I am Dr. Shawn, an Associate Professor of Communication at Bellarmine University in Louisville, KY. I am also the license holder and co-organizer of TEDxBellarmineU. The podcast I co-host, Dyslexics Untied has listeners in 24 countries and can be found on every major podcast and social media platform. I teach undergraduates and graduate students multimedia communication, digital portfolio, graphic communication, SEO strategy, and technical communication.

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My involvement with TEDx has allowed me to harness student desire to use technology, achieve challenging goals as a team, create high-quality products, and organize many successful live events that reach the campus and the local community. Our YouTube videos and live stream give our event a worldwide audience with millions of views via TEDx's YouTube channel. 

 

As a professor, I enjoy incorporating multimedia assignments in an academic setting. I teach Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign on the Adobe platforms. I also teach various free and open-source programs like Prezi, Gimp, Infogram, and PowToon. I'm currently learning Adobe Animate.  

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As an instructional technology specialist, I oversaw the award-winning, campus-wide LMS transfer from Blackboard to Moodle at Bellarmine University in 2014. I've also worked with professors, facilities, and IT to redesign classrooms to incorporate new technology and facilitate broader pedagogical styles and learning differences. 

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While I love working in academia, I didn't always enjoy education. I'm a former high-school dropout, musician, and artist; however, I discovered I'm a dyslexic while learning Adobe programs at Miami Dade College. This information changed the way I felt about education. I realized standardized assessment wasn't designed for my brain, and I made a game out of earning degrees. (I stopped at Ph.D. because my wife won't let me get an MFA in graphic design.)

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Welcome to my site! Reach out to me if you need an advocate for dyslexia, advice on forming and sustaining an annual TEDx event, or tips on redesigning classrooms to facilitate faculty needs and student engagement. My projects page and podcast website can help you get started. 

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My contact info can be found below.