Yep, the title of this blog says it all. Times change and with change comes upheaval. Even after teaching about change and how emotionally challenging it may be, I find myself in the throes of a major life change. A friend once spoke about change, advising, "Be kind to yourself. It is difficult. But, give yourself the space to make the change. You'll survive. And, when it's all done, you'll be better for it. So, celebrate the change."
So, here I am. After 20 years of service to Asbury Theological Seminary and 25 years living in that community, I have moved on. I am now the Director of Online Learning and Educational Technology at Christian Brothers University. The pain of uprooting my work life and starting again has been real and surprising. I didn't realize how much history plays into your everyday life. For instance, I developed my own shorthand way of speaking at the previous institution because we all understood what was being discussed. You take shortcuts because of the shared history. We all do that, btw. It's natural. Now, I'm having to learn a whole new language and understanding wrapped up in policies that are unfamiliar in an unfamiliar place. Don't get me wrong. I'm not sorry. This is a great place, a great institution and I'm happy and excited to be here.
All that said, over the next few weeks and months, I'm going to be posting here again. My primary focus will be to describe what has transpired since the previous post. There will be updates, lessons learned, and then getting into both policies and helps that others may find either interesting or helpful to know. The purpose of this blog remains the same: this blog is "a place to gain new ideas regarding online teaching and learning." So, stay with me. Together, this world of online learning will be seen for what it is - a viable means to gain an education.
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