ETEC 524: Reflection #6

The purpose of my podcast was to briefly introduce the Twitter based program, HootSuite. I use HootSuite at work to monitor the University's brand, provide customer service support and monitor student activity on Twitter. Currently, I host workshops throughout the year for staff within the division to get them set up on HootSuite. However, I am leaning towards making podcasts for staff to review if they need a refresher after the workshop. Especially using some of the more advance features the platform offers.

I also get requests for speaking on campus about digital identity and branding through social media and other web 2.0. A series of similar podcasts could benefit the students and provide a reference point for how employers may find them online and how it can impact their future.

I used Quicktime's "record screen" feature. Quicktime also has a feature to directly upload videos to YouTube. I did not do any editing on this specific podcast however I usually do and use iMovie for that. Thanks to the stock software on my Mac it is pretty simple and cheap, FREE! Yes, I plan to create more educational podcasts in the future.

You can view my channel on YouTube or even the channel I advise but is mostly student produced.

ETEC 524: Reflection #3

I created a Wiki to the Student Affairs and Enrollment Management Marketing and Media practicum/internship program. The Wiki is located here: www.meghannmm.pbworks.com


I decided to create this wiki to help facilitate progress, organization and communication. The course is set up to where the students have a lot of autonomy after the initial week of class where the projects and schedule are decided upon. I have created pages outlining my expectations of the student, a place for their schedule, a place for them to log their activity/tasks, resources, a place to post their completed work and a place to discuss their projects with other students in the program. Once I add some more details this will become a VERY practical resource for me and I believe that it will assist the students in staying on track during the semester since we don't see each other every day.


Some advantages of the wiki are that everyone can contribute! There is a centralized location for information to cut down on emails and keep everyone on the same page. Disadvantages could be unsolicited contributors or lack of contribution due to poor integration or lack of direction. I have been apart of wiki communities that never seem to flourish and others that are very active and self-sustaining. I despise the term "digital natives". However, as we enter an era of almost exclusive digital communication. With this in mind, Wikis have the ability to bring people together over a distance. As the idea of collaboration no longer means sitting in the same room, town, state, etc. wikis will serve a greater purpose in teamwork and community. The engagement can come from planning, reporting, discussion and other communications. Since wikis are not only text based but can be used with Voicethread chains or YouTube videos as well.


The eLearning tools wiki has some great tools listed. A few I would like to look into are:


DoInk- an animation tool for novices to create videos
YawnBuster- to host interactive presentations with built in polls, games and group exercises. May be a great work tool.
ClockingIT- a free project management tool!!! So excited to look into this. I always wonder where my day goes. ;)

ETEC 561 Section 4: Human Performance Technology

Human Performance Improvement

The idea of HPI gets me in nerdy-giddy mode for several reasons starting with I feel like my MBA might be worth the two years I invested in it, two it reaffirms my LOVE for centralized processes, and three I steadies my belief that bringing together brilliant minds, money and four walls is not enough. Professionals endure years of education preaching the best in business management, human resources, learning systems and human development theories however the emergence and melding of these is often without the "bottom's" input. For example, in the workplace the current gap is a lack of motivation, innovation and general will to exceed expectations. In other words everyone is just brushing their teeth without flossing and mouthwash. 

The possible solutions can range from evaluating staff for possible dismissal to re-organizational design to team building and incentives. My recommendation for this specific gap is to focus on the individuals and have the intervention effect each individual on a macro level. The bottom line is that people like to feel special and acknowledged. (I find this particularly true with Millennials, ask Facebook.) As a result time should be spent by supervisors to have "life chats" with employees creating an informal environment where the employee is less guarded to reveal their position's challenges, offer criticisms, discuss career goals and how the supervisor can support or coach the specific employee. I find with student employees they value this time and later reflect/act on the conversations. This action addresses more than just a "we listen, we care" mission but the time can be used to develop an evolving "safe space" for employees to communicate the next bug fix for software XYZ that may normally be out of their job scope, receive professional development or talk about the direction of the company. In the end it's not just investing the time but developing the time into something meaningful for the individual. 


If you have time (about 10 minutes) the following is a video discussing what motivates us!

Electronic Performance Support Systems

This term was coined by Gloria Gery who also provides the most comprehensive definition of EPSS, in my opinion: "an integrated electronic environment that is available to and easily accessible by each employee and is structured to provide immediate, individualized on-line access to the full range of information, software, guidance, advice and assistance, data, images, tools, and assessment and monitoring systems to permit job performance with minimal support and intervention by others." 

In comparison with other definitions Gery's creates an EPSS that offers a range or collection of solutions and troubleshooting abilities. To me this is the difference between a software package and a management system. The ability to merge the applications and streamline tasks is the big ticket. I feel as if other definitions would qualify Microsoft Office as an EPSS. 

I think the potential of EPSS and their success are minimal today but are poised to be the bread and butter in the future. I am inclined to agree with the text in terms of why EPSS is not as prevalent in business today. The first being that people are not informed of the existence of EPSS and the second that potential buyers believe it is too expensive or an unnecessary cost. In addition to these issues, as a technology buyer and consultant I often run into EPSS designers who have not studied their potential buyers, do not have content experts or cannot keep up with initial client demands. This goes for those who are 3rd party or have a homegrown EPSS. Just like email vs. postal mail a culture change takes time. I believe as the younger workforce emerges into decision making roles you will see EPSS become more prominent because it will be a basic expectation of operations. The idea of doing business with 4+ software/management systems or having to wait for Paul to "fix" something is not only inconvenient but downright silly. (Especially if YouTube can show me in less than 5 minutes.

Knowledge Management

At my current workplace we have a great, by design, public knowledge repository. Some challenges we face are a lack of contributors, editors and users. Possible blended learning solutions include having each area/department designate a contributor and editor to manage their portion of the knowledge database with a regular update schedule. To train the designee in the classroom with the basics on how to use the system (add, delete, edit and navigate). Additionally, posing the designee to be an advocate of the system to use it regularly and reference it in their work outside of training. This could potentially encourage other area/department members to utilize the source as well leading the designee in a teaching role. The designee's role is ever changing with their knowledge of the system and familiarity expanding without extensive classes or training.  

Informal Learning GOLD= #SAchat

One of my biggest sources of informal learning is #SAchat. This community is very important to me as I continue my journey working in higher education and student affairs. The purpose of #SAchat started as a structured weekly chat over a voted on topic via Twitter. You can visit the webpage to learn about the idea behind #SAchat and the week's topic. During the other hours and days of the week there are on going discussions using the hashtag to contribute to the body of knowledge within the profession or ask the community a question. This experience was very unique to me and has become my online home. It is a highly active community where I just lurked at first but as I learned the social etiquette I became more engaged and involved. #SAchat and one of it's spin-offs, #SAtech, offer in-real-life social opportunities at conferences by hosting Tweetups. My current role is both contributor and listener. There is a moderator for the structured chat however there is no designated "leader" or "instructor" for the premise of #SAchat. The idea is to decentralize learning and allow the community to guide the community (how occupy of us!). Though, by observing #SAchat you can quickly identify heavy hitters easily. 

For a chuckle...blending learning at its finest!

Introducing Me!

As I previously mentioned I have been fortunate to be offered a new position at North Carolina Central University as the Social Media & Marketing Coordinator. This is the beginning of a great position and I hope to grow the office so that it can benefit the Division of Student Affairs & Enrollment Management in the months and years to come.

One of the coolest things I had the pleasure of doing was writing my job description, you can read it here. The second thing about this position I would consider unique is that my position was created from the "top". When talking to colleagues I find that it is usually a grassroots lobbying effort to create a similar position and then selling the idea up the chain.

So while I am in the process of setting up my office, ordering supplies and meeting with 14 department directors and plotting my professional development, I have sketched out a few goals for this year:

1) Streamline social media efforts for service related departments to enhance our customer service efforts (admissions, fin aid, res life, etc.)
2) Conduct social media training for support departments in order to create a fluid look and feel
3) Work with ITS in launching a few web pages on the agenda
4) Hire & train 2 amazing student workers (web/graphic design & A/V)
5) Position the division to align the communications plan with the goals and missions of the University
6) Collaborate with other student affairs technology pros to create shareware/apps/tech tools
7) Prepare to present in 2012

As I go through the motions I will keep updating. Anyone looking for a mentee? I'm in the market.

New Job, Summer Conference wrap up & 2nd Masters start

Wow, it has been a while since I have blogged!

I've had a slight career change which has been awesome so far. I am now the new Social Media & Marketing Coordinator for the division of Student Affairs & Enrollment Management at North Carolina Central University. This is a big deal but not just for me but the institution as a whole. I am thankful for the opportunity to start and grow this area of the division at NCCU. I will expand on this position in a follow up post. If you have questions go ahead and comment and I will address them in that post. Thank you to all who have been supportive!

In June I attended the FREeLearning Conference hosted by the wonderful folks over at Appalachian State in Boone. This one day conference included wonderful talks/showcases from education pros about what is going on in education technology in NC. My favorite presentation was by a professor Shira Hedgepeth who is only  a few hours short of her JD talking about a Digital Imprint class she taught. It was amazing the amount of student development she obtained out of the course along with educating undergraduates on the importance of knowing your digital imprint and how to find information, computer forensic style. You can view her Prezi here. Teaching something like this is definitely on my radar.

This past weekend I attended #satechBOS hosted by the amazing NE folks at Boston University and Ed Cabellon. I also dropped in on the #edutweetup hosted which donated $1000 to the Kahn Academy from our entry fees. Yay! Ed was a fantastic moderator for the first Student Affairs unConference. I really enjoyed the organic flow of things and the amazing turnout including my fellow NC colleagues Tim Bounds from Duke and Kevin McClain of UNC-Greensboro. While I was in Boston I visited Harvard, MIT, Fenway, a cupcake shop and the Freedom Trail which were all essential to my technology immersion process. The major themes I gathered were social media examples & practices, accessibility of media and how to implement a media/communication strategy without the staff. It was eye opening for me to listen to what challenges the north east coast regions are facing in the areas of #satech. I look forward to meeting more folks at #NASPAtech in October.

Last but not least this fall I am excited to start my second masters at Texas A&M University-Commerce in Educational Technology and Leadership. Classes start August 29th so stay tuned...