NMC Board of Directors

The NMC Board of Directors is a group of ten visionary individuals who all share a common commitment to the promise of technology to transform the work we do as learners and educators. The NMC Board focuses its time and considerable talents on considering the future of both formal and informal education and in setting the strategic course for the NMC in that future. The board has embraced the principles of policy governance, and shares the following core beliefs:

• We are unabashedly pro-technology, and our passion for the work we do is fueled by what we believe to be true about education.
• We believe that education not only should change its core practices, but that it must.
• We believe that the need for change is urgent -- we cannot continue to tweak the same outmoded models and expect results that have eluded us for decades.
• We believe that technology -- itself a dynamic and ever-changing landscape -- provides the levers to enable that change. If we can embrace the never-ending flow of new technologies and put creative thought to how to apply them, those same processes can be applied to other organizational dynamics.
• Furthermore, we believe that technology brings us more than a facility in managing change. It connects us in ways that matter, and allows expression to our humanity.

The NMC Board is authorized for a maximum of fifteen seats, but only ten are generally filled. Board members serve three years, and each spring, the Board considers nominations to replace the three members who retire each year. Up to four seats each are set aside for members and platinum partners; an additional four are designated as “at-large” and open to anyone the board wishes to invite.

The board has three special seats as well — one is reserved for the CEO; two additional seats are set aside for “visionaries,” and these seats are filled by extraordinary thinkers whose role is to help the board to approach its work creatively and see its mission in new ways.

Current NMC Board of Directors 

Holly Willis, Chair
University of Southern California
Board Member since 2008

Holly Willis is a Research Assistant Professor in the School of Cinematic Arts , as well as Director of Academic Programs at the University of Southern California’s Institute for Multimedia Literacy . She recently edited "The New Ecology of Things"  (Art Center College of Design, 2007), a collection of essays, words, images and fiction that grapples with the potential and design challenges of pervasive computing. She is also the author of "New Digital Cinema: Reinventing the Moving Image"  (Wallflower Press, 2005), which chronicles the advent of digital filmmaking tools and their impact on contemporary media practices. The former editor of RES Magazine , Ms. Willis has written extensively on experimental media practices and emerging pedagogical models for a variety of publications, and is currently editing a collection of essays centered on multimedia scholarship.

Gardner Campbell, Vice-Chair
Baylor University
Board Member since 2009

Gardner Campbell is Director of the Academy for Teaching and Learning at Baylor University , where he also serves as Associate Professor of Literature, Media, and Learning in the Honors College. Before coming to Baylor, he was Professor of English at the University of Mary Washington , where from 2003-2006 he also served as Assistant Vice-President for Teaching and Learning Technologies. He has been involved in teaching and learning technologies for nearly two decades, including work at the University of San Diego and the University of Richmond, where in the fall of 2006 he was Director of the Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology. Gardner received his B.A. in English from Wake Forest University, and his M.A. and Ph.D. in English from the University of Virginia. He is a Fellow of the Frye Leadership Institute (2005), was chair of the Electronic Campus of Virginia from 2006 to 2008, and has served on program committees for both EDUCAUSE and the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative. He currently serves on the ELI Advisory Board (2007-2011) and on the Board of Directors for the New Media Consortium. Gardner is a life member of the Milton Society of America (Executive Committee, 2004-2007), a former secretary of the Literature/Film Association, and a contributing editor for Literature/Film Quarterly. He has presented at numerous national and international conferences on Renaissance literature, film, and teaching and learning technologies. Recent publications include articles on Milton’s prose (MLA Press), Orson Welles (Literature/Film Quarterly), separate essays on faculty development and podcasting (EDUCAUSE Review), and information technologies in higher education (Change). You can read Gardner’s blog, “Gardner Writes,” at http://www.gardnercampbell.net/.

Don Henderson, Treasurer
Apple Computer, Inc
Board Member since 2008

Don Henderson is the  Senior Manager of Creative Expression for Apple Education.  In his role, Don is responsible for creating programs and solutions that integrate Apple’s Digital Media Tools across the curriculum. In this role, Don works with educators around the country and abroad who have created programs focused on the use Apple’s Professional Applications. Prior to joining Apple, Don was the Director of Educational and Library Technology for the Grossmont Union High School District  in San Diego, California.  Don is also a two-time Smithsonian Laureate for the award winning Digital Media programs he created for the Grossmont Union High.

Larry Johnson, Ex-Officio
Chief Executive Officer, NMC
Board Member since 2002

Laurence F. Johnson, Ph.D. is the founder of the Horizon Project, which produces the acclaimed series of Horizon Reports  that are now used by more than a half-million educators in nearly 60 countries, and Chief Executive Officer of the New Media Consortium, an international not-for-profit consortium dedicated to the exploration and use of new media and new technologies. Its hundreds of member institutions constitute an elite list of the most highly regarded universities, museums, research centers, and companies in the world. Johnson is an acknowledged expert on emerging technology and its impacts on society and education, and the topics of creativity, innovation, and how to think about the future. With more than 25 years of experience in the higher education arena, he has served in roles from professor to dean, CIO and provost, and most recently, president before joining the NMC in 2001.

danah boyd, Board Member
Microsoft Research
Board Member since 2009

danah boyd is a social scientist at Microsoft Research  and a research associate at Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet and Society. In her research, she examines everyday practices involving social media, with specific attention to youth participation. Lately, she has been focused on issues related to privacy, publicity, and visibility. She recently co-authored Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out: Kids Living and Learning with New Media. She is currently co-directing the Youth and Media Policy Working Group, funded by the MacArthur Foundation. She blogs at http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/ and tweets at @zephoria.

David Dwyer, Visionary
University of Southern California
Board Member since 2010

Dr. David C. Dwyer was selected to be the first holder of the newly endowed Katzman-Ernst Chair at the USC Rossier School of Education. He comes to USC with more than 30 years experience as an industry leader, researcher, and educator. Dr. Dwyer began his career as a classroom teacher in the St. Louis, Missouri area, where he taught middle- and high-school science and completed his Ph.D. at Washington University in St. Louis, specializing in change and innovation in American Schools. He was research director for the Instructional Management Program at West Ed  in San Francisco before beginning his first ten years of research on children, teachers, and technology at Apple Computer and led the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT)  program. His work and collaboration with researchers from numerous universities earned him the title of Apple Distinguished Scientist. With that background Dr. Dwyer has worked steadily to apply his research findings to the development of better educational software products, serving as VP of Advanced Technologies at Simon and Schuster  (Computer Curriculum Corporation); Chief Academic Officer at Apex Learning ; CEO of EdPoint, and COO at KD Learning, and again at Apple as Director of Education Technologies. From his varied experience, Dr. Dwyer has written and spoken widely about innovation in education, educational leadership, and technology.

Peter Isaacson, Board Member
Adobe Systems, Inc
Board Member since 2008

Peter Isaacson has over 20 years of experience in marketing, with job responsibilities ranging from branding and advertising, to field marketing and product marketing.  Peter is currently the Vice President of Worldwide Education at Adobe, overseeing all aspects of marketing for the Education business, including product marketing,  product pricing, channel marketing and program development.   Prior to managing the Education business, Peter led Worldwide Field Marketing for all Adobe products,  managing a team of marketing professionals across 20+ countries.   Peter got his start in advertising, working at agencies in New York on traditional packaged goods accounts such at Procter & Gamble and Chesebrough Ponds, before making the transition to technology by leading the Compaq account.   From there, Peter moved to the client side, and changed coasts to lead advertising, branding, and relationship marketing for Adobe.  When not overwhelmed by the demands of his 7 and 9 year old children, Peter enjoys almost all sports and outdoor activities, including mountain biking, skiing, basketball, tennis and golf.

Philip Long, Board Member
University of Queensland
Board Member 2006-2009, Board member since 2010

Phil is a Professor Innovation and Educational Technology, founding Director of the Centre for Educational Innovation and Technology  at the University of Queensland , and a Visiting Researcher at the Center for Educational Computing Initiatives at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is a lapsed biologist cum learning technologist focused on emerging technologies and learning spaces, physical and virtual.

Scott Sayre, Board Member
Sandbox Studios
Board Member since 2010

Scott Sayre is a founder and principal at Sandbox Studios, a Minneapolis-based group that works with museums and other non-profits to plan, create, manage and assess education programs and technology projects. Sandbox Studios creatively applies tested technologies and innovative educational strategies to bring museum collections and people together. Sandbox Studios staff design and develop projects ranging from online classroom materials to Web portals encompassing multi-museum collections. In 2005 Sandbox formed a new division, Museum411, which specializes in the production of mobile device-based audio tour/information systems for museums, galleries and sculpture parks. Scott has a doctorate in Education and has over twenty years of experience working with emerging education and information technologies. He teaches at Johns Hopkins University, Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano  and the University of Victoria. In 2002-2003 Scott served as the Art Museum Image Consortium's Director of Member Services and US Operations. From 1991-2002 he was the Director of Media and Technology at The Minneapolis Institute of Arts. Prior to his work with museums Scott was a Media Applications Researcher at the University of Minnesota's Telecommunications Development Center.

Marco Torres, Visionary
PushCreativity.com
Board Member since 2009

Marco Antonio Torres has taught high school for ten years,  and has been media coach and education technology director for San Fernando High School,  one of the nation’s largest urban schools in Los Angeles. In addition to his work in the classroom,  Marco Torres is also a professional filmmaker and photographer who uses these digital storytelling skills to add value to his curriculum. He has been recognized locally and internationally,  including being honored as a California Teacher of the Year,  for his accomplishments in the classroom,  and for the use of technology to empower minority students. Torres is an advocate for more collaboration between the media arts world. In addition,  many television,  radio,  online, magazines,  books,  and news periodicals have highlighted his media rich program. Torres has presented at numerous conferences throughout the world and his practical workshops help teachers push their teaching and learning to new exciting levels. He is a consultant for many U.S. and international schools and has keynoted in almost every state. He sits on the board for the George Lucas Educational Foundation,  New Media Consortium and Full Sail University Online Advance Studies. He has been recognized by thought leadership groups such as TED and Big Ideas Fest. Marco currently serves as an advisor on education leadership, strategy, and creativity both nationally and internationally in places such as Texas, Chicago, NY, Mexico, Australia and London and is co-owner of Alas Media, a production studio.