Matt E. Thatcher, Interim  Director

Matt E. Thatcher currently serves as the Interim Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence. He has over 26 years of experience as a tenured and tenure-track faculty member and leader at multiple Carnegie R1 research institutions.  Since 2012, he has been a Professor in the University of South Carolina (USC) Department of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE), where he served as Department Chair from 2016 - 2022.  He also served as Associate Chair, as Faculty Lead and designer of the Computer Information Systems curriculum and degree program, and as Chair for multiple Faculty Search Committees, the Unit Tenure & Promotion Committee, the Post-Tenure Review Committee, the Undergraduate Programs Accreditation Committee, and the Scholarship Committee.

Prior to his arrival to USC, he was a faculty member in Management Information Systems departments in three business schools and earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees at The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.  His diverse background has afforded him an appreciation for different paths to faculty success, different approaches to student learning, and the tremendous impact of cross-disciplinary research and teaching. 

Aisha Haynes, Assistant Director

Aisha Haynes is the Assistant Director at the USC Center for Teaching Excellence. She oversees the CTE’s Instructional Design team. Haynes is a certified Quality Matters Peer and Master Reviewer and has earned Online Teaching certifications from the Online Learning Consortium. She teaches an online Computer Applications in Business course for Palmetto College. Her research interests include: instructional design in online learning environments, online course accessibility, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and collaboration and engagement in online learning environments.  Haynes is active on state and national committees related to instructional design, online learning, and accessibility. 

Karen Edwards, Faculty Mentor

Karen Edwards is a senior instructor in the Department of Retailing, where she teaches retail- and law-related courses in both online and face-to-face formats. Edwards is certified by Quality Matters to review and assess the quality of online courses offered by higher education institutions. She earned her Juris Doctor Degree from the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law and her bachelor’s degree from Coker College in Hartsville, S.C. She is a frequent presenter and past Associate Director for Distributed Learning Pedagogy at USC's Center for Teaching Excellence. Edwards is a faculty mentor for the Center for Teaching Excellence.

Nicole Hair, Faculty Leader

Nicole Hair is the leader of the Coordinators and Instructors of Large Undergraduate Courses  Community of Practice (CILUC CoP). Hair is an Assistant Professor in the department of Health Services Policy and Management ath the Arnold School of Public Health. She is an economist whose research focuses on understanding the relationships between poverty, health, and human capital. She has written about the influence of early environments on children’s neurobiology. Her current research examines socioeconomic differences in childhood health and access to health care, programs to improve childhood vaccination coverage, and the potential for public health intervention to promote more equal opportunity for disadvantaged children.

Charles Andy Schumpert, Faculty Leader

Charles Andy Schumpert oversees the Virtual Environments initiative at the Center for Teaching Excellence. Schumpert began his career at USC as a graduate student in 2011 and fell in love with teaching! After graduating with his Doctorate in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Schumpert was hired as an instructional faculty member for the Department of Biological Sciences. Since then Schumpert has coordinated over 300 sections of laboratory courses and been involved in the education of over 6,000 students. He was awarded the Garnet Apple award for teaching innovation in 2020 for his work with 360° degree video, active learning strategies, and implementation of Universal Design for Learning. He's passionate about creating an equitable classroom that's inclusive and welcoming for all students.

Casey Carroll, Instructional Designer

Casey Carroll is an instructional designer with the Center for Teaching Excellence at USC. Carroll works with all who teach to support the creation of innovative and accessible courses and the continued development of teaching skills. He also works with instructors teaching online to help with course design and learning technologies. Prior to joining CTE, Carroll designed curriculum for professional training and leadership development. He has also taught First-Year English and English as a Second Language at the University of South Carolina. Carroll holds a master’s degree in linguistics from USC and a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and psychology from Pacific Lutheran University. 

Gloria Washington, Instructional Designer

Gloria Washington is an instructional designer at the Center for Teaching Excellence with 24 years of experience in higher education at the University of South Carolina. She serves as a co-chair for the Provost Advisory Committee for Women Initiatives (PACWI). She is a Blackboard Certified Trainer and a Blackboard Exemplary Course Program Reviewer. Washington completed the Quality Matters’ Applying the QM Rubric and Higher Education Peer Reviewer courses. Before coming to CTE, she worked in Teaching and Technology Services and as a Technology Director for the Ted Mimms Foreign Language Learning Center. Washington serves as Associate Editor for the International Journal of Innovative Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. She is the immediate past President of the Association for Distance Education and Independent Learning (ADEIL). Washington also authors the blog, Pedagogy Before Technology. She holds a Doctor of Education, a Master of Arts in Education, and a Master of Business Administration. Her expertise is in the pedagogical use of technology to support teaching and learning. Her instructional design philosophy is “pedagogy first, technology second.”

Kimberly Seibles, Program Manager

Kimberly Seibles is the Program Manager for Operations and Faculty Events. Seibles is responsible for planning CTE professional development events and programs for faculty, instructors, and graduate teaching assistants, including the Schools of Medicine (Columbia and Greenville) and Palmetto College. Seibles holds a doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of South Carolina, a master's degree in Higher Education Administration from Columbia College, and a bachelor's degree in Communications from the University of South Carolina- Aiken.

Michelle Hardee, Program Manager

Michelle Hardee is the Program Manager for all graduate student Teaching Assistant training at the University. Hardee is responsible for developing the CTE’s graduate TA/IA training seminars, developing and teaching the GRAD 701 Teaching Assistant Development course required of all new TA/IAs, and helping students progress through the Preparing Future Faculty Program. She regularly coordinates with the Graduate School and other university academic partners on graduate student professional development workshops and events. Hardee received her B.S. in Zoology at Texas A&M in 1995, an M.S. in Marine Biology at the College of Charleston’s Grice Marine Laboratory, and her Ph.D. in Marine Science from the University of South Carolina. Additionally, Hardee teaches the Honors section of the Marine Science Program’s Oceans and Society course every semester.

Michelle Hardee Curriculum Vitae

Helena Johnson, Web and Multimedia Developer

Helena Johnson is CTE's Web and Multimedia Developer. She is responsible for developing, editing, and delivering information about the Center's programs and services through Internet-based communications, multimedia, and print. With degrees in Media Arts and Computer Programming, Johnson began her career in corporate communications. Prior to joining CTE, she worked for creative and production companies as a producer and writer. 

Joyous Davis, Program Assistant  

Joyous Davis is the Program Assistant for the Center for Teaching Excellence.   She is the initial contact for CTE clientele. She provides general information for phone, walk-in, and email queries. As CTE's behind-the-scenes administrative support person, she helps with the planning, purchasing, scheduling, attendance, set-up, take-down, and evaluation of all sessions and events planned at the Center for Teaching Excellence. In addition, Davis is a nurturing soul and enjoys being a help in any way that she can.

Davis received a Bachelor of Arts in Vocal Performance from North Greenville University.  She has over a decade of experience as an administrative assistant. She recently moved back to South Carolina from Oklahoma where she worked as an office manager and closing coordinator for The Wright Team Real Estate in Lawton, OK.