Meet the Team

About Us

As individuals and a collective, OTL supports many initiatives and programs throughout the Smith School and the University of Maryland. We are leaders and innovators within the instructional design, educational technology, and higher education communities.

Meet The Team

Marni Blachowicz
Senior Instructional Designer and E-Learning Developer

MEd, Johns Hopkins University
Instructional Systems Design Certification, UMBC

Marni Blachowicz is an Instructional designer with over 10 years experience in writing, researching and developing courses for both corporate learning and higher education. After a successful career in the arts, she received her master's in education from Johns Hopkins University and a postgraduate certificate in instructional design from the University of Maryland Baltimore County. She currently lives in Catonsville, Md., and is raising two wild and fun boys with her husband.

Nikk Bonneau
Graphic Designer

BFA, Graphic Design, Shepherd University

As a graphic designer, Nikk Bonneau supports the OTL team to achieve innovative and cohesive designs that help augment the University's brand. After 12 years in the outdoor recreation industry, affording him an unmatched calm under pressure, Bonneau entered the design scene with a focus on strengthening brand assets. His graphic style offers clean and efficient visual communication, to accommodate the team's broad audience. Bonneau uses his free time to paddle the east coast's best whitewater and dabble in any adventure that requires copious amounts of gear.

Theresa Ewing
Assistant Director, Educational Technology

Theresa Ewing oversees the Educational Technology team at OTL, which consists of academic technology, media production, and graphic design. Ewing has been a member of the Smith community since she was a student at UMD, supporting the Supply Chain Management Center before moving to Smith IT. During her many years with Smith IT, she had a number of roles including academic technology support specialist, and then digital media manager, before becoming assistant director of academic technology and media production. Now at OTL, she and her team provide academic technology support and digital media creation services for OTL, as well as for the Smith community as a whole. Ewings's parents both attended the University of Maryland and were born and raised in the area surrounding campus. She currently resides in College Park with her husband and son.

Suzanne Hurley
Instructional Technology Specialist

Suzanne Hurley works under the EdTech team whose primary responsibilities consist of supporting Canvas, lecture capture, web conferencing, and other instructional tools. Prior to joining the OTL, Hurley worked for the Office of Smith IT for 15 years doing many different jobs ranging from helpdesk support to Citrix administration and classroom image deployment. In her spare time, she enjoys building mechanical keyboards and playing co-op video games such as World of Warcraft, Overwatch, and Fortnite.

Garrett Mollman
Digital Media Specialist

BS, Simulation & Digital Media, University of Baltimore

Garrett Mollman is a digital media specialist (or video guy) working with the OTL EdTech team. He edits videos, makes animations and manages the studio spaces. He earned his BS degree in 2010 to pursue his interest in graphics and animation and merge that with his interest in programming and electrical engineering. Mollman started at Smith in 2012 as an A/V technician with Smith IT supporting classroom technology and helped start the media production team in 2015. Outside of Smith, he can be found drawing in a sketchbook, building an electronic contraption of some sort, pretending to know what he's doing with a guitar or demolishing and rebuilding parts of his house.

Joshua Shannon-Chastain
Instructional Designer and E-Learning Developer

MA, History, Istanbul Bilgi University
BA, History, Portland State University

Joshua Shannon-Chastain is an instructional designer on the Non-Degree Program team. He has published research on student interaction and engagement with e-learning materials and presented at international conferences and workshops in the United States, Germany, and Turkey. He enjoys cooking and spending time with his wife and daughter.