Three UIS online educators honored as Sloan-C Fellows

Three University of Illinois Springfield online educators are among a nationwide group of leaders in the field being honored by the Sloan Consortium.

Burks Oakley II, Ray Schroeder and Karen Swan are among the inaugural class of sixteen Sloan-C Fellows. UIS stands out on the list with more recipients than any other university.

The honor is given to educators who have outstanding and extraordinary qualifications in the field of online learning, significant experience in online learning or an allied field, a record of distinguished service to Sloan-C or the field, and extraordinary contributions or leadership in the field of online learning.

Burks Oakley II is a scholar in residence at UIS and professor emeritus in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Oakley is being honored for innovative and inspirational work in the conceptualization, implementation and advocacy of online learning in higher education on a national scale.

Ray Schroeder, director of the Center for Online Learning, Research, and Service (COLRS) at UIS and professor emeritus of Communication is also being honored. His award is for increasing access to higher education by cultivating a breadth of online degree programs and for chronicling the progress of the theory and practice of online education through new media.

Professor Karen Swan is the Stukel Distinguished Professor of Educational Leadership in the College of Education and Human Services at UIS. Her honor is for rigorous research that has advanced the understanding of learning effectiveness in online and blended education.

The fellows will be recognized during a banquet on Nov. 3 at the 16th Annual Sloan-C International Conference on Online Learning in Orlando, Florida.