UIS online leader Ray Schroeder honored as an Outstanding Practitioner in Distance Education

Ray Schroeder, associate vice chancellor for online learning at the University of Illinois Springfield, was honored with the 2016 Wedemeyer Award for Outstanding Practitioner in Distance Education by the Univeristy of Wisconsin on August 10, 2016, in Madison, Wisconsin.

The bi-annual award honors leadership that has provided a model of practice benefitting present and future distance education programs, instructors, students, researchers, and practitioners.

“I am deeply honored to receive this award recognizing our work in distance learning,” said Schroeder. “Charles Wedemeyer is the founder of modern distance learning - his values are ones we carry forward at UIS. This recognition puts us in a small, elite group of leaders and innovators in online and distance learning nationally.”

Schroeder is a nationally recognized leader in the field of online learning and is the current director of the Center for Online Leadership at the University Continuing and Professional Education Association (UPCEA). He regularly presents his research at national conferences and has written numerous publications about online and technology-enhanced learning. He is also the author of the popular blogs “Online Learning Update” and “Educational Technology”.

He was recently honored by the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) with their Hall of Fame Award in May 2016. He was a Sloan Consortium Distinguished Scholar in Online Learning 2002-2003, recipient of the 2002 Sloan-C award for the “Most Outstanding Achievement in ALN by an Individual,” University of Southern Maine “Visiting Scholar in Online Learning” 2006-2009, and co-founder of the New Century Learning Consortium.

Schroeder was named the inaugural 2010 recipient of the Sloan Consortium's highest Individual award - the A. Frank Mayadas Leadership Award. He received the 2011 University of Illinois Distinguished Service Award. Schroeder was an inaugural Sloan Consortium Fellow and was named the 2012 Innovation Fellow for Digital Learning by the UPCEA.