Sent: Thu 5/10/2007 11:45 AM
To: Singer, Yvonne
Subject: Your course is flying high!
Yvonne, I just wanted to congratulate you on the way enrollment for your summer course is going. Of all psychology courses, you are in the top few in terms of how quickly people are signing up. It is just more evidence of the kind of attention and care you show your students - they love you!
Well done!
Steven
Steven Barnhart, Ph.D.
Chair, Psychology and Education
Middlesex County College
2600 Woodbridge Avenue
Edison, NJ 08818 - 3050
sbarnhart@middlesexcc.edu
(732) 906-2590
To Whom it May Concern,
Yvonne Singer has been teaching Introductory Psychology online at Middlesex County College for two years now. She is very capable in the use of computer based technology and soon learned, with the minimum of assistance, how to use both our Course Management System (WebCT) and Portal (Campus Cruiser), to develop and support her online course. Her online course is thoughtfully designed, pedagogically, technically and visually. The course combines a variety of learning activities and a range of learning resources with clear instructions and a study guide and well formatted texts and documents. Having seen her work I am sure that Yvonne would be able to master any other Course Management System equally well and would not hesitate to recommend her abilities in the use of such systems.
Yours sincerely,
Brian Richards B.Sc. M.Ed.
Director, Instructional Design and Media Services
Middlesex County College
2600 Woodbridge Avenue
Edison NJ 08818-3050
Office: 732 906 2618
To Whom It May Concern:
I have been asked to write a letter of recommendation for Ms. Yvonne Singer. I am pleased to do so because, under my direct supervision, I have found her to be a personable and fine Internet Psychology Instructor for Middlesex County College.
She has a physical disability (namely severe Cerebral Palsy), so she cannot teach in the traditional manner. This disability does not lessen her effectiveness as an online teacher, since she prepares for her courses well, and is flexible in adapting to necessary changes. For example, when the online computer room for her students was not available to them because of the absence of a proctor, she started to receive worried and some irate emails from her students. She rose to the emergency and provided her students with an emergency final via direct email. She averted a catastrophe, and, via her diligent work, got her students evaluated so that their grades were all posted on time.
I am sorry to learn that some institutions have a policy of not employing an instructor of Internet or online courses if that potential instructor has not taught the course in a traditional manner first. By making the accommodation for Yvonne (the accommodation that she did not have to teach in person as a prelude to developing and teaching an online course) I feel I have done a service, not only for Yvonne, but also for the students of MCC. Everyone does not start the journey of life at the same starting point. I am proud to have taken a stand and to have given Yvonne a chance to teach online. She has rewarded my confidence in her and has met my high expectations for an MCC teacher. Yvonne has proven that she can certainly teach online classes, and teach them well!
I met Yvonne in a virtual manner at first, because I responded to her resume. Seeing that she finished degrees in an online venue, I presumed that Yvonne’s online experiences as a learner would have prepared her with a deeper understanding of how to structure online courses than most first time online teachers would have. I was correct, because she rewarded me with diligence, perseverance, and quality course preparation. I should also mention her flexibility. She even accommodated students who started her course late (because they had problems with a traditional teacher in a traditional classroom).
In addition to academic integrity and the flexibility necessary to offer an online Psychology course, I also found that Yvonne demonstrated sensitivity to student problems and varied abilities; that sensitivity is another characteristic that I deem necessary to present a quality online course. She has certainly been open to criticism and to adjustments to her course. Most recently Yvonne has moved toward allowing students to explain themselves and to reveal their learning via the written word (essays and short answers) rather than limiting them to performing only via the less revealing multiple choice exams. In my experience, many online teachers prefer the multiple choice exam because of its marking ease. Yvonne, on the other hand, is used to working hard, especially as her work assists students to learn material and to demonstrate their new knowledge.
Yvonne learned to use and design her WebCT classrooms without much help (WebCT is our current and preferred Internet course delivery tool). In addition, she learned how to navigate and to use our institution’s student web connection and information tool, a graphic front end which is called CampusCruiser.
For the first semester that she taught, we did not have an online final situation available for Yvonne’s students, so I proctored their final exams and then brought the finals to her home on the following day. She marked them and posted her grades in fine time. For someone who was not born with the proverbial silver spoon in her mouth, I must attest that I find Yvonne’s performance simply sterling!
I can be contacted for verification of this recommendation via the MCC main number (732-548-6000, or the Psychology and Education Department main number (732-906-2590).
Alternatively, my secretary will forward any email requests for information to my home.
The secretary’s name is Susan Leckart and her email is SLeckart@middlesexcc.edu.
I do not regularly wax so rhapsodic about a professor, but Yvonne Singer has won my extremely positive evaluation by her dedicated professionalism and student-centered teaching skills.
Collegially yours,
John Gutowski
Professor/Chairperson of Psychology and Education
Middlesex County College
2600 Woodbridge Avenue
Edison, NJ 08818-3050
To Whom It May Concern:
I have recently had the pleasure to work with Yvonne Singer who had voluntarily provided us assistance in addressing our Website production and administration needs. With little more than a wish list, she was able to read and interpret old formatting language, revise our website, clean-up and monitor our bulletin board and offer advice on improving some of the ongoing issues we had. She has always been extremely cooperative and responsive providing immediate feedback to any concern or question we may have. I had reviewed other website work that Yvonne had constructed and found the quality and innovativeness to be evident. We are presently in the process of negotiating with Miss Singer an on going management and maintenance contract of our website. We are very proud of http://www.housingall.com/ and encourage evaluating this work on your own. I feel very comfortable to refer Yvonne Singer to other organizations wishing to develop a quality web presence.
Sincerely,
Donna M. Rose, CEO
Dear Sir or Madam:
This is a letter of recommendation for Ms. Yvonne Singer. Ms. Singer is an exceptionally talented individual that should be considered for a position with your organization
In June of 2004, I met Ms. Singer through an e-mail introduction via a colleague of mine when I was searching for a new web designer for the not for profit organization I administrate. She is the web mistress for his site, and he suggested I ask her to volunteer for our website work. Ms. Singer was enthusiastic about volunteering for us, and immediately set to work reviewing the site. Within one month the website was redesigned and online. Her work can be viewed at http://www.dla-dvti.org/.
Ms. Singer likes the pressure of working under deadlines. She seems to thrive in an environment where plans, schedules, assignments objectives and goals are concrete. Yvonne willingly accepts responsibility for planning, assigning and supervision or administrative activities. Her curiosity and awareness leads to a keen sense of analysis and interpretation as part of her talent pool. Yvonne thinks systematically and wants to have an aspect of experimental challenge in her work. Working so closely with Ms. Singer through e-mail, I know that these qualities motivate her to look for opportunity, challenges and risks when the odds are favorable that the end result will be satisfactory.
Yvonne has an untiring spirit that anyone who meets her senses, and those who work with her cannot deny She feels both a privilege and responsibility to use her communicative talents to voluntarily provide beneficial information to others. Her main objective is to share information and educate others, especially as an advocate of empowerment for physically challenged individuals, and seems to gain satisfaction from the knowledge that information requested and voluntarily given has been helpful.
I am honored that Ms. Yvonne Singer has agreed to be the web mistress for our small organization, and I highly recommend her for a position in your company.
Sincerely,
Dr. Pharra DeWindt, Executive Director
Digital Literacy Alliance, Inc.
To whom it may concern
Re. Yvonne Melissa Singer
Ms Singer has asked me to write a character reference for her. We have been friends for close to six months now since she first contacted me as a result of our both being subscribers to the EDTECH listserv, an email forum for educators who are interested in integrating instructional technology into the academic curriculum.
I think it should be said at the outset that Yvonne has Cerebral Palsy (CP) which has resulted, since birth, in her being to all intents and purposes quadriplegic. She also has a speech impediment which makes it hard for those who do not know her to understand what she is saying. But her mind is fully functional and her character is dynamic, notwithstanding the obvious disadvantages that have dogged her as a result of her disability.
She has told me much about the obstacles that she has had to overcome, in particular that of not being recognized by others as capable of intelligent interaction. She has been too often dismissed as retarded and even, at one point in her life, institutionalized on this account.
But not for long. Her determination to speak up for herself and her passionately persistent cry for recognition have resulted in her hauling herself up the academic ladder in the pursuit of an advanced university degree.
For Yvonne, the sky’s the limit. She has high ambitions for herself even after years of being put down and ignored. This I find inspirational. But she is also gentle and kind and thoughtful, even to the point of understanding (though not accepting) why others might find her hard to get to know.
On a professional level, I’m sure that if Yvonne could find gainful employment, any investment in her services would yield a hundredfold in return, because she is very dedicated to getting the job done. She has been volunteering for me since we first met. I have a large website under the auspices of the University of Pittsburgh, and Yvonne has become an indispensable sidekick in helping me manage it and maintain it.
So, in summary, I find Ms. Singer to be the kind of person I can easily relate to, trust, and count on. I value her friendship very much indeed and hope that it will last a long, long time.
Please feel free to call me at (814) 269-2923 should you need further information.
Bernard John Poole
Associate Professor of Education and Instructional Technology
To Whom It May Concern:
I am a Faculty Mentor for Northcentral University in Prescott, Arizona. This past spring, Yvonne Singer was a student in my class entitled Information Research Strategies. The purpose of this course is to enhance and broaden students¹ searching and evaluation skills, particularly in the online information environment.
Yvonne performed all coursework in a thorough and professional manner, and demonstrated tenacity and strong self-motivation in doing so. She finished required assignments ahead of schedule, and received an A in the course.
I enjoyed working with Yvonne, and found her to be both an interested and interesting student, anxious to learn and to achieve.
Sincerely,
Kit Keller
Faculty Mentor
Northcentral University
Yvonne,
I am very happy with the quality of your work. To put it in simple terms, I think its excellent. So, feel free to make any suggestions at any time and I will guide thru the process as to what we can or can not do. Remember, when you think of this website look at it from two angles. First as an individual with a disability and second from the point of view of Monmouth County Government. We want to offer the general public as much information as possible about resources for people with disabilities in Monmouth County and in New Jersey as well. That should be the primary focus of the site. As far as I am concerned I think we are on the right track. I have to discuss the site with Alex and with my Director before we can announce it to the general public. However, I think that you have done a wonderful job in a very short period of time. I think this is just the beginning of a very productive work relationship. One that I hope will benefit primarily individuals with disabilities.
This coming Monday, December 16th I am having lunch with a good friend of mine, Paul Wichansky (http://www.eden.rutgers.edu/~pstuart/personal.html). Paul is an excellent web/graphic designer and he is also a Ph.D candidate at Rutgers University. I will ask him for input in the development of our website, and see if he can develop some graphics depending on his busy work schedule. I will keep you inform.
Have a Nice Weekend!
Luis
PS I forgot to tell you. My friend Paul has Cerebral Palsy, but as he always tell me, he took the dis- from disability a long time ago.
Dis - Ability!
I have been a director of the Monmouth County Office on Disabilities either as a volunteer for 9 years or as a paid person to the present.
I have seen many changes both in law and attitudes by the public. I sometimes become discouraged by our progress as disabled Americans. Many, many more of us should be able to have employment and homes or apartments. Transportation still has some gaps in our ability to use public transportation, but its getting better than the year I started 1979.
I still have not lost my excitement when I see folks with disabilities accepting challenges that make me feel great about this office and most of all, the opportunity we give our friends to show their accomplishments. Tune in to our new web site and view the accomplishments of my friend Yvonne, who in my eyes has made it to the big leagues; what a future she has, I’m proud to know her and her family.
Over the years many of my disabled friends have taken on the challenges a disability can bring and have moved us forward to the present. Together we will make strides and the world will be a better place for those of us who are physically and mentally challenged to fulfill our personal goals and desires for the future.
May the year 2003 bring these wishes to you, and may we do this together.
HAPPY NEW YEAR
ALEXANDER A. BUONO, YOUR FRIEND