NEW YORK – (December 3, 2007) – Wimba, the education technology company that helps people teach people, today announced Wimba Connect 2008, its first global users conference, March 2-5, 2008 at the Wyndham Resort in Orlando, Fla. The event provides a dynamic platform for members of the Wimba community to connect in-person and exchange ideas on how learning technologies bring instructors and students closer together.
Featuring numerous hands-on workshops and sessions, Wimba Connect 2008 is geared toward K12 and collegiate faculty, technologists and administrators. For example, instructional designers can share best practices, while faculty members can learn more about how to engage learners, and chief information officers can gather ideas on using Wimba to increase retention rates and student engagement, enhance learning, and improve outcomes. Participants will have opportunities to discuss various issues related to institutional learning, including faculty and student adoption of new educational methods. Individual sessions will offer professional development opportunities on a variety of related topics.
“With more than 40 presentations, Wimba Connect 2008 offers the Wimba community and prospective users of all levels a wide variety of opportunities to learn about best practices, effective instructional design, lessons learned, and adoption,” said Wimba Marketing Vice President, Yancy Oshita.
Already, Wimba users from four continents, representing business schools, four-year colleges, community colleges and K-12 schools have registered for the three-day conference. Dr. Darcy W. Hardy, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Executive Director, University of Texas-TeleCampus will deliver the keynote address. The UT Telecampus is the virtual university for the entire University of Texas System. Other Wimba Connect 2008 speakers include Wimba CEO Tommaso Trionfi, former WebCT CEO and current Wimba Board member Carol Vallone, along with numerous experts from the Company’s varied educational customer base.
“I’m really looking forward to the Wimba Conference in Orlando,” said Robert Ethier Jr., IT Consultant for the University of Georgia. “I support Wimba on our campus and am always looking for new ways to expand the use outside of a traditional classroom setting. I am excited to connect with other users and get ideas to bring back with me to expand usage.”
In addition to the rich conference program, Wimba will offer a variety of pre-conference workshops on topics such as Succeeding in Wimba Classroom, Mastering Wimba Voice and Managing Your Wimba Implementation, among many others. Workshop participants will have an opportunity to gain certification as a Wimba Product Specialist.
For more details on the Wimba Connect 2008 conference and registration please visit
www.wimba.com/connect08