January 3, 2019

Kathryn Vadell, EdD, has been appointed as the College’s first Director of Online Education.

In her new role, Vadell will collaborate with faculty, College leadership and Drexel University Online to shape and support a vision for curricular and faculty development, as well as student success, in the College’s technology-enhanced pedagogy. She will coordinate and support the development of all online programs and technology-enhanced courses, ensuring that the College follows best practices to create the best online environment for our students. Working together with the faculty who lead online learning at the departmental level, she will help to support and elevate their individual efforts to benefit the College as a whole.

Vadell brings a range of experience in online and hybrid learning: She earned both her MS in Learning Technologies and her EdD in Educational Leadership and Management from Drexel, in online and hybrid formats, respectively. Her dissertation focused on the effectiveness of academic coaching in retaining online students. Since August 2017, she has advised online psychology and communication students, becoming well-versed in the needs of this population, as well as the courses and resources available to all online students across the University. She has also redesigned and taught ASI 180: Strategies for Online Learning, a required course for new online students that helps them to acclimate and succeed in the online learning environment at Drexel.

If you have any questions about online course development, faculty resources, etc., please do not hesitate to reach out to her at kbt25@drexel.edu or 215.895.2618.