lblanken@gmail.com; 267-496-3829
Education
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Dissertation: Interactivism: Using Blogs in the Composition Classroom
Advisor: Dr. Patrick Slattery
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee
Employment and Experience
Current
Emerging Technologies Consulting, Havertown, PA
President, January 2009-Present
- Deliver workshops on social software and related topics
- Deliver presentations
- Consult on technology implementation in educational and non-profit settings
- Write best practices documents and white papers
Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA
Senior Instructional Technologist, January 2003-October 2008
- Determine the overall direction of Instructional Technology at the College
- In 2007-2008 school year, implemented blog software, conducted an evaluation of our course management system, implemented iTunesU, initiated discussion and evaluation of video streaming solutions.
- In 2007-2008 school year, implemented blog software, conducted an evaluation of our course management system, implemented iTunesU, initiated discussion and evaluation of video streaming solutions.
- Coordinate with librarians and other staff to develop programs and support for faculty use of technology
- Examples: Unified support for video editing with the library and the language lab
- Plan and coordinate the Summer Multimedia Development Institute
- 2007-2008, restructured program to partner with the Teaching and Learning Initiative and tie projects to courses. Also extended the program to the school year, assigning a technology assistant to each faculty member in the program.
- Evaluate and coordinate proposals from faculty.
- Evaluate and hire students.
- Coordinate support among librarians, technicians and the Help Desk for Blackboard
- Research, present and publish on educational technology topics.
- Other duties include assisting with web design and development for the college, serving as our DMCA agent, supporting social software and multimedia in other areas such as Admissions and Student Affairs.
Humanities Node Coordinator, June 2007-October 2008
- Work with Humanities faculty to plan technology support.
- Serve as liaison between faculty and IT.
- Meet with supporting staff to plan support and initiatives that affect Humanities faculty.
Teaching Experience
Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA
Instructor, Fall 2005/Fall 2006
College Seminar (first-year writing), “Telling Tales out of School: What College Life is Really Like”
Villanova University, Villanova, PA
Adjunct Instructor, Spring 2002-Fall 2003
Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
Adjunct Instructor, Fall 2001
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR
Instructor, Fall 1997-Spring 2001
Composition I, English 1013, Writing Across the Curriculum, 3 sections
Honors Compostion II, English 1023, Writing about Literature, 2 sections
Technical Composition, English 1023, 1 section
Advanced Composition, English 2003, 1 section
Publications
“Blogging.” Enclyclopedia Entry. Blackwell’s Encyclopedia of Literary and Cultural Theory. Forthcoming.
“Being on the Political Sidelines”. Civic Discourse. May, 2009.
“Podcasting in Education: A Perspective from Bryn Mawr College.” Academic Commons. 7 February 2007. [http://www.academiccommons.org/commons/essay/blankenship-podcasting]
“Technology and the Liberal Arts.” Inside Higher Ed. 29 December 2005. [http://insidehighered.com/views/2005/12/29/blankenship]
Presentations
“Building Your Personal Brand Online.” Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA. 29 July 2009.
“Beyond Fear 2.0.” New Media Consortium Summer Conference. Monterey, CA. 11-13 June 2009.
“Any Moron Can Write A Blog.” Plenary Presentation. Faculty Academy. University of Mary Washington, Fredericksburg, VA. 12-15 May 2009.
“Building a Personal Learning Nework.” Workshop. Faculty Academy. University of Mary Washington, Fredericksburg, VA. 12-15 May 2009.
“Doing the Limbo: Navigating the Spaces in Between.” Northern Voice 2009. 18-22 February 2009.
“Social Software in Education.” NITLE-sponsored workshop. Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, PA. 20 January 2009.
“Research as Play.” Watson Conference. Louisville, KY. 15-18 October 2008.
“Using Blogs to Create a Learning Community.” Tri-College Library Summit. Haverford, PA. May 2008.
“Workshop for Using Social Software in Writing Classes.” Learning to Write in the Digital Age. 16-18 April 2008.
“Social Software in the Curriculum.” NITLE Annual Summit. San Francisco, CA. 3-5 April 2008.
“Technology and Education: Theory and Practice.” Invited Talk. Husson College, Bangor, ME. 20 March 2008.
“Who’s Afraid of Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and the Big Bad CMS? A Digi-Drama About Fear 2.0.” Educause Learning Initiative Annual Conference. San Antonio, TX 28-31 January 2008.
“Putting it all Out There: Why I Blogged my Dissertation.” Opening Plenary Session. Scholarly Collaboration and Small Colleges in the Digital Age. Pomona, CA. 9-11 January 2008.
“Interactivism: Implementing Blogs to Teach Writing Skills.” University of Mary Washington Faculty Academy. Fredericksburg, VA. 16-18 May 2007.
“Interactivism: Blogging in Freshman Writing.” Philadelphia Area Educational Technology Conference. Drexel University. Philadelphia, PA. 22-23 February 2007.
“Edublogging.” BlogHer. San Jose, CA. 28 July 2006.
“Remix Culture: Personal Broadcasting in Higher Education.” Invited Keynote. New Media Consortium Online Conference. 26-27 April 2006.
“Taking the Lecture Away: Podcasting and Screencasting at a Small Liberal Arts College.” Educause Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference. Baltimore. 11 January 2006.
“A Class Blogs.” Panel Presenter. WebCT User’s Group Meeting. Villanova. 12 October 2005.
“Science Blogging: How Science is Spun in the Blogosphere.” Drexel University invited talk. 25 April 2005.
“Science Blogging.” Science in Society. Bryn Mawr College. 5 April 2005.
“Going Hybrid: Experiences and Resources for Breaking Down the Walls of the Classroom.” Conference on College Composition and Communication. New York. 19 March 2003.
“Revisionist Composition: Teaching Revision by Becoming a Student.” Interdisciplinary Conference on Language and Literature. Texas A&M University. 18 September 1998.
Grant Experience
Project coordinator, Women’s Public Voices, NITLE, Spring 2006-present
Technology Consultant, co-coordinator, Writing in the Quantitative Disciplines, NITLE, January 2004-June 2004. Jointly written with Professors Gail Hemmeter, English, and David Ross, Economics, this grant awarded funds that allowed us to conduct a 2-day workshop for faculty outlining strategies for incorporating writing in disciplines such as physics, biology, chemistry, economics, and sociology. Worked with Professors Hemmeter and Ross throughout the application and planning process, vetting speakers, planning workshop activities, and recruiting faculty. On day two, I organized all the technology activities and conducted two sessions on the use of blogs, wikis and course management systems to facilitate student writing assignments.
Professional Service
NITLE, Learning to Write in the Digital Age Conference Planning and Curriculum Committee, October 2007-April 2008
Bryn Mawr College, Fall 2006-October 2008
Advisory Board, Empowering Learners Initiative
Bryn Mawr College, Fall 2006-October 2008
Advisory Board, Teaching and Learning Initiative
Philadephia Area Educational Technology Conference, Fall 2005-present
Founder and Organizer
Bryn Mawr College, Fall 2005-present
Executive Council, Staff Association
Fellowships and Awards
NITLE Technology Fellow, 2007
Leo Van Syoc Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2000
Relevant Professional Development
Project Management for Higher Education. 28 April 2008
Educause Management Institute. 5-8 February 2007