Jenna Ledford, M.A.
NextGen & TII Program Manager

Jenna.Ledford@unt.edu
(940) 369-7243 

Jenna joined the NextGen Team in 2013. She is a first-generation college student and proud UNT alum. She earned her B.A. in English in 2008 and her M.A. in Communication Studies in 2012. Prior to her position with CLEAR, Jenna worked as a teaching assistant, and later an instructional designer and consultant. Her research and professional interests are in educational technology, faculty development, and critical communication pedagogy. In her spare time, she enjoys reading for fun, baking pies, and cuddling with her puppies.

Dr. Ronald Carriveau
Outcomes, Assessment, and Measurement Specialist

Ronald.Carriveau@unt.edu
(940) 565-3705

Ron earned his Ph.D. in educational psychology, measurement, and methodology from the University of Arizona.  He has extensive experience in assessment development as a consultant, test publisher, state director for testing and standards, and assessment development manager. He has taught at the elementary, middle-school, and university levels as an associate professor; consulted nationally and internationally; and presented at numerous national and international conferences. He is the co-author of Next Generation Course Redesign (2010) and author of Connecting The Dots: Developing Student Learning Outcomes & Outcome Based Assessments (2010). He wrote a chapter on assessment in The Online University: Building Viable Learning Experiences for Higher Education (2013). His areas of interest are outcome-based assessment, teaching and measuring critical thinking, test and survey development, and psychometrics. He is also the UNT Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) Assistant Director. 

Dr. Nancy Fire
Faculty Teaching Resource Specialist

Nancy.Fire@unt.edu
(940) 369-8744

As the Teaching Resource Specialist for CLEAR, Nancy works with GSTEP, NextGen Course Redesign, Teaching Excellence Seminar, UNT QEP, and the new Teaching Excellence Certification program.  Nancy has her doctorate from North Carolina State University in adult learning with a special emphasis on culturally responsive learning.  She has been teaching and developing workshops for approximately 30 years.  Her special interests include working with Native American learners, serving as a Board member for the American Association of Adult and Continuing Education, and designing experiential learning strategies. Nancy is also the GSTEP Program Coordinator.     

Samantha Christian
Administrative Specialist

Samantha.Christian@unt.edu
(940) 565-4946

Samantha is the newest addition to the NextGen team and hopes to utilize this achievement in furthering her career and life goals. Samantha is looking forward to using her opportunity with CLEAR and NextGen to finish her B.A. in Computer Technology with a minor in Japanese. Her prior work experience has helped her greatly in her ability to collaborate with and support the NextGen team and the faculty they serve. In her spare time, Samantha is a digital and traditional 2-D artist, loves to read, and build and fiddle with computers and computer software.

Dr. Mike Simmons
Senior Associate Director

Mike.Simmons@unt.edu
(940) 369-7520

Mike has been in higher education for over 19 years and has been teaching online for 9 of those years. He is originally from West Virginia, but attended college in Tennessee (King College, BS History) and earned his M.P.A. at UNC - Chapel Hill. He moved to Texas 12 years ago to complete his doctorate in public administration and urban affairs from UTA.  Additionally, he has over 10 years of experience in public policy, government, and political consulting.  He has worked for a governor, agriculture commissioner, and mayor and consulted with congressional and legislative candidates.  He led a statewide non-profit agency for a year and half.  His research interests are in government and public administration, educational innovation, faculty support, and online learning. Mike is also the current UNT QEP director and is leading the university’s team to select the next QEP for SACS-COC reaffirmation in 2016.