UCI Division of Continuing Education Appoints Melissa Loble as Associate Dean, Distance Learning

IRVINE, Calif. – September 28, 2012 – University of California, Irvine Extension, the continuing education arm of UC Irvine, has appointed Melissa Loble as associate dean, Distance Learning. In this role, she will provide leadership in curriculum development, instructional design, and the selection and utilization of underlying platforms and technologies.

“We’re very pleased to have Melissa continue the tradition of engaging and serving the campus and other strategically selected organizations with best-in-class distance learning development and delivery services, said Gary W. Matkin, Ph.D., dean, Continuing Education, Distance Learning and Summer Session. “Melissa brings a tremendous wealth of knowledge and experience in the areas of technology, higher education and distance learning. She will be an invaluable resource to campus leaders as they adopt technology-based initiatives.”

Loble joins UC Irvine with more than 15 years of experience managing distance education teams and initiatives. Previously, she was senior director of solutions engineering at Blackboard Inc. where she researched and developed solutions that engaged students in online spaces and through distance education programs. She has also served as director of instructional technology at Pepperdine University’s Graduate School of Education & Psychology, where she developed and implemented new technological initiatives for instruction and administration. Loble was also a member of the University’s steering committee and served as a faculty member for nine years. She holds master’s degrees in business administration and educational policy from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles.

“I’m proud to join UC Irvine Extension and look forward to working collaboratively with my campus colleagues and the community,” said Loble. “I am excited to be a part of an organization with a long history of innovative instructional technology development, design, and delivery, and to have the opportunity to build upon that success.”

Loble succeeds Jia Frydenberg, Ph.D., an industry veteran who played a critical role in establishing UC Irvine’s Distance Learning Center in 2001. Today, the UC Irvine Distance Learning Center serves nearly 14,000 students in online classes each year.

For more information about online continuing education programs from UC Irvine Extension, please visit extension.uci.edu or call 949-824-5414.