On behalf of the Symposium Planning Committee I would like to thank you for participating in this year’s symposium. The symposium is meant to be a day of celebration. We come together to showcase some of the extraordinary work being done by our community. And I must stress this is only a small piece of what is going on. We do our best each year to feature as many as you as possible and we always come up short. This is not for lack of trying on our part. It speaks to the amazing work being done all across the commonwealth by all of you. I believe this year’s theme, Digital Scholarship and the Culture of Teaching and Learning, accurately encapsulates the work being done at Penn State. Together we are creating a scholarship for the ages.
The main goal of the symposium has always been to provide a space for faculty to interact with other faculty and staff and discuss the ways they have used technology to enhance teaching, learning, and research. And you have responded. I hope you had a wonderful time and got lots of great ideas by attending the many breakout sessions, participating in a hands-on demonstration of some of the latest initiatives, checking out the poster session, and taking some time to talk with your peers. If, like me, you found there were too many sessions you wanted to see so you had to make tough choices, you’ll be coming back to the Symposium site for more. Over the next few weeks we’ll be releasing some video and audio recordings of the day.
I also hope you took advantage of the opportunity to participate in the backchannel discussion by tweeting, blogging, and taking pictures. Who won the photo contest? In case you forgot, please go back and add the symposium tag, psutlt, so we can include your piece of the conversation on the symposium site.
One final note, I have had the good fortune of being involved with the planning of symposium the last four years. For the last two I served as Program Chair. It is time for me to step aside and give someone else a chance to lead. But before I do, I want to say what a privilege it has been. Chairing an event such as the symposium provides a unique opportunity to come in touch with so many incredible people, be it those who work behind the scenes to make it all happen or those of you on the front lines of teaching, learning, and research using technology to push the boundaries of knowledge. You make us all the better for it. Without all of you, the symposium would not be possible.
With warm memories and deep regards,
Jeff
