TLC Staff
Meet the Director
Tom Laughner has been director of UT Health Science Center’s teaching and learning center since December 2018. His passion is understanding how students learn. While his career has mostly focused on how technology might improve student learning, he has also worked with faculty to craft learning goals, develop course skeletons, and to think about ways to use time and space to most effectively engage students in and out of the classroom. He comes most recently from Smith College and has also spent time at the University of Notre Dame and the University of Arizona.
PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from Andrews University
MA in Education and Human Development from George Washington University
BA in Psychology from the University of Arizona
Herr, M.; Taylor, M.; Laughner, T. Utilization of TLC (poster). International Association of Medical Science Educators. June 2020.
Laughner, Thomas; Harder, Dan. Sharing the Torch: Fostering the Academic Mission Through IT-Teaching Learning Center Collaboration (poster). Information Technology in Academic Medicine (AAMC). June 2020. (conference canceled)
Meet the TLC Staff
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Venus Claxton
Associate Director, Classroom Learning Environments -
Susan Cooper
Senior Lab Technologist -
Ronald Davis
Manager, General Education Building -
Federico Gomez-Uroz Horst
Instructional Consultant -
Amy Hall, EdD
Instructional Consultant -
Sara Leach
Accommodations Education Specialist -
Carol Mason
Senior Conference Specialist -
Antoine Beane
Media Specialist -
Lela Noel
Senior Laboratory Technologist -
Veronica Reliford-Thomas
Administrative Specialist -
Jessica Ross
Senior Lab Technologist -
Devin Scott, PhD
Instructional Consultant -
Keri Snyder
Associate Director, Accessibility and Accommodations -
Vacant
Teaching and Learning Specialist
Venus is the Associate Director for the Teaching and Learning Center. She is an administrative
professional with a proven track record of managing the day-to-day operations of a
large instructional facility.
Her expertise is in administration, business, budgets, and logistics, and she is a
proponent of cultivating relationships, collaborations, and partnerships. Venus utilizes
existing resources across the UT System to enhance services and to maximize savings.
Venus is a member of the Interprofessional Association of Administrative Professionals and the Grant Professionals Association. She is also a member of UTHSC's Employee Relations Council, which meets regularly to discuss University issues and policies. Venus received mediator training and hopes to become a certified mediator in the future.
- MPA, University of Memphis
- BA, University of Memphis
Email: vclaxton@uthsc.edu
Susan has worked in a healthcare related field since she was 19 years old. First in
the clinical environment and now on the educational side.
Susan has been with UT since 2017 working as a Sr. Laboratory Technologist setting up student labs. As a Clinical Laboratory Scientist, she worked at LeBonheur and Baptist Tipton. As a Licensed Practical Nurse, she worked at St. Francis Hospital.
- BS in Clinical Laboratory Science from UTHSC
- Diploma in Practical Nursing from Tennessee College of Applied Technology
Email: scoope26@uthsc.edu
Phone: 901.448.1218
Ronald has spent 40 years in the GEB Instructional Labs. His title, manager, is the same as when he started but his duties have changed somewhat over the years. He views laboratory exercises as the best interactive learning in our galaxy.
- EMBA, University of Memphis
- MS in Marine Botany, University of Washington
- BS in Marine Biology, Florida Institute of Technology
Email: rdavis@uthsc.edu
Federico is an Instructional Consultant for the Teaching and Learning Center.
Federico’s areas of expertise include course design, curriculum development, learning objectives alignment, and assessment strategies. He has experience designing and redeveloping hybrid, online, and in-person courses.
- B.S. + M.S. in Psychology from the Universidad de Granada (Spain)
- M.A. in Spanish & Spanish-American Literature from the University of Memphis
- Graduate Certificate in Instructional Design & Technology from the University of Memphis
Email: fgomezur@uthsc.edu
Amy is an Instructional Consultant for the Teaching and Learning Center.
Amy’s areas of expertise include writing performance goals and objectives, using effective learning strategies within the classroom and clinical settings, and providing effective feedback.
- EdD in Instructional Design and Technology from the University of Memphis
- MS in Instruction and Curriculum from the University of Memphis
- BA in History from Rhodes College
Alexandraki, I., Baker, D., Berry, A., & Hall, A. (2022, March). Engaging clinical educators through innovative faculty development programs. Panel discussion at the Southern Group on Educational Affairs Regional Conference, virtual.
Franks, A.S., Hall, A.E., Kodweis, K.R., Hall, E.A., Hudson, J.Q., & Havrda, D.E. (2022, July). Student Perceptions of Utility of TikTok as a Tool for Learning Top 300 Drugs. Poster session at the Pharmacy Education 2022 Conference of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, Dallas, TX.
Hall, A.E. (2022, November). Does a longitudinal faculty development program impact clinical educators’ teaching behavior?: A mixed methods study. Poster session presented at the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Annual Meeting, Kelowna, BC Canada.
Hall, A.E., Kodweis, K.R., Franks, A.S., Hall, A.E., Hudson, J.Q., & Havrda, D.E. (2022). Retrospective evaluation of quiz performance when studying with TikTok and flashcards versus flashcards alone. Poster session at the Pharmacy Education 2022 Conference of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, Dallas, TX.
Hall, A., & Myers, R. (2022, March). Meeting faculty development needs when time is limited: A mixed methods case study. Poster session at the Southern Group on Educational Affairs Regional Conference, virtual.
Scott, D.S., Fulkerson Dikuua, K., & Hall, A.E. (2022, November). From scholarly teacher to SoTL researcher: An inclusive professional development model for health science faculty. Poster session presented at the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Annual Meeting, Kelowna, BC Canada.
Haynes, A.R., Hall, A.E., Luepke, P.G., & Dixon, D.R. (2022). A reflective model: e-Portfolios in undergraduate periodontology. Journal of Dental Education. doi: 10.1002/jdd.13127.
Hall, A. Pedagogies of the social determinants of health teaching excellence institute: Improving faculty knowledge of pedagogies recommended to teach social determinants of health via longitudinal faculty development program. SGEA. April 2021.
Email: ahall32@uthsc.edu
Sara is an Accommodations Education Specialist in the Department of Accessibility and Accommodations. Her main duties will be to assist the Associate Director with operations and coordination of the testing lab.
MS Leadership and Policy Studies with a Concentration in Student Personnel, University of Memphis
BS Psychology with History and Women’s/Gender Studies Double Minor, University of Tennessee Chattanooga.
Lela is a Senior Labratory Technologist in the Education Development department. Her duties are to stage and de-stage labs.
About Lela
Lela was born and raised in Memphis. Her personal and professional jorurney has been centered around contributing to the medical world of this city. She has 20+ years of experience as a Medical Lab Technician in a clinical lab setting and recently worked in clinical lab research with clinical lab trials.
-
BPS, Organizational Leadership from the University of Memphis
-
AAS in Medical Technology from Shelby State Community College
Veronica Reliford-Thomas serves as the Administrative Specialist for the Teaching
and Learning Center (TLC).
Veronica is the first point of contact for patrons and visitors and provides general administrative support to the Director and TLC staff. In addition, she manages incoming space reservation requests.
Veronica is a highly skilled, motivated, and enthusiastic member of the TLC staff. She became a Tennessee state employee in 2006 when she started work for a local community college. There, she served in several capacities including office coordinator for a grant office and as an executive secretary to the office of the provost, executive vice president. As an executive secretary, Veronica also worked with the vice president of financial and administrative services and the office of the president at the college. Veronica’s experiences and background in administrative services along with her people skills have enabled her to communicate easily and amicably with faculty, staff, and students.
Reserve a SpaceEmail: vrelifor@uthsc.edu
Phone 901.448.1218
Jessica Ross is a Senior Laboratory Technologist. She assists with many of the operations
of the General Education Building, including the staging and de-staging of the instructional
labs.
- MBA from University of Memphis
- BS from Bethel University
- AAS from Jackson State Community College
Email: jross52@uthsc.edu
Devin is an Instructional Consultant for the Teaching and Learning Center.
Devin’s areas of expertise include curriculum development, course design, implementing sound teaching strategies, and assessment. He has experience teaching and designing in-person, online, and hybrid courses. Additionally, at the University of Maryland, he worked to implement professional development programs and assessment practices that improved student outcomes and instructor satisfaction.
- PhD in Communication from the University of Maryland, College Park
- MA in Communication from the University of Maryland, College Park
- BA in Communication from Truman State University
Britt, T. & Scott, D. (2022, January) Digital Badging Professional Development Opportunity: Simulation Medallion. Virtual session presented at the International Meeting on Simulation in Healthcare, Los Angeles, California.
Scott, D.S., Fulkerson Dikuua, K., & Hall, A.E. (2022, November). From scholarly teacher to SoTL researcher: An inclusive professional development model for health science faculty. Poster session presented at the International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Annual Meeting, Kelowna, BC Canada.
Frederick, K. D., Havrda, D. E., Scott, D., Gatwood, J., Hall, E. A., Desselle, S. P., & Hohmeier, K. C. (2022). Assessing Student Perceptions of Blended and Online Learning Courses in Pharmacoeconomics, Management, and Leadership. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 9001. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.5688/ajpe9001
Springer, S. P., Cernasev, A., Barenie, R. E., Axon, D. R., & Scott, D. (2022). “I Think Deprescribing as a Whole Is a Gap!”: A Qualitative Study of Student Pharmacist Perceptions about Deprescribing. Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland), 7(3), 60. https://doi.org/10.3390/geriatrics7030060
Scott, D., Cernasev, A., & Kiles, T. M. (2021). Reimagining Pharmacy Education through the Lens of a Choose Your Own Adventure Activity—A Qualitative Evaluation. Pharmacy, 9(3), 151. MDPI AG. Retrieved from dx.doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy9030151
Scott, D., Cernasev, A., & Kiles, T. M. Choose Your Own Adventure Case Studies: Pharmacy Student Experiences. International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry. May 2021.
Email: dscott50@uthsc.edu
Keri is the Associate Director, of Accessibilities and Accommodation with the Teaching
and Learning Center. Her areas of expertise include student accessibility and accommodation,
and learning strategies. She has over a decade of experience working in higher education
in student support services, including academic advising, community engagement, and
academic support.
- BS in Environmental Science from San Jose State University
- EdM in teaching from Washington State University
- EdM in Higher Education Leadership from the University of Tennessee