Andy Casiello
Assistant
Vice President
Academic Technology Services
Old Dominion University
Personal Profile
I grew up in Western Massachusetts, where at an early age I participated in a live television show produced out of our local CBS affiliate station in Hartford, CT. From that day forward I knew what I wanted to do with my life - be a television cameraman.
As most careers go, that's not exactly what I am doing these days, but I did spend some time behind the camera. I earned my BS degree from a small school in Massachusetts, Fitchburg State College, and interned and later free lanced for the local PBS Station, WGBY-TV in Springfield, MA., while still in college.
My first job out of college was with a small community college in Massachusetts, as a television studio technician. I moved to a position as chief engineer at another community college before taking a position with the University of Massachusetts as the chief engineer of their televised distance learning program.
I spent nine years at Umass before moving to a virtual university in Colorado, National Technological University (NTU), as the Satellite Network Director, and later VP of Technology. While at NTU I met the folks behind the distance learning program here at ODU, and watched them build the beautiful Gornto Center here on campus. A position in technical management opened up, and in January of 2002, I took the position of Assistant Vice President for Academic Technology Services at ODU.
Academic Interests
A lot has happened in distance education technologies since I began my career in the early 1980's. While television systems are still in widespread use to deliver live instruction to remote students, other technologies such as videoconference systems, videostreaming, basic web courses and more advanced courses built within Learning Management Systems or SCORM Learning Objects have begun to pave the way toward much more advanced and flexible learning environments. I have a great deal of interest in understanding how to best utilize these technologies in the process of teaching and learning.
Many institutions deploy distance education technologies based on factors such as cost, access to the largest number of potential students, etc., without sufficient consideration of the pedagogical implications of the technology on the process of education. Often, faculty are not involved in distance education system review or decision making, and therefore the needs of the faculty and students are often not met.
My area of interest is in understanding the pedagogic implications and capabilities associated with various delivery methodologies, and in working to maximize the learning environment for faculty and students associated with ODU's distance learning program
Why I Chose the IDT Program at ODU
My undergraduate degree is in Communications Media, with a specilization in television systems. This degree prepared me to understand the technical implications of the delivery environment, but did not educate me in the area of human thinking and learning. I have spent the last twenty years deploying and supporting technologies for distance education, but have always felt I wanted to know more about how people learn, so that the systems used to deliver and support education could be maximized.
My main areas of interest are in the theories of learning and in instructional design processes. This program offers a good deal of both of subjects. An excellent mix of indepth study of learning theory along with the step by step processes involved in the design of instruction and the pedagogical approaches to instruction make this a perfect match to my areas of academic interest. As I write this I am entering my second year with the program, and find the coursework both very satisfying and extremely relevant to my role at ODU.
Other Areas of Interest
Other areas of interest within my academic pursuits are the development of reusable learning object based systems and digital media libraries, working with faculty to design flexible instruction environments that take advantage of pedagogical needs, SCORM, and advancements in Learning Management Systems.
Hobbies include amateur radio - I'm amateur extra class - call sign AG4XI - , technology gadgets, digital video and photography, television systems, satellite technology, audio recording, sports cars and my family (not necessarily in that order).