Dr. Larry Johnson is Chief Executive Officer of the New Media Consortium (NMC), an international consortium of colleges, universities, museums and technology companies dedicated to using new technologies to inspire, energize, stimulate, and support learning and creative expression.

He is an acknowledged expert on the effective application of information technology in higher education, and has authored a number of books, monographs, and articles on that topic, as well as on the related areas of distance learning, strategic planning, and institutional effectiveness. Dr. Johnson has more than 25 years of experience in higher education. His service includes roles as faculty, dean, senior executive, and president.

Presentation: So Who Are These NMC People Anyway?

Lunch keynote session 12:15pm - 1:00pm, Student Union 100ABC

The New Media Consortium (NMC) is an international 501(c)3 not-for-profit consortium of nearly 200 leading colleges, universities, museums, corporations, and other learning-focused organizations dedicated to the exploration and use of new media and new technologies. Among these members are the Maricopa Community Colleges. The consortium serves as a catalyst for the development of new applications of technology to support learning and creative expression, and sponsors programs and activities designed to stimulate innovation, encourage collaboration, and recognize excellence among its member institutions. Come and learn about this work and how Maricopa has been and is involved -- and how you can take advantage of that involvement on your campus. Learn about the NMC's four major initiatives and international projects like the Horizon Project and Pachyderm -- and how you can be a part of the NMC's efforts to stimulate dialog and understanding through the exploration of promising ideas, technologies, and applications.

The New Media Consortium: Sparking Innovative Learning and Creativity by Larry Johnson (4 page paper)
Adobe Acrobat document: about_nmc.pdf [76k PDF]

Breakout Session: The future ain't what it used to be...

Afternoon breakout session 2:00pm - 3:00pm)

After more than 20 years of unrelenting change, what is next on the horizon for colleges and universities? If there is one thing we've learned, it is that the road to the future is paved with hyperbole and too many of the "next big things" turn out to have been so much wasted time. How can an instructional technologist today stay abreast of emerging technology without taking time away from the pressing demands of the real work that needs to be done?

The Horizon Project, a project launched three years ago by the NMC, is an effort to ease that task somewhat. The hope is to try to distinguish those new technologies that may offer considerable opportunity to advance teaching, learning, and creative expression in higher education from those which may have very little impact, and to then identify promising educational applications and ideas worthy of further exploration.

In this address, Larry will draw on the first set of findings of the Horizon Project to set the stage for a discussion of key technology trends and issues -- and emerging technologies to watch. Looking through the dark lens that characterizes technology prognostication, he'll share his perceptions on where the long and winding road of technology integration will take us next, and share some insights about technology use in teaching and learning.

More on the Horizon Project
http://www.nmc.org/horizon/