Home » About the Center for Distributed Learning » Our Teams » CDL Leadership Team CDL Leadership Team The CDL Leadership Team provides oversight to the work of the Center for Distributed Learning under the authority of UCF's Division of Digital Learning. Kevin Corcoran, M.B.A. Assistant Vice Provost, Center for Distributed Learning kevin.corcoran@ucf.edu Kevin Corcoran is Assistant Vice Provost for the Center for Distributed Learning at the University of Central Florida, where he leads initiatives that advance the quality, accessibility, affordability, and effectiveness of digital learning. With more than 30 years of experience, his work spans online learning strategy, faculty development, learning technology, accessibility, open education, learning analytics, artificial intelligence, and immersive learning. Kevin has supported statewide and national educational innovation efforts for more than a decade. He is the founder of the Learning Analytics Builders Coalition, a national community focused on expanding institutional capacity for the effective use of learning analytics and has held leadership roles including chair of the Connecticut OER Coordinating Council and the Driving OER Sustainability for Student Success collaborative. His recent work includes advancing responsible uses of artificial intelligence, accessible digital learning practices, open education, and scalable immersive learning experiences. Janette Rivera Administrative Assistant II janette@ucf.edu Janette Rivera is an Administrative Assistant II at UCF’s Center for Distributed Learning, where she supports the Associate Vice Provost and CDL Leadership Team in advancing digital learning initiatives. She brings more than 20 years of administrative experience in education and healthcare, with expertise in executive support, scheduling and coordination, and budget and data management. Before joining UCF, Janette served as an Executive Secretary at Seminole County Public Schools, where she managed confidential employee and student records, coordinated complex schedules, oversaw payroll and budgets, and contributed to schoolwide decision-making. Known for her dependability, organizational skills, and ability to balance multiple responsibilities, she is trusted with sensitive information and valued for her collaborative approach. Francisca Yonekura, Ph.D. Associate Department Head francisca@ucf.edu (407) 882-0025 As Associate Department Head at CDL, Francisca’s responsibilities encompass the areas of course and application development, instructional systems integrations, and R&D of emerging technologies to support online learning. She brings eighteen years of experience in instructional technology in higher education, military, and hospitality industry. Her research interests are immersive learning environments, game based learning, and emerging technologies for learning and innovation. Francisca holds a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction and an M.A. in instructional systems and technology. She has facilitated the procurement of patents, trademarks, and service marks for instructional web applications. Francisca is an awardee of the Innovator award for the Inaugural Excellence in Research & Innovation Cohort by UCF Office of Research and Commercialization. Francisca and her talented team of software and web developers have received many recognitions including the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies Outstanding Work award 2013, Davis Productivity Awards (2011, 2006, 2005) for their learning and business operations applications, and the Virtual Campus Tour Award October 2001. Beth Nettles, Ph.D. Director, Learning Content Production Beth.Nettles@ucf.edu (407) 882-0479 As Director for Learning Content Production, Dr. Beth Nettles has functional oversite of the Instructional Development (iDev), CDL Graphics, and Video@CDL teams at the Center for Distributed Learning (CDL). Beth has created a number of professional development resources designed specifically for faculty teaching online courses and managed the Teaching with Lecture Capture (TLC) courses. She routinely presents the work of CDL to colleagues at other institutions and at professional conferences. Dr. Nettles has also provided project management services for several university-wide initiatives such as UCF’s most recent learning management system migration (from Blackboard to Canvas), the Knights Online orientation to online learning, and the tactical implementation of UCF Online. Beth has over twenty years of experience teaching programming, software applications, and web technologies in post-secondary education. Dr. Nettles holds a Ph.D. in Information Technology in Education from the University of Nevada, Reno; an MA in Instructional Technology and a BS in Business Administration from UCF. Wendy Howard, Ed.D. Program Director, Digital Learning Innovation Lab wendy.howard@ucf.edu (407) 823-0460 Wendy joined the Center for Distributed Learning in July 2011 with a diverse background in both corporate training and higher education. In addition to her Doctor of Education degree in Instructional Design & Technology from UCF, Wendy has also earned a BA in Mathematics and Secondary Education and an MA in Corporate Communication & Technology from Rollins College. Her current research is focused on faculty development, digital learning in STEM disciplines, collaborative online learning and internationalizing the curriculum through technology. She also provides a practitioner’s perspective based on over twenty years of experience in both design and instruction. As the program director of UCF’s iLab, Dr. Howard’s primary focus is to strategically align, promote, and provide project management support for initiatives that contribute to the lab’s mission to serve as an incubator for the next generation of digital learning by supporting faculty and staff in piloting, refining, and evaluating innovations that positively impact student success at scale. Kerlene King, M.S. Director, Learning Platform Services lmsadmin@ucf.edu (407) 823-4910 Kerlene King has a B.S. in Computer Information Systems, an M.S. in Management Information Systems and is a certified Project Management Professional. She has worked with the Center for Distributed Learning (CDL) for over 10 years as the team lead for the Learning Management System Administrators. Her duties include providing direction and support for the LMS team and Webcourses@UCF Support team, providing tier 2/3 support for the institution, working on projects to help extend the features of the LMS, and utilizing LMS data to assist in improving student success. With her wealth of knowledge and experience, Kerlene represents the university at various consortiums and co-facilitates meetings with peers at other institutions to share and learn best practices. Rhiannon Pollard, Ph.D. Director, Instructional Design rhiannon@ucf.edu (407) 823-0689 Rhiannon leads the central team of Instructional Designers supporting faculty development, pedagogical consultation, and course quality for online teaching and learning. She holds a PhD in educational technology along with certificates in life coaching, transformational coaching, and death coaching. Her primary research focus centers on instructional designers in higher education—their professional identities, roles, challenges, supports, and professional development, and has authored and co-authored peer-reviewed articles and presentations on topics such as instructional design, online learning, faculty development, and student mentoring in online environments.
