LEMONT FURNACE, Pa. — Cheryl Tkacs, instructional designer, has retired from Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus after 15 years of service.
In her position, she worked to train faculty and staff to use technology and applications, led pedagogical and professional development sessions, served on numerous committees, wrote and facilitated grant proposals, and served as liaison between the Fayette campus and Penn State’s Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence and Teaching and Learning with Technology (TLT) unit. She served as the faculty senate communications officer for four years.
“Since 2006, Cheryl has provided a wealth of training and one-on-one assistance to faculty and staff with intelligence, humor, and kind professionalism,” said Charles Patrick, Fayette campus chancellor and chief academic officer.
Tkacs has attended and presented at over a dozen professional conferences. Her paper “Determining Pedagogically Sound Methods of Teaching and Learning Computational Skills” was published by the International Academy, Research, and Industry Association. She presented her work at The Tenth International Conference on Mobile, Hybrid, and Online Learning in Rome, Italy, in 2018.
Additionally, she helped to develop an Instructional Design Academy course to train employees for the position, provided orientation to new faculty and adjuncts, and even taught ART 101 to students.
“The accomplishment I am most proud of was working with faculty, staff, and administration to have the Fayette campus converted to the Canvas learning management system. We were the first campus to complete this project,” said Tkacs. Penn State faculty and staff use Canvas to manage courses, share resources, and communicate with students.
Tkacs, who lives in Greensburg, looks forward to a more flexible schedule for volunteering, adjunct teaching, and spending time with family and friends.
“I will miss all of the people I have worked with and become friends with over the years,” she said. “I know it’s been said many times, but the Fayette campus is truly a close family. Everyone works together to create a positive and creative environment in which our students can learn and excel in all that they do.”