IADT Online - Faculty Profiles

At IADT Online, we view education as a collaborative relationship that will develop between you and your instructors. That's why we hope you'll take this opportunity to meet a few of the experienced faculty members who are committed to helping you acquire the knowledge, skills and confidence you need to shape your creative passions into professional possibilities.

With their diverse backgrounds and numerous professional accomplishments, these are a few of the people we think you'll enjoy getting to know:

Faculty Profiles

• James Greenwood
• Trista Grieder
• Chris Hayes
• Mica J. Racine
• Julie Stout

To learn more about IADT, our degree programs or how to apply for admission, please contact us for more information.

Educational Background:

• BA Fine Art (with concentrations in Drawing and Lithography), University of South Florida;
• MBA, Strayer University; AS Commercial Art, Florida Metropolitan University

Professional Experience:

• Department Chair of Graphic Design, IADT Online
• Department Chair of Commercial Art/Graphic Design, Florida Metropolitan University

What I Teach at IADT: Digital Illustration, Digital Imaging, Advanced Digital Imaging, Introductory Flash, and Typography

I Got Into This Field Because … At a very early age, I showed an interest in drawing that eventually led to a position teaching cartooning at Brevard Community College. After graduating college, I worked for the school board of Hillsborough County, where I taught students of various needs and grade levels.

What I Love About Teaching Is … Interacting with a variety of folks who are excited about learning to express themselves in a variety of aesthetically pleasing ways.

One Thing Most People Don’t Know About Me Is … I used to be a calligrapher for the U.S. Space Camp Florida.

My Notable Awards/Achievements Include: Recent appreciation from the City of Tampa, Clean City Division (for designing a coloring book for children about recycling and keeping Tampa clean), as well as other charity work for Habitat for Humanity and Breast Cancer.

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Educational Background:

• BA Theatre, Kent State University;
• MS Higher Education, Online Teaching, Kaplan University Online

Professional Experience:

• IADT- Adjunct Faculty
• Kent State University- NTT Faculty- Fashion Merchandising
• Hendrix College- Internship Coordinator
• Dillard’s- Private Label Women’s Designer
• Augusta Sportswear- Sportswear Designer
• Mountain High Hosiery- Private Label Hosiery Designer
• Wrangler- CAD Designer and Technical Supervisor
• Freelance Designer- Profig Designs

What I Teach at IADT: Product Development, Sketching, Product Management, Product Technology, Buying, Merchandise Planning and Inventory, Global Sourcing

I Got Into This Field Because … I fell in love with teaching in 2005 after my mentor passed away. I felt I had a lot to offer to the student body. She taught me so much about product development and merchandising. I also wanted to teach students what I did not know when I left school.

What I Love About Teaching Is … The students!!! They are so fresh and invigorating. I love their curiosity and the thought-provoking questions they come up with in class. They are very engaging and have great ideas.

One Thing Most People Don’t Know About Me Is … That I have my own design company called Profig Designs. I make bags, bibs and other items that are customized for people. It is on Facebook here.

My Notable Awards/Achievements Include:

• 2005 VF Award of Excellence for the Design of Aura, Wrangler’s best-selling women’s jean in the company’s history

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Educational Background:

• BFA Computer Animation;
• MFA Media Design Management

Professional Experience:

• Cinematic animator, Outrage Entertainment, Ann Arbor, Mich.: Worked on the PC game “Descent 3” and its add-on pack, “Descent Mercenary”
• Cinematic animator, N-Space, Orlando: Worked on four PlayStation titles: “Duke Nukem: Land of the Babes,” “Danger Girl,” “The Olsen Twins: Magical Mystery Mall,” and “The Olsen Twins: Crush Course”
• Instructor, video game development, Full Sail, Winter Park, FL
• Adjunct faculty, IADT, Tampa
• Department chair, game production, IADT Online

What I Teach at IADT: In addition to managing the Game Production program, I also teach 3D- related classes, including Modeling and Animation. Occasionally I teach the Video Game History and theory-based classes as well.

I Got Into This Field Because … I have a passion for playing and creating video games that are cutting edge and make a major impact on the gaming community.

What I Love About Teaching Is … Making a difference in someone’s life. I enjoy knowing that I had a part in helping students succeed in making their dream jobs come true.

One Thing Most People Don’t Know About Me Is … I have a massive football card collection.

My Notable Awards/Achievements Include: I would consider the games that I have credits on as a pretty good achievement.

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Educational Background:

• MFA Fiction Writing, Columbia College, Chicago;
• BA Communications, Sioux Falls College

Professional Experience:

• I do editorial and layout work for Hair Trigger and f-magazine, award-winning annual publications of the writing department of Columbia College Chicago.
• I teach on-ground at various arts/communications colleges in Chicago.

What I Teach at IADT: Information Literacy, Interpersonal Communications, Film and Literature.

I Got Into This Field Because … I loved being a student and found this the next best way to stay in the learning community for good.

What I Love About Teaching Is … When students have "ah-ha" moments. Also, I love when I give students the "okay" or permission to perhaps explore subject matter that they were earlier pushed away from—for whatever reason—and they thrive given this freedom to research something they’ve always wanted to dig into but couldn’t.

One Thing Most People Don’t Know About Me Is … Even though I’m a slight fellow with pretty heavy-duty eyeglasses, I watch a fair amount of football and MMA.

My Notable Awards/Achievements Include:

• Columbia University Scholastic Press Association certificate of merit for book design of Hair Trigger (2004, 2005)
• Writer's Digest small press publishing award for bowwow magazine (2003)
• IADT Educator of the Year (2002)
• IADT Educator of the Year Nominee (2000, 2005)
• First place award for experimental fiction from the Columbia University Scholastic Press Association (2000)

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Educational Background:

• M.Ed. Instructional Technology
• BFA Fashion Design

Professional Experience:

• I began my fashion career in 1999 when working as a freelance costume designer for two small production companies in Tampa. At the same time I was making costumes, I was producing the IADT Annual Fashion Show and other fashion fundraisers for local magazines and charities. The biggest shows had $300,000+ budgets, 95 designers, 350+ garments and 2500+ guests, but I also learned how to work with little to no budget.
• While producing these events I worked in all areas of event planning from marketing, music and choreography to stage design and model go-sees. In addition, I was working as the Department Manager for the Fashion Department at IADT-Tampa. In addition to working with my students, I managed the day-to-day tasks of running the Fashion Department. This included writing schedules, budgets and course materials; teaching Creative Fashion Marketing courses; and stocking and maintaining sketching, pattern drafting, sewing and draping labs.
• Previous to working in these areas I was a buyer for Ultra Boutique in downtown Tampa and a retail sales representative and visual merchandiser for Euphoria, another Tampa boutique. While working in retail, I was going to school for my BFA in Fashion Design. I also started volunteering to work fashion shows for Neiman Marcus, Valentino and Saks Fifth Avenue. Later on, I wrote fashion articles for local Tampa magazines.

What I Teach at IADT: Intro to Fashion, Evolution of Fashion, Trend Forecasting, Fashion Publicity and Promotion, Business Professionalism and the Fashion Merchandising Capstone

I Got Into This Field Because … I enjoy sharing my knowledge with others. There is no way to describe the joy and sense of accomplishment a teacher feels when they witness their students making connections with what they are learning. Education is challenging, but it provides a sense of satisfaction that only a teacher can understand. This satisfaction is food for an educator’s soul. I believe in the futures of others, and I enjoy being a part of helping my students reach their dream jobs. It’s nice to know that I’m doing what I was meant to do.

What I Love About Teaching Is … Being around people who are serious about their education and pursing their dreams is what I love about teaching. The excitement of working in the fashion industry is contagious, so when I get a class of passionate students, I can’t imagine anything I’d rather be doing than teaching them the ins and outs of the industry. There are so many opportunities in fashion merchandising. I can have a class full of students who want to do different things with their degrees. I can have aspiring boutique owners, buyers, visual merchandisers, retail managers and vendor specialists all in one class. It doesn’t matter which opportunity they choose; their interests and personal professional motivations contribute to the dynamics of the online classroom.

One Thing Most People Don’t Know About Me Is … I live in Austin, Texas, and some of my free time is spent singing karaoke (Missy Elliot, Tracy Chapman and Blue October) in the “Live Music Capital of the World.” Although I offer singing lessons to anyone who is interested, I wouldn’t recommend taking me up on it. When I’m not doing that, I’m playing trivia at different locations in Austin. My trivia team name is “ToeJam and Earl,” and we’re one of the top teams in the area.

My Notable Awards/Achievements Include:

• Outstanding Contribution to Academic Excellence Award
• Distinguished Alumni Award

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International Academy of Design & Technology is accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools to award associate's degrees and bachelor's degrees. For more information on IADT's accreditation, visit the ACICS website at: http://acics.org.
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