Metropolitan State University of Denver has named Samuel Jay, Ph.D., interim executive director of Online Learning.
Jay currently serves as executive director of Emergent Technology and Academic Transformation, a role that involves exploring integration of generative AI. He will continue in that position while leading Online Learning.
Interim Deputy Provost Jeffery L. Newcomer, Ph.D., said Jay has extensive experience with MSU Denver’s Online Learning program and the skills and vision to guide its growth. Jay previously served as interim executive director of Online Learning for several months beginning in late 2023.
“Online learning is growing both in terms of the number of students in fully online programs and the interest of our students in taking online classes, so we need someone like Dr. Jay who understands the different aspects of the operations and can lead the growth while maintaining the quality,” Newcomer said.
Jay said he was excited about returning to the Online Learning team and overseeing the program’s innovative and forward-thinking initiatives.
“The creativity, work ethic and knowledge of the Online Learning team are remarkable, and I am honored to be able to help steer and support the great work they have done and continue to do,” he said.
Jay joined MSU Denver in 2011 as an adjunct professor in the Department of Communication Studies. He became a full professor in 2018 and was the inaugural Presidential Faculty Fellow in 2021. A year later, he was named director of Faculty Affairs.
Online Learning is an important component of MSU Denver’s mission to broaden access to education for students of all lifestyles and backgrounds.
Online Learning by the numbers:
- Last spring, more than two-thirds of enrolled students took at least one online course.
- The Office of Online Learning awarded more than $624,000 in online student scholarships for the 2023-24 academic year.
- The Office of Online Learning has awarded more than $769,000 to 174 faculty members to develop 231 online courses since fall 2018.
- Since fall 2022, the Office of Online Learning has constructed two state-of-the-art recording studios and supplied the latest audio-visual equipment to aid faculty members in course development.
