icit-pr – Page 38 – IT Services (formerly ICIT) Uptimes

December 6, 2013

Uptimes Spotlight – Elizabeth Simpson

Elizabeth Simpson
Simpsone@uww.edu
(262) 472-3244

Spotlight

Q: What do you do – explain how you fit into ICIT?

A: I am the Instructional Design Specialist with the Learning Technology Center. I help our faculty use technology in pedagogically effective ways. I create tutorials, run workshops, and meet with faculty individually to support them with their courses.

Q: One thing people don’t know about you?

A: I lived in a museum for three years. I have a master’s degree in history, and after graduation I was hired by the Milwaukee County Historical Society as a caretaker for Trimborn Farm in Greendale, WI. My husband and I took care of the buildings (including two farm-houses, two barns, and a few other old farm buildings), guided tours, hosted weddings, and performed basic collections management. I also supervised our interns – Amy Williams who is currently an ITS Support Specialist for LTC – was one of our interns. I lived on the 2^nd floor of the main farm-house; an area comprised of offices and the collections rooms. Most of the volunteers thought the site was haunted, but after three years I witnessed no spooky occurrences.

Q: What is your favorite hobby?

A: I love the outdoors. I like backpacking, snowshoeing, hiking, and kayaking. My husband and I moved to Whitewater this past July, and we really enjoy everything that the area has to offer. We visit the kettles at least once a week, and look forward to seeing everything with snow. Next year we are hoping to go to the Boundary Waters wilderness area for a week.

Q: What was your first job?

A: My first job was working in a corn-dog booth at the Racine County Fair. I was probably 14 years old, and I loved it because I could eat fried food all day and hang out with my friends.

Q: Tell me something interesting about yourself?

A: I’m really good at painting and drawing. In high school I won a few state-wide competitions, in college I minored in art, but stopped once I started grad-school. I picked it up again about a year ago, and I spend a few hours a week practicing.

Q: Do you have any special talent?

A: I can read German, Latin, and Middle English.

Q: What is your guilty pleasure?

A: TV crime dramas, like Bones, NCIS, all the CSIs, Psyche, The Finder, Monk, etc. Almost every night I tell myself that I will spend my time doing something enriching and valuable, but instead I snuggle on the sofa and watch a marathon of CSI.

Q: Favorite food?

A: I love pickled food. I’ve gotten very good at making dilly beans and pickled onions, and have recently started making pickled eggs as well. I want to start making chutneys and Indian lime pickles, but I need to clear out some space in my pantry first.

December 5, 2013

Welcome Justin Wilson!

Please join us in welcoming Justin Wilson to the User Environment Technology Team as our new Audio Visual Support Technician. In this role, Justin will be responsible for the installation, maintenance and support of instructional facilities technology. He is a part of the Audio Video and Classroom Technology Team and will report to Ray Stanek. He will be located in McGraw 16, next to Peter. Justin has a vast array of technology and troubleshooting experience. Please welcome him to the team!

November 20, 2013

Uptimes Spotlight – Peter Vander Velden

Peter Vander Velden
vandervp@uww.edu
(262) 472-3214

Spotlight

Q: What do you do – explain how you fit into ICIT?

A: My responsibilities seem to shift a little bit every few months or so, but generally speaking I’m the campus AV guy. I support a majority of the campus audio, video and instructional technology. That means I spend a lot of time in classrooms either hooking up new equipment, or trying to fix old equipment. I do a lot of work with the Crestron control systems found in classrooms, as well as projectors, document cameras, and Blu-ray players. I dabble a little bit into the Desktop Support side of things, if I need to in a room, going back to my days of managing a Geek Squad. I’m excited that my team is growing and I now work with a couple of AV tech students as well.

Q: One thing people don’t know about you?

A: My wife and I have two beagles named Ellis and Maggie.

Q: What is your favorite hobby?

A: I have a number of things I really enjoy doing outside of work, but my favorite hobby is probably snowboarding. I have been a lot in Wisconsin and Minnesota, but really need to get to Colorado soon. I am planning on going to the U.P. this winter for a Snowboarding trip. If others snowboard, I’m down to go anytime, I’ll just have to call Ray and tell him I’m sick. 🙂

Q: What was your first job?

A: I grew up in the country, so my first job was picking squash. I rode my bike 4 miles each way to work past acres and acres of corn fields. I remember it being fun because I worked there with my best childhood friend. I also remember being blown away when after a year I received a 25 cent per hour raise. That bumped me up to $5.50 an hour and was a lot of money to me at 13 years old.

Q: What’s your favorite piece of technology?

A: I do everything with my Xbox. I use it for all of my entertainment, plus it looks and sounds like R2-D2.

Q: Tell me something interesting about yourself?

A: I know famous people? Reed Grimm, who appeared on American Idol was a friend of mine in college, and Andrea Boehlke, who has been on Survivor twice, is from my home town and is good friends with my younger sister.

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: The Environment and Wisconsin sports.

Q: Do you have any special talent?

A: My wife laughs about this because we just had this conversation. After years and years of working with technology, and being a little OCD about organization, I’m very very good at cable management. I can’t stand loose wires, and have become very good at tiding them up quickly. I have zip ties everywhere because you never know when you’ll need to tie up some cords.

I also really enjoy food challenges and have fared pretty well when I have attempted them. I got a shirt for eating a 32oz steak, eaten something called the Knockout Roll (which is basically a wasabi sushi roll with hot chili peppers), and have successfully completed the gallon challenge (drinking a gallon of milk in under 60 minutes). They say the gallon challenge is impossible, but I’m living proof that while it isn’t enjoyable, it is possible. I have several witnesses that can back it up.

Q: Favorite TV Show?

A: I’m a huge fan of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. I never can stay up late enough to watch it, so I often watch it on Hulu the next day after I get home from work. I’m also a huge Game of Thrones fan. I’ve seen all the TV episodes and am working on reading the 3^rd book. It’s over 1000 pages so it’s taking me a while.

Q: Music genre?

A: These days Reggae Rock is my favorite genre of music, and I’m a big Sublime fan. I grew up liking Punk Rock however and listen to that when I need to get a lot of work done quickly, so if you ever wander past my office in McGraw you might hear some loud punk music in the hallway.

Q: Do you have a famous look-a-like?

A: I have been told that I look like John Krasinski, also known as Jim from The Office. Not sure if I see it.

Q: Do you have a favorite vacation?

A: I love camping, so any time I can get outside and spend some time in nature is an enjoyable vacation, and I go camping several times each summer. Peninsula State Park in Door County is one of my favorite places to go. However, this January my wife and I are going to Jamaica on our delayed honeymoon, so I have no doubt that will be my favorite vacation when I return.

November 18, 2013

Welcome Kelly Ingram!

Please join us in welcoming Kelly Ingram to the User Environment Technology Team as Instructional Facilities Coordinator. In this role, Kelly is responsible for the oversight and facilitiation of project planning and execution for lab and classroom upgrades. Working and consulting with team members from ICIT and Facilities Planning and Management she will ensure successful completion of all approved technology projects. In addition to project management, Kelly is responsible for providing oversight and day to day management of campus Distance Education facilities. She is located in the lower level of McGraw, next to Lisa Rowland and will report to Ray Stanek.

Kelly comes to us from Generac Power Systems, where she was a Product Management Coordinator. In that role she worked with cross functional teams to launch products through a phase gate process, managed execution and reporting for all Industrial projects, led status meetings, outlined requirements and more. Kelly has vast experience in planning, managing, and executing several projects simultaneously.

Please welcome Kelly to the team!

November 7, 2013

Uptimes Spotlight – Richard Durrant

Richard Durrant
durrantr@uww.edu
(262) 472-6743

Spotlight

Q: What do you do / how do you fit into ICIT?

A: My job title is Network Tech, but there is more to it than just that. As the campus’s only Journeyman/Communications Electrician, my role is to maintain and install all physical aspects of the low voltage systems on campus. In years past, when the AV department was short staffed, I also took care of and or assisted in their designs, building, and room programming of their AV systems.

Q: What is something people don’t know about you?

A: I spent eight years in the Army, most of which was over in the Middle East, back during the 80’s and early 90’s.

Q: What’s your favorite piece of technology?

A: That would have to be my first PC that my brother and I purchased together, the TRS-80 Model 1 from 1979. This started it all for me in the way of electronics and programming.

TRS-80 Model 1

Q: Tell me something interesting about yourself?

A: Around 2005 I decided to make a big change in my life. I went ahead and purchase 53 acres of bare farm land to take on the fun task of building my own home and accompanying horse facility. Once that was done, I went ahead and sold my business, my lakefront condo in Chicago, and quit my job as an Electrician to move up this way permanently.

Q: Do you have a favorite hobby?

A: Working and training my horses. I also like restoring antique horse powered equipment, everything from wagons to plows to old threshing machines.

Three of my girls and I
at a plowing demonstration at Old World Wisconsin.

Q: If you could live for only one more week, what would you do?

A: Go back to either Germany or Italy.

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: For most of my life it was my work and making money, but then I finally learned the lesson my grandfather tried to teach me so many years ago. It was after the death of my first wife 14 years ago. In the end your family and friends are all that matter in this world the rest is gravy.

Me teaching my wife who normally does dressage,
how to drive and plow with a five horse hitch.

Q: What is your guilty pleasure?

A: Roller coasters. My current wife and I have traveled all across America looking for the best roller coasters.

Q: What was your first job?

A: I got my first two jobs at age 13, both in the same week. My first job was working at a garage, and my second job was working on Pinball machines.

Q: Favorite Music and or Genre?

A: Classical.

Q: Favorite vacation?

A: Back in the late 80’s when I was still in the Army, I had amassed too much vacation time and was forced to take a large block at once or lose it. My girlfriend at the time and I, along with a few other couples, rented a sail boat for 40 days. We loaded our motorcycles on the deck and sailed the Mediterranean all along the European coast, unloading our bikes whenever we could.