Hi, I’m Bret.

Read my CV, download a PDF copy, or download a two-page resume version.

I am a Ph.D. candidate in Educational Psychology & Educational Technology at Michigan State University. I will start as a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Instructional Systems & Learning Technologies at Florida State University in August 2021.

I hold a Master’s Degree in Educational Technology and a Graduate Certificate in Serious Game Design and Research from Michigan State University, and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and sociology from Bucknell University. I consider my strongest credential to be my ongoing friendship with my very first online friend, who I met in an AOL chatroom in the early 1990s.

I have written more extensively about my research agenda, teaching philosophy, and diversity beliefs in dedicated posts, but I offer brief introductions to my research, teaching, and service here.

Research

I research networked learning in online communities. Specifically, I explore issues of agency in navigating the learning spaces afforded by social media. I use educational data mining and learning analytics approaches to understand the ways people participate in these novel, often informal, online learning environments. My work has been disseminated through 14 peer-reviewed academic journal articles, 6 edited book chapters, and 41 conference presentations. I developed the {tidytags} R package to assist other researchers in collecting and analyzing Twitter data.

Teaching

I teach each of the Master’s courses in MSU’s Graduate Certificate in Online Teaching and Learning, as well as a course to help undergraduate preservice teachers think critically about using technology for teaching and learning.

Service

I currently serve as Communications Officer of AECT’s Research & Theory Division (2020-21) and Co-chair of SITE’s Social Media SIG (2019-21). Since June 2020, I have been serving as the Executive Coach for Black in Gaming. In 2019 I received a Disciplinary Leadership Award from Michigan State University.

Professional Affiliations

Association for Educational Communications & Technology AECT
Featured Research, 2020
Early Career Symposium, 2020
Research & Theory Division (Secretary 2019-2020; Communications Officer 2020-2021)

American Educational Research Association AERA
Division C – Learning & Instruction
Technology as an Agent of Change in Teaching & Learning (TACTL) SIG

Association of Internet Researchers AoIR
Doctoral Colloquium, 2018

Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education SITE
Outstanding Paper Award, 2020
Outstanding Paper Award, 2019
Outstanding Paper Award, 2017
Social Media SIG (Co-chair 2019-2021)