Barbara Truman 鈥�94 鈥�96MA, who helped create and develop UCF鈥檚 early ventures into online learning, died July 17 from cancer. She was 59.
Truman held multiple positions at the university dating back to 1996, beginning when she was a graduate student hired to help build UCF鈥檚 inaugural online program.
She later was named director of course design and development for the Center for Distributed Learning before becoming strategic advisor for immersive learning and collaboration at UCF鈥檚 Institute for Simulation & Training in 2014. A was made by the Center for Distributed Learning in 2013.
Thomas Cavanagh, UCF vice provost for digital learning, says Truman鈥檚 spirit was exemplified by the Rosie the Riveter poster she kept in her CDL office.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to overstate her importance in the creation and development of online learning at UCF. We are all the direct beneficiaries of her work,鈥� says Cavanagh. 鈥淪he had an unmatched optimism for the work we do and an enthusiasm that was contagious.鈥�
Truman was born in Park Ridge, Illinois, moved to Central Florida in 1972, and graduated from Lyman High School in 1980.
At UCF she earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree in journalism and master鈥檚 degree in instructional systems design.
While studying for her doctorate in 2001, she was diagnosed with stage IV non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Her interest in community development and transdisciplinary research led her to start collaborations remotely. In 2013, she completed a doctorate in computer science from Colorado Technical University and briefly worked for a private company before returning to UCF.
Until she recently stepped away from work, she was a graduate faculty member in UCF鈥檚 School of Modeling Simulation and Training and worked at the Institute for Simulation and Training on various projects involving innovative technologies for healthcare, cybersecurity and a Navy training initiative.
鈥淗er work and impact will be felt far into the future, not just at UCF but across the higher education landscape,鈥� Cavanagh says.
The has been set up in the UCF Foundation to benefit students, faculty and research in the College of Graduate Studies.
