JOHN L. FRITZ

6222 Stratford Ct., Elkridge, MD  21075
410.579.8014 (H); 410.455.6596 (W)
fritz@umbc.edu or www.umbc.edu/~fritz

SKILLS

Teaching, Learning & Technology

o      Manage a Blackboard enterprise portal and learning system serving more than 12,000 users in 1,100 courses and 350 communities
o      Co-manage a monthly “Brown Bag” lecture series showcasing technology trends and best practices by faculty colleagues.
o      Lead UMBC’s Alternate Delivery Program for faculty redesign of courses for summer and winter online or hybrid (part online, part face-to-face) instruction.
o      Responsible for all classroom technology including support of 42 “smart classrooms” and strategic planning for equipping 41 remaining classrooms.
o      Training lead for UMBC’s PeopleSoft finance and HR implementation, 2003-2005, and manager of project Web site.
o      Instructor/course designer, IS/ENGL 387 “Web Content Development,” taught as a hybrid (part online and part face-to-face) course for English and Info. Systems Depts., 2001-present.
o      New Media Faculty Member, CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) Summer Institute in Communications & Marketing, 2001-2004

Web Strategy, Development & Usability

o      Manage UMBC’s campus Web committee staffed by the Offices of Information Technology and Institutional Advancement, 1995-present.
o      Lead content developer and information architect for UMBC’s Web site and portal, which both won CASE “Circle of Excellence” Gold Medals in 1999.
o      Project manager for UMBC’s Web Content Management System search.
o      Lead researcher for user needs of a new myUMBC portal; conducted 12 focus groups & interviews and online survey of 400 users, Fall 2002.
o      Project manager for a Blackboard usability project.
o      Advanced understanding of DreamWeaver and HTML, basic understanding and proficiency in ColdFusion, javascript, SQL, PhotoShop.

Communications

o      Editor and writer for quarterly OIT & UMBC Blackboard email/Web newsletters (2002 – present)
o      Responsible for training, documentation and support for Blackboard, PeopleSoft (2002-05) and campus Web publishing.
o      Wrote monthly “Tech Tips” Column in faculty/staff newspaper, 2000-2003.
o      Editor, UMBC IT Strategic Plan, 2000.
o      Contributing writer to CASE Currents Magazine: “Web Usability: A Process and a Goal” (May/June 2006), “Toward a more perfect union” (April 2004).
o      Contributing writer to Ragan’s Web Content Report
o      Speaker, Ragan Publishing’s annual Web Content Management conference (2003-present) and Higher Education Roundtable (6/15/04)
o      Speaker, EDUCAUSE 2002 national and mid-Atlantic regional conferences.
o      Speaker, Blackboard Users Conference, 2005, 2006
o      10 years experience as a public information officer at three University of Maryland campuses. Responsibilities included news and feature stories, releases, advisories, tip sheets, op-eds and newsletters; "crisis" or late-breaking news; press conferences, faculty interviews, and special events.

Service & Support

o      Chair, UMBC Enrollment Mgmt. Workgroup, 2006 Middle States Self-Study
o      Member, UMBC Retention Assessment Committee, 2006 to present
o      Chair, Maryland Blackboard Users Group, 2005 to present
o      Member, UMBC IT Steering Committee, 1998 to present
o      Member, UM System  “Pedagogy” Committee, 2003 to present
o      Member, UMBC PeopleSoft Steering Committee, 2003-2005
o      UMBC Staff Senator, 2002-2004
o      Member, Public Relations Society of America, MD Chapter, 1996-2000

EMPLOYMENT

University of Maryland, Baltimore County: (1995-present) Currently serve as Office of Information Technology’s Director of Instructional Technology & New Media (2006-present) managing 14 FT and 20+ PT student staff, and $900k operating and personnel budget. I oversee UMBC's strategic use of the Web, including focused efforts in teaching, learning and technology. Previously, I served as Director of New Media Learning & Development (7/01–7/06) Coordinator of Web Development (9/99-6/01), Director of News & Online Information (8/99 to 11/99) and Director of Media Relations (9/95 to 8/98).

Public Affairs Officer: University of Maryland at Baltimore (10/93 to 9/95). Responsible for schools of law, social work; back-up for school of medicine.

Public Information Officer: University of Maryland, College Park (9/87-8/90 & 2/92 to 10/93).  Editor, eight-page, weekly faculty/staff newspaper.

Public Relations Consultant: Cooperative Education Association, Inc., Columbia, MD  (1991-2000).  Built CEA’s member database & first Web site.

Part-time Adjunct English Lecturer: Maryland Correctional Institute at Jessup, administered through Essex Community College, (9/91 to 9/93).

Visiting Lecturer English Department, Newbold College, Binfield, Bracknell, Berkshire RG12 5AN, ENGLAND (9/90 to 8/91).

Asst to the President: Columbia Union College, Takoma Park, MD  20912 (9/85 to 6/87).  Primary duties: fundraising, grant writing and special events.

Research Intern, National Endowment for the Humanities, Washington, D.C.  20036 (Summer 1985).

EDUCATION

M.A., English (Rhetoric & Composition), University of MD, 1989
B.A., English & Religion, honors, Columbia Union College, 1985
Post-master’s Certificate, New Media Publishing, University of Baltimore, 2002
Post-master’s Certificate, Instructional Design, UMBC (2 of 4 courses)
EDUCAUSE Frye Leadership Institute Fellow, 2005 (1^st from Maryland)
EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative, 2006 to present (lead member for UMBC)

HOBBIES

Golf (lowest 18-hole score: 84, 6/14/04)
Swimming (completed 4.4 mile Great Chesapeake Bay Swim, 1998, 1999)
Basketball (regular, Tuesday & Thursday faculty/staff lunchtime pickup game)
Singing (Bass soloist for area churches; member, Baltimore Opera, 1996)