SUNY Online Teaching Ambassador 2021: Nassau – Orval Jewett

Orval Jewett, D.S.W., L.C.S.W., began his career at Nassau Community College 20 years ago.  He has always been drawn to teaching online.  In fact, he earned his Doctor of Social Work degree online.  Since 2009, Orval has regularly incorporated the use of Blackboard into all his teaching endeavors.  While he earned several other degrees, Orval believes his attraction to online learning has a special place with the education and experience that came with his earning the Master’s degree in Education. 

I am delighted to serve as an advocate for online teaching.  I just loves teaching courses online! As a member of the full-time faculty in the Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work department at Nassau Community College, I am the lead faculty in the Human Services degree program.  Beginning in 2009, I developed my first course for online delivery.  I teach a number of courses, including a disability studies course online and a social work/case management course online.  Even though I teach only two courses entirely online, I use Blackboard as a means of enhancing student learning in all of my classes.  Blackboard can be a powerful teaching tool that makes teaching students that much more pleasurable.  Over the course of the past year, I have worked to develop an understanding of how to facilitate active learning in the form of group activities for students who are taking courses online.  I am so happy to be a part of this endeavor as an online teaching ambassador.