); led student travel study to China for 6 years, and spend most of my time teaching in master's program.
Which classes do you teach online?
CMIS 526, CMIS 528, CMIS 540, CMIS 557
What types of projects can online students expect in your course?
We do a bit of everything! To me, a big part of a graduate courses is engagement. Learning is really a situation where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Getting students engaged with the material, with each other and with me creates the "whole" and the best learning environment. To do this, we do individual assignments, lots of team projects, case studies, student-led "discussions" --basically a lot of different things. Discussions are important -- but I really don't like discussion boards. We use them because it is hard to have a "discussion" in a virtual, asynchronous environment without them. But they will be targeted and specific. We will do a lot of things and I'm always open to suggestions!
What do you want students to learn in these courses? What is the expected learning outcome?
All of the courses I teach have to do with information systems in some way. Each course covers different aspects of IS - strategy, large scale systems, project management. The learning outcomes for each are different. One thing is consistent though. Because IS are everywhere, and have become integral to what almost all businesses do, I want students to learn something about how and why we would want to use different kinds of systems from a business perspective, when it makes sense for a business to invest in systems and when not, and some of the challenges associated with using IS effectively.
Why did you start teaching?
I got tired of doing projects as a consultant. And when I took a step back and thought about what I really liked about my jobs as a consultant, it had to do with helping new consultants learn about what being a consultant was really all about, how to make client projects successful and how to become an effective project manager. In other words, I really liked the teaching part of my job. Once I got into the PhD program, I figured out that I really like doing academic research too. So being a college professor is a natural fit!
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