Penn State's College of Education is regularly ranked among the nation's best graduate schools by U.S. News & World Report, and this online program is taught by the same nationally recognized faculty.

Francis Dwyer, DEd

Dr. Dwyer, professor of instructional systems, received his doctorate in educational administration from Penn State. His current interests are corporate training, performance technology, and visual learning. Dr. Dwyer has served as president of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology and the International Visual Literacy Association (IVLA). He has conducted more than 300 research studies on visual learning, which have resulted in the publication of four texts directly related to the design and use of visualization in the instructional/training process. In 1991 he received IVLA's Research Award for 25 years of sustained research contributions to the field of visual learning.

Barbara L. Grabowski, PhD

Dr. Grabowski is a professor of instructional systems. Her main research agenda is to study learning through and with technology. Questions defining this agenda focus on understanding what types of learning opportunities that are mentally engaging, content rich, and highly motivating can be crafted with technology. Recently, with assistance from a research grant from NASA, Dr. Grabowski has been focusing her efforts on understanding how the K–12 teacher and the student function as partners for learning with the World Wide Web. In addition, she is investigating how that partnership is affected when the web functions as the means of communication between them. Prior to coming to Penn State, she was a designer, developer, and evaluator for a distance delivery program for nuclear reactor operators, and a designer of multimedia materials for industry, the military, and medical education at the Center for Instructional Development and Evaluation of the University of Maryland University College, and the Office of Medical Education at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. She also has previous academic experience as an associate professor at Syracuse University.

Kyle L. Peck, PhD

Dr. Peck, professor of instructional systems, is also manager of the Link to Learn Professional Development Project, a statewide initiative designed to prepare educational professionals to use today's global computer networks effectively. He is also co-founder and "head of school" for the innovative Centre Learning Community Charter School in State College, Pennsylvania, and president-elect of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology. Dr. Peck taught middle school for seven years, was involved in corporate training for five years, and has been on the Penn State faculty for 10 years. He is co-author of two books, numerous book chapters and journal articles, and three educational software programs. Dr. Peck received the President's Award from the Pennsylvania Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development for "long-standing leadership in reshaping Pennsylvania's educational vision and future." He was also identified as one of the "100 Most Influential People in U.S. Public Education" by Homework Hotline, Inc. He received both his doctorate in educational psychology/educational technology and his master's degree in education/reading from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Susan Land, PhD

Dr. Land is an associate professor of instructional systems. Her teaching emphases include the integration of multimedia and Internet technology into the curriculum, and the use of computer-mediated communications for learning. Technology, and its role in redefining the teaching–learning process, is a central focus of her courses. Dr. Land holds a doctorate in instructional systems, a master's degree in instructional systems, and a bachelor's degree in psychology, all from the Florida State University. While at FSU, she initiated a line of research on the process of conceptual development with open-ended, technology-based learning environments. This work has focused on developing frameworks for considering how learners build and evolve understanding while using open-ended learning environments. In 1996, Dr. Land received the Young Scholar Award from the Association for Education Communications and Technology for her work in this area. Her previous research examined also how preservice teachers develop conceptions for integrating the Internet into the curriculum. Dr. Land is currently investigating the role of online collaboration tools in fostering shared meaning in a project-based context.