Emily joined COLRS in 2006 and moved into the COLO role in 2025. She provides one-on-one consultations, developmental trainings, and support for instructors to enhance online, blended, and hyflex teaching. Emily collaborates with campus leadership to explore new instructional methods and technologies to improve the experience of online learners. She serves on the UIS Artificial Intelligence Steering Committee and on the U of I System Exchange on Generative AI.

Emily advances research through presentations and publications on online learning, course quality, digital accessibility, and educational technologies. She has co-authored two book chapters, several journal articles, and delivered more than fifty presentations at international, national, and regional conferences. Emily is a certified Master Online Teacher through the Illinois Online Network and completed the Online Learning Consortium’s Institute for Emerging Leadership in Online Learning. She served as Interim Director for the Illinois Online Network (2017-2020) and oversaw the transition of the program to UIS and the development of the Digital Accessibility for Educators certificate and redevelopment of the online learning administrator certificate to align with the UPCEA Hallmarks of Excellence in Online Leadership.

Email: boles.emily@uis.edu
Phone: 217-206-8311

Carrie joined COLRS in July 2005.  She earned her B.F.A. degree in Theatre at the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign and her Masters in Dance-Movement Therapy/Counseling at Columbia College Chicago.  She spent several years as a professional actress in Chicago and as a movement therapist/counselor in Madison, Wisconsin working with institutionalized older adults, developmentally disabled adults, teens, and children.  At COLRS, Carrie works with online faculty development, MOOC development, and support for COLRS research activities.  She has authored and co-authored proceedings papers and book chapters on a variety of topics related to online learning and has presented at numerous national and regional conferences.

In addition to her work with COLRS, Carrie is an adjunct instructor at UIS in the Educational Leadership department.  Carrie holds the Professional Certificate in Online Education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Email: levin.carrie@uis.edu
Phone: 217-206-8449

Taylor joined COLRS in July 2023 after working as a high school English teacher for eight years. As an educator, she focused on culturally relevant teaching and anti-oppression work to best serve populations of diverse students. Additionally, she worked as a teacher of college-bound high school students, helping them successfully transition from high school to higher education.

She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a minor in Secondary Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Email: tmleste2@uis.edu
Phone: 217-206-8118

Scott joined COLRS in 2021. Originally from Pennsylvania, he came to Springfield in 2014 via Boston and Charlottesville, Virginia, with his wife, three kids, and the dog.

Scott holds a Master’s degree in Broadcast Journalism from Boston University and specializes in video production for web, broadcast, and social media. He has previously worked at the University of Virginia, producing video content promoting the school’s successful $3 billion capital campaign, and at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education where he worked closely with faculty in operating classroom recording technology for sharing lectures in a virtual environment.

Email: smoom2@uis.edu
Phone: 217-206-8675

Lyba Mehdi is a Master’s student in Cybersecurity Management at UIS. She has experience in UI/UX design through a recent internship, where she focused on improving usability and accessibility in digital platforms. Along with her academic work, Lyba is interested in exploring how technology can enhance teaching, learning, and user engagement. She looks forward to supporting students and faculty through her graduate assistant role with COLRS.

Melanie holds a Master's degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She was a K-12 teacher and librarian for 17 years and now serves as public library director. She brings a wealth of teaching, educational technology, OER, and instructional design experience to our team. She’ll be working with us on our Canvas Course Accessibility Process, as well as Regular and Substantive Interaction initiatives.