Maximizing Service to Campus With Academic Technology Leadership

To maximize services and provide enhanced support to faculty, staff and students, IT Services has added two new roles to the Academic Technology team. Chris Bray, director of academic technology services, and Deirdre Slavik, director of academic technology innovation and outreach, will be leading the academic technology team to support and empower teaching and learning across campus. 

In his previous role as senior learning management system and academic technology administrator, Bray served as the Blackboard administrator for nearly 30 years. He is now responsible for ensuring the availability and reliability of academic tech at the U of A, including identifying upgrades/enhancements to applications and infrastructure, ultimately elevating the overall service level offered to campus. 

"The next several years will undergo a lot of changes for campus in regard to academic technology," Bray said. "I'm excited to lead some of those changes and work with a great team that will be instrumental to accomplishing the university's goals." 

Leading innovation and outreach in academic tech, Slavik has 20 years of college teaching experience and will be using her previous experience developing high-impact curricula to build relationships with faculty and staff across campus, creating pathways that drive innovative and effective technology utilization.  

"I'm looking forward to advancing these ideals through collaboration with such amazing professionals," Slavik said. "Advances in technology will fundamentally reshape the skills and opportunities critical to our students' lives, and I'm grateful for the ability to contribute to their success." 

By adding these roles, IT Services is increasing its ability to reach all corners of campus to support the university's three strategic pillars; Student Success, Research Excellence and Employer of Choice.  

"I'm thrilled to see the connections and advancements that Chris and Deirdre make in their new roles," said Ian Czarnezki, associate CIO for research and academic technology. "I am confident they will be strong advocates for the academic community and enhance the overall academic technology experience for our campus, making the U of A a better place to learn, work and conduct research."