A department on the University of Wisconsin campus dedicated to educating faculty and staff on effective technology use has a new director, UW’s Division of Information Technology announced Friday.
Linda Jorn comes to UW from the University of Minnesota, where she was the Director of Academic Technology.
She said she decided to move from the University of Minnesota to UW because of UW’s strong reputation in academic technology.
DoIT Chief Operating Officer John Krogman said Jorn will oversee programs responsible for teaching faculty and academic staff how to use technology.
“Her job is really to strengthen the technology component in the teaching environment,” he said.
Krogman said he hopes to see Jorn continue where her predecessor Kathy Christoph left off, while looking toward the future.
Currently, Chancellor Biddy Martin is considering hiring a consultant to examine the efficiency of UW programs, including Information Technology, and Krogman said he’d like to see Jorn participate from the IT side should a consultant be hired.
Jorn said even though she will start her duties at the end of January, if a consultant is hired she’s confident she’ll be able to aid the process and find any information needed through the team of people on her staff.
“[The consultant firm] will have a process so I’ll engage in that process and help collect information,” Jorn said.
Jorn will start her duties Jan. 31, and Krogman said he’s excited to have someone of her caliber taking charge.
Krogman said Jorn is highly respected in the field of academic technology and is well known for working with academic staff and researchers.
She has also given lectures nationally on the best practices for academic technology, he added.
“It was a combination of experience and skill…that led us to choose her and we’re absolutely delighted,” Krogman said.
The position opened in August when former director Christoph decided to retire. Krogman said Director of User Services Cathy O’Bryan has served as interim director since Christoph’s retirement.
Jorn was chosen out of four finalists Krogman said.
