Jason McDonald
Brigham Young University

I am Jason McDonald from Brigham Young University, and I am running for President-Elect in the AECT Design & Development Division. I am currently an Associate Professor in BYU's department of Instructional Psychology & Technology, and the program coordinator of the university’s Design Thinking minor. I also have twenty years of instructional design experience in industry and academia.

Early in my career I worked in a wide variety of roles connected to our field: face-to-face training; faculty development; corporate eLearning; story development for instructional films; and museum/exhibit design. I gained this experience as a university instructional designer; an executive for a large, international non-profit; a digital product director for a publishing company; and as an independent consultant. My experiences helped me see how instructional design/development occurs in different settings, and how designers can work with teams, sponsors, and stakeholders to accomplish the mission of their organizations.

Since rejoining academic life in 2016 I have been actively involved in AECT. One assignment I have really appreciated is serving as a judge for the Design and Development competition; this coming year will be my fourth time acting in this capacity. I enjoy this assignment because it helps me see first-hand the great work being done by instructional design educators at many different universities. In addition to judging, however, I have also tried to share what I have learned throughout my career in presentations and workshops, such as the Design Thinking for Instructional Designers workshop I have taught the past two years.

If elected, my number one priority will be to strengthening division membership. In part, this means helping members find and take advantage of professional development opportunities. But I also want to help you strengthen each other, by finding ways for you to teach each other the practical wisdom you have accumulated throughout your careers. By doing so, we can all be more successful in coping with the challenges we face in our own organizations.

I am optimistic about this opportunity, and if you elect me division president I look forward to working with all of you closely!