Jeremiah Dahl is the newest member of Teaching, Learning, and Global Engagement. He also serves in the South Carolina National Guard as an officer, after completing 9 years of enlistment. In this role “[m]uch of [his] time is spent providing training and workshops on topics such as suicide prevention, leadership ethics, and personal resiliency.” Promoting resiliency is certainly important to anyone in education at this remarkable time in history. As an instructional designer, Jeremiah is well-placed to bring that into his work with faculty.
Jeremiah was born in Mt. Vernon Arkansas, a “…very small town with more cows than people.” For his undergraduate degree he went to Arkansas Technical University where he studied history. His favorite teacher was a history professor named Donald Fairbairn. “I liked him because he worked to teach his students the importance of school/life balance. He began his first class by informing us that not every book is worth reading every word on every page; some only deserve a skim, and only a few deserve a truly deep reading.”
Jeremiah’s most recent degree is from Winthrop University where he received his Masters of Education in Learning Design and Technology. “I chose this field because I am passionate about finding the best ways to present instruction and help students learn.” Transitioning from a previous career in library work was made possible by the need for an Instructional Designer here at Davidson-Davie. He says that in addition to work related to Moodle, he is looking forward to engaging with faculty by “…providing tips for increased engagement, promoting best practices in instruction, and providing quality assurance for courses.”
When Jeremiah has time, he spends it “…either reading, enjoying the great outdoors, watching TV with my wife Maria (most recently Avatar: The Last Airbender), and playing with my 6 month old daughter Ophelia.” Speaking of reading, Jeremiah’s chooses Sherry Turkle’s Reclaiming Conversation as the book that has had a tremendous influence on his thinking. “Turkle discusses many of the ways things such as smartphones and social media have changed the way we engage with one another, creating people who are more connected than ever but also more isolated and lonely than ever. It's a very insightful read into how two of the most impactful developments of the 21st century have changed and are changing us.”
Please drop Jeremiah an
email welcoming him to Davidson-Davie.
