Erik Black
"My interests in assessment and perspectives on its importance are rooted in my own experiences as a struggling undergraduate student. Early in my undergraduate career, I found myself discouraged by coursework and assessment that focused on recall rather than application. As a graduate student I gravitated towards assessment and evaluation as a means of better understanding my experiences. Throughout my career I have maintained a focus on assessment, primarily in clinical health science education. I think that today is an exciting time in the assessment world, we have access to software and computing power that allows us to understand more than ever before. Our challenge is to use this access in a judicious and meaningful way to support the needs of our learners." - Erik Black
Erik Black is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Education at the University of Florida Colleges of Medicine; he also serves as the Associate Director of the University of Florida Health Science Center Office of Interprofessional Education. Dr. Black has conducted research funded by the US Department of Education, Josiah H. Macy Foundation, Health Resources and Services Administration, AT&T Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Black leads learning activities that impact over 2000 students and residents annually across six health science colleges and three regional campuses.
College of Medicine
Shaun Boren
"I agree with Yogi Berra, 'if you don’t know where you are going, you might wind up someplace else'. Assessing what we value teaches and motivates us to improve how we enact our mission, and it also helps prove the benefits of our investment." - Shaun Boren
Shaun Boren is a Student Affairs professional focused on the intersections between practitioner, scholar, and administrator. He came to the University of Florida in 2017 to direct the new Office of Assessment and Research in its mission to champion a culture of evidence-based decision making for the Division of Student Affairs. Prior to this role Shaun served the University of West Florida for 12 years in a progression of experience including creation of the Outdoor Adventures program, supervision of Recreational Sports programming, instruction of undergraduate and graduate courses, and management of assessment initiatives for Student Affairs. His leadership style and strategies for building assessment capacity draw from his bachelor’s degree in animal behavior, masters in experiential education, and doctorate in physical education and health.
Student AffairsElayne Colón
"Assessment closes the loop on the learning process, and the data allow opportunities for change and growth. It is important to assess students to ensure they have achieved the desired learning outcomes, but it is equally important to use this information to continuously improve our teaching and programs."-Elayne Colón
Elayne Colón is an Associate Scholar and has served as the Director of Assessment and Accreditation in the College of Education at the University of Florida since 2006. She has served on the General Education Committee since 2014 and currently serves on the General Education Assessment Subcommittee. Dr. Colón is consistently involved in state and national service, including as a member of the Technical Advisory Committee for the Florida Department of Education’s Bureau of Postsecondary Assessment and on the Accreditation Council for the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation. With a background in school psychology, her scholarly interests include assessing quality educator preparation and examining issues related to accountability and accreditation in higher education.
College of Education
Laura Ellis
"The UF Quest program is designed to “nuture the intellectual curiosity” of our undergraduate students. Assessment ensures that faculty and students alike meet these goals." - Laura Ellis
Laura Ellis is Associate Director and Professor in the School of Music. She teaches courses in Sacred Music and applied lessons in organ, harpsichord, and carillon. Ellis holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in organ performance from the University of Kansas. A carillonneur member of the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America (GCNA), Ellis serves as director of the Music and Publications Committee. Ellis is also active in the American Guild of Organists (AGO) where she was elected to three terms as Regional Councillor for the Southeast. She currently sits on the AGO’s national nominating committee. Ellis performs organ and carillon recitals throughout the US, Canada, The Netherlands, and Australia. Her most recent organ recording, “Music for the Testaments,” was released under the Raven label.
College of the Arts
Robyn Goodman
"Assessment helps us identify problems and course correct so that we become better educators. Thus, assessment ensures UF students the best possible education." - Robyn Goodman
Robyn Goodman is an associate professor and acting chair in the Department of Advertising. Her research areas are visual communication and health communications. Her current research projects explore at media and cosmetic surgery, body presentation in magazines and social media, and emotional response to beauty types in advertising. She has published numerous books chapter and articles in journals such as Journal of Current Issues and Research in Advertising, Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, Health Communication Quarterly, Public Understanding of Science, Visual Communication, and Visual Communication Quarterly. Besides her scholarly work, she has served as creative director and won numerous advertising industry awards including Bronze Tellys, a Bronze Clio, and a Silver Regional Addy. She also teaches creative advertising courses, research methods, and data visualization.
College of Journalism and CommunicationsKyriaki (Kiki) Kaplanidou
“Assessment is important because it provides the road map and the tools to instructors to understand the impact of knowledge dissemination among their students” - Kiki Kaplanidou
Kyriaki (Kiki) Kaplanidou is an Associate Professor at the University of Florida, Department of Sport Management. Dr. Kaplanidou also serves as the Graduate Coordinator for her Department. Her main research interests relate to the evaluation and management of sport event legacy outcomes. Her recent research focused on understanding evaluations of event experiences and quality of life connections among residents of host cities or among active sport event participants. Dr. Kaplanidou has been funded by the International Olympic Committee to examine the long term legacy of the Olympic Games and the Youth Olympic Games in various host cities. She has published over 60 scientific articles in academic peer reviewed high impact journals in the sport management and tourism disciplines.
College of Health and Human Performance
George Hack
"If learning hasn’t occurred, then teaching hasn’t happened; and if the assessment of that learning is not valid, then no one will ever know the difference." - George Hack
George Hack is the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education in the College of Public Health and Health Professions. He received his PhD in Educational Technology from the University of Florida and has designed and taught many undergraduate and graduate courses. At the University of Florida, George has served in various roles, working in the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences as a coordinator of extension nutrition education programs, as Assistant Director for Instruction and Information systems in the Health Science Center Libraries, and as an Assistant Dean for Instructional Design and Educational Technology. His research interests include human-computer interactions in learning, active learning strategies in blended courses, as well as pedagogy influenced by situated and grounded learning theories.
College of Public Health and Health Professions
Heather Maness
“Institutional assessment has the capacity to improve student learning in a very powerful way, but it has to be a transparent process and in alignment with high quality course-level assessment. For a meaningful impact, it’s essential for instructors to have a clear connection between their assignments and the program’s learning outcomes as well as for the institutional data to flow back to educators to inform their future teaching.” – Heather Maness
Heather Maness is an Instructional Designer with the Center for Instructional Technology and Training in UF Information Technology. In this role she has helped subject matter experts develop award-winning courses, adopt the latest in educational technology, and implement evidence-based best practices in pedagogy. With a STEM background and passion for evaluation, she holds a M.S. in Veterinary Medical Sciences and a Ph.D. in Agricultural Education and Communication with a minor in Higher Education Administration. Her research focuses on stakeholder (students and employers) evaluation for continuous quality improvement of course design and curricula. She is also involved with several projects on improving learning analytics visualizations and data application.
Center for Instructional Technology and TrainingCorinne Huggins-Manley
"Assessment is what allows the University to know if its various initiatives are having positive impacts on students and their educational outcomes. As these student outcomes are the core interest of the University, assessment must be an ongoing and integrative component of University operations." - Corrine Huggins-Manley
Corinne Huggins-Manley is an Associate Professor in the Research and Evaluation Methodology program in the College of Education. Her research is focused on educational measurement, concerning issues of test fairness, validity, and statistical modeling. Dr. Huggins-Manley teaches multiple graduate level courses that include Theory of Measurement, Item Response Theory, and Rating Scale Design and Analysis. In addition, she provides methodological consultation on various research grants and projects.
College of Education
John Mendoza-Garcia
“'Students will learn more if instruction and assessment are integrally related … providing students with information about particular qualities of their work and about what they can do to improve is crucial for maximizing learning' National Research Council, Committee on the Foundations of Assessment (2001). I became an educator because I am motivated to facilitate students’ learning of key engineering professional skills. I have found that assessment is a key component of such facilitation because it allows the learner to develop ownership of their learning which is key in the development of their cognitive processes. A good assessment strategy also allows us, educators, to improve our teaching strategies and be more effective. Programs benefit as well because they would know better if they are developing in students the competencies and skills they expect. Yes, assessment is crucial for all levels of education and that is why I am part of this assessment team." - John Mendoza Garcia
John Mendoza Garcia is a Lecturer at the Department of Engineering Education in the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering in the University of Florida. He received his Ph.D. in Engineering Education at Purdue University, and he has a Master's and a Bachelor's in Systems and Computing Engineering from Universidad de Los Andes, in Colombia, and Universidad Nacional de Colombia respectively. He teaches and investigate the development of professional skills such as problem-solving, systems thinking, and design thinking. He worked in Industry before transitioning to academia.
College of Engineering
Swapna Kumar
"Assessment provides opportunities for students to gauge their progress and learning, for faculty to reflect and improve their teaching, and programs to continuously improve their offerings. It is important for us to use digital technologies to facilitate a variety of assessment processes and experiences for students, especially those that will prepare them for professional lives and digital citizenship." - Swapna Kumar
Swapna Kumar is a Clinical Associate Professor of Educational Technology at the School of Teaching and Learning, College of Education. She directs the Doctor of Education in Educational Technology and teaches graduate courses on distance learning, blended learning and educational technology research. In 2017, she was a Fulbright Scholar at the Center for Teaching and Learning, Central European University, Hungary. Dr. Kumar researches quality in online education, with a focus on the design, implementation, and evaluation of online programs, and online mentoring.
College of Education
M. David Miller
"Assessment at the university helps faculty to better understand their teaching and the curriculum when properly aligned."- M. David Miller
M. David Miller is a Professor of Research and Evaluation Methods in the College of Education. He is also the Director of the School of Human Development and Organizational Studies in Education and the Collaborative Assessment and Program Evaluation Services. He chaired the development of the Quality Enhancement Plan. He is also the chair of the General Education Assessment subcommittee and was a member of the Academic Assessment Committee and the Quest Task Force. His areas of research include educational assessment, psychometrics and evaluation. Recently, his research has focused on issues in accountability including validity, reliability, and fairness. Prior to being a faculty member at UF, he directed the Kansas state K-12 assessment program.
College of EducationJoann Mossa
"Assessment begins at the grass roots where it motivates students to do their best work, benefits departments in measuring improvements and identifying strengths and gaps in student learning, ideally providing feedback to instruction and curriculum, and universities that need evidence of student achievement for external stakeholders." - Joann Mossa
Joann Mossa is a Professor in the Department of Geography. Besides serving for 17 years as Undergraduate Coordinator, she developed the criteria used for assessing student-learning outcomes in the major. The University of Florida recognized her Faculty Advisor of the Year in 2012. CLAS granted her Teaching/Advisor Achievement at the CLAS Evening of Excellence in 2017, Faculty advisor of the year in 2012, and two earlier teaching awards. She authored an article about using Capstone Portfolios for assessing SLOs in the Journal of Geography in Higher Education. Other achievements include the R.J. Russell award for contributions to coastal and marine geography, serving as President of the Southeastern Division of the Association of American Geographers and President of the Florida Society of Geographers, and Associate Editor of Physical Geography. Her research and teaching concerns the geomorphology of large and disturbed rivers, river restoration, and fluvial and coastal hazards.
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Richard Nolan
"UF Quest is an ambitious project. Trying to be innovative in our approach to education requires attention to how close our efforts match our aspirations. Assessing outcomes needs to be less a matter of individual judgement or quantitative rubrics and more a process of collective observation and deliberation. Only when we figure out if we are moving in the directions we intend can we make adjustments if necessary. Understanding our mission is easier when we have ways to evaluate our work as it relates to that mission." - Richard Nolan
Richard Nolan is a Senior Lecturer in Political Science. He has been teaching at the University of Florida since he completed his Ph.D. here in 1994. He holds M.A and B.A. degrees from the University Georgia. He regularly teaches courses in International Relations, U.S. and World Affairs, and Making American Foreign Policy. He also has taught International Security. For 12 years he served as a faculty advisor for Preview, the UF freshman orientation program. He is the Undergraduate Coordinator for the Department of Political Science and has been for the past 6 years. He serves as the faculty advisor for the University of Florida Model United Nations and he is an affiliate faculty with the University of Florida Center for European Studies. His research interests have included learning and leadership in foreign policy and public attitudes toward European integration and he has presented papers at conferences of the American Political Science Association, International Studies Association, Southern Political Science Association, Midwest Political Science Association, and the Southwestern Political Science Association.
College of Liberal Arts and SciencesKaren Reed
"As noted by Miller and Leskes (2005), "Assessment can answer important questions, questions about the learning…. and guide the design of the institution's undergraduate program." Students desire curricular structure and purpose. I believe our endeavors with Quest will identify how best to provide our students with meaningful educational experiences that collectively support each student's success in meeting his or her academic goals." - Karen Reed
Karen Reed primarily facilitates experiential learning in the undergraduate nursing program as a faculty member and as the BSN Program Co-Director. Additionally, she designed and teaches a pre-nursing elective on cross-cultural communications in health care. Dr. Reed has a vision and passion for global nursing education. She was the first nurse to receive a Fulbright Scholar Award to Cambodia, 2013-2014. She has sustained partnerships built there by regularly traveling to Cambodia, using her personal time and resources, to advocate for advancements in global nursing education.
College of Nursing
Robert Ries
"Assessment is important because it improves student learning. Assessment begins with clear goals and outcomes. Assessment is scalable. i.e., courses, degree programs, and universities have the ability to create goals and outcomes, generally in increasing generality. This is an opportunity to create alignment and insure coverage of content that achieves the desired outcomes. Finally, assessment provides the process for continuous improvement through the periodic review of the results of measured goals and outcomes.: - Robert Ries
Robert Ries is a Professor and Associate Director of the Powell Center for Construction and the Environment at the University of Florida. Dr. Ries teaches courses in construction documents, sustainable design and construction, and value engineering that are both required and elective courses in the undergraduate and graduate programs in the School. Dr. Ries’s primary research work is focused on improving the environmental performance of buildings and the built environment. Dr. Ries has published over 110 peer-reviewed papers with work published in journals such as Energy Policy, Energy and Buildings, Journal of Cleaner Production, Building and Environment, Journal of Industrial Ecology, and the International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. Dr. Ries is a member of the Board of Trustees of the American Council for Construction Education (ACCE), an accreditation organization for construction management degree programs in the United States. Dr. Ries is the chair of the ACCE Baccalaureate Caucus, co-chair of Guidance, a member of the Marketing committee, and also a member of accreditation visiting teams.
College of Design, Construction, and PlanningAmarat (Amy) Simonne
"Teaching and learning are extremely important in our changing world. Serving on the Quest Assessment Task Force at UF is one of the most meaningful contributions for her because having the right assessment tools is the key to institutional success. She enjoy working and meeting colleagues from other disciplines from across the UF Campus." - Amy Simonne
Amarat (Amy) Simonne is a Professor (Food Science and Technology) and Extension Specialist with the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. Her research area is in safety and quality of plant foods and foods from other cultures. Her specific interest is in microbial safety, chemistry, and biochemistry of phytochemicals, as well as consumer’s knowledge and attitudes on food safety and quality issues. Homepage: https://fycs.ifas.ufl.edu/faculty/amy-simonne/
College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
Laura Spears, George A. Smathers Libraries
"Academic assessment is the basis for the fundamental work of the assessment activities in the Smathers Libraries. Because libraries are a vital component to academic achievement; assessment serves to demonstrate this. By working closely with the Academic Assessment Committee, we are better positioned to establish and expand the Smathers Libraries’ impact." - Laura Spears
Laura I. Spears is the Director of Assessment for the University of Florida Libraries. Her job responsibilities include examining a variety of library data that demonstrates library impact on the life of the library user, both students and faculty. Her research examines library value in public library funding advocacy and values assessment in academic libraries. Recent publications focused on overnight library use perceptions, academic library funding and academic librarian ethics training and development.
Member 2019-2022Aaron Thomas
"Assessment is the foundation for quality assurance, student support services, and the design and modification of curricula to prepare graduates for professional life. Advances in data visualization, statistical modeling, and data extraction offer significant opportunities for assessment in higher education to provide more accurate and timely measures of student achievement. The work of the Quest Assessment Task Force is an essential foundation for the culture of assessment at the University of Florida and for the design of learning and program analytics to support both students and faculty." - Aaron Thomas
Aaron Thomas is the Analytics and Evaluation Principal at the University of Florida’s College of Pharmacy where he provides expertise in the design, implementation, and analysis of assessment activities that support accreditation and institutional effectiveness.
College of Pharmacy
Andrew Wolpert
"I believe that the assessment of the UF Quest program will provide the faculty with valuable information to help them create even more meaningful academic experiences for UF students." - Andrew Wolpert
Andrew Wolpert is the Director of the UF Quest Program and Associate Professor of Classics. He brings to UF Quest a wealth of experience in general education, teaching, and research. Wolpert served as the Director of IDS 1161 (“What is the Good Life?”) since 2012 where he promoted the use of digital technologies and experiential learning activities and has been a catalyst in the last four years in the development of the UF Quest program. As Director of UF Quest, he leads faculty collaboration in the continued development of the program and oversees the day-to-day management of UF Quest courses.
Director, UF Quest; College of Liberal Arts and Sciences