Mission Statement
Instructional Technology and Design Services (ITDS) is dedicated to advancing teaching and learning across the University through educational technology, instructional design, and faculty development. Our mission is to promote academic excellence by empowering faculty and supporting the University community to develop innovative, inclusive, and high-quality educational experiences that enhance student success.
We achieve this mission by:
- Designing High-Quality Courses: Providing comprehensive course design services for all teaching modalities – face-to-face, hybrid, and online – grounded in learning science and leveraging the latest instructional technologies to enhance student engagement and success.
- Advancing Educational Innovation: Researching and exploring emerging and transformative technologies, and guiding their effective integration into teaching and learning to drive academic innovation.
- Offering Personalized Support: Delivering one-on-one consultations and training on instructional strategies, assessment methods, and appropriate technologies to help faculty and instructional staff achieve their pedagogical goals.
- Building Communities of Practice: Developing and facilitating faculty development programs and professional learning opportunities that promote the exchange of best practices, foster collaboration, and support continuous pedagogical advancement.
Staff Directory
Dr. Yanling Sun
Associate Vice President
973-655-4091
suny@montclair.edu
Robin Walker
Administrative Assistant
973-655-5449
walkerr@montclair.edu
Robin Walker is the Program Assistant for the ITDS department and worked in Montclair’s IT Division prior to that for 12+ years. She aids the AVP and the entire team by managing all administrative tasks, as well as fielding incoming queries and requests from the entire campus community. Robin has a BA from Syracuse University.
Instructional Design and Faculty Development
Carolyn Demefack
Director of Instructional Design and Faculty Development
973-655-3175
demefackc@montclair.edu
Carolyn is the Director of Instructional Design and Faculty Development on the ITDS team. She joined Montclair in 2011 as an instructional designer and has collaborated with faculty members to design and enhance hundreds of online, hybrid, and in-person courses. She leads faculty development initiatives and has taught several classes as an adjunct. Carolyn has an M.A. in Educational Communications and Technology from the NYU Steinhart School of Education.
Instructional Designers
Keith Adams
Instructional Designer
973-655-7849
adamsma@montclair.edu
Keith Adams is an Instructional Designer with ITDS. In addition to this role, Keith teaches Photography in the College of Art. He holds an MFA from Mason Gross School of the Arts and an MA in Arts and Humanities Education from New York University.
Elizabeth Kalajian
Instructional Designer
973-655-4027
kalajiane@montclair.edu
Elizabeth Kalajian is an Instructional Designer with ITDS and a Montclair Alumna (MA Mathematics Education). She has over 14 years of teaching experience in the K-12 setting, specializing in mathematics, Spanish, and technology. She is passionate about the intentional and effective use of technology to enhance teaching and learning. She is committed to collaborating with faculty to create inclusive and innovative learning environments that inspire both instructors and students.
Jean Moreno-Lassalle
Instructional Designer
973-655-3205
morenolassje@montclair.edu
Jean Moreno-Lassalle is an Instructional Designer with Montclair State University’s ITDS team. He collaborates with faculty to design inclusive, high-quality online and hybrid courses, serving as the primary instructional design contact for several online programs among the colleges within the university. Jean’s work focuses on accessibility, visual design, and digital learning innovation that enhances student engagement and belonging.
Christopher Petrillo
Instructional Designer
973-655-3206
petrilloc@montclair.edu
Chris Petrillo is an Instructional Designer within the ITDS team and Montclair alumnus (BS Biological Science). Some responsibilities include working with instructors to design pedagogically-sound courses for online programs, development of workshops for increasing engagement in courses using interactive and collaborative platforms, administrating the Montclair Canvas environment, and supporting faculty use of Canvas and other instructional technologies.
Gina Policastro
Instructional Designer
973-655-3662
policastrog@montclair.edu
Gina Policastro is an Instructional Designer with ITDS and a Montclair Alumnus (BA English Education). As a Montclair State student, Gina was the captain of the soccer team her senior year and broke multiple records as the team’s goalkeeper. She is passionate about building community in online environments and providing instruction on blended learning engagement strategies. Gina holds an MI in Library and Information Science from Rutgers University and a Graduate Certificate in Instructional Design from Drexel University.
Danica Stitz
Lead Instructional Designer
stitzd@montclair.edu
As Lead Instructional Designer, Danica brings two decades of instructional design, training, and professional development experience across higher education and corporate contexts. As an enthusiast for all aspects of the learning experience, she helps faculty express their course design goals with rigor, authenticity, and effectiveness. Currently pursuing and Ed.D. at Northeastern, Danica also holds an MA in Instructional Technology and Media at Teachers College and an M.A.in Art History and Archaeology from the Institute of Fine Arts at NYU.
Joseph Yankus
Lead Instructional Designer
973-655-3086
yankusj@montclair.edu
Joe is a Lead Instructional Designer on the ITDS team with about 10 years of experience in higher education. He collaborates with faculty to design courses for undergraduate and graduate programs, and enjoys ideating and facilitating various faculty development initiatives. Joe has a B.A. in Communication Studies & Sociology and a M.A. in Instructional Design & Technology, both from Seton Hall University. He is also a part-time faculty member at Rutgers University, where he teaches an undergraduate Public Speaking course.
Qian (Lora) Yao
Instructional Designer
973-655-3436
yaoq@montclair.edu
Qian (Lora) is an Instructional Designer on the ITDS team. She works with faculty on different undergraduate and graduate online programs and she provides course design consultations for online, hybrid and face-to-face courses, as well as designs faculty development courses and workshops. Qian holds a M.A. in Public and Organizational Relations from Montclair State University.
Instructional Technology
Patrick Scioscia
Director of Instructional Technology
973-655-7811
sciosciap@montclair.edu
Patrick is the Director of Instructional Technology on the ITDS team. With more than a decade of experience in higher education, his current responsibilities include managing Montclair’s instructional technology portfolio, implementing emerging technologies, managing initiatives between instructional technologists and instructional designers, and overseeing the technology training and multimedia teams. In addition to his role in ITDS, he is also an instructor in the First-Year Writing department. Patrick earned his MA in Instructional Technology and Media from Columbia University.
Technology Trainers
Pam Fallivene
Lead Technology Trainer
973-655-5106
fallivenep@montclair.edu
Pam Fallivene is a Lead Technology Trainer in the ITDS group and has been at Montclair State University for 22 years feeding her passion for teaching and helping others to improve their skills. She supports the campus community on Canvas as well as other teaching and learning technologies.
Abigail Hunte
Senior Technology Trainer
973-655-6932
huntea@montclair.edu
Abigail Hunte is a Senior Technology Trainer with over 15 years of experience providing technical training to adult learners in Corporate and Higher Education environments. She enjoys being part of the ITDS team and helping to serve the greater Montclair State community.
Multimedia Specialists
Felix Bautista
Multimedia Specialist
973-655-3076
bautistaf@montclair.edu
Felix is a Multimedia Specialist and recently joined the ITDS team in 2021. From working as an intern at MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow at Rockefeller Center to a Video Editor at a NYC based media production company, he has a background in Pre and Post-production for Television and Film. Since graduating from Montclair in 2019 with a B.A. in TV and Media Production, he has worked in many different production settings as a PA, Production Coordinator, Editor and Videographer. Felix is happy to bring his experience in multimedia to the team by providing high quality video production to faculty and students.
Steven Filippi
Multimedia Specialist
973-655-3752
filippis@montclair.edu
Steven Filippi is a Multimedia Specialist with over a dozen years of experience in video production, non-linear editing, and digital marketing. After nearly a decade in academic publishing, he joined the ITDS team in 2025 and is excited to bring his creative skillset to course development at Montclair State University. Steven earned his BA in Communications with a concentration in Digital Filmmaking from Ramapo College of New Jersey.
Instructional Technology Support
Dan Stratthaus
Manager, Instructional Technology Support
973-655-4242
stratthausd@montclair.edu
Daniel Stratthaus is the Manager of Instructional Technology Support of the ITDS team. Dan has 20 years of experience in Information Technology which includes roles as Systems Engineer, Team Lead and previous experience with systems administration, data migrations, various data integrations, development and technology training. Daniel has been with Montclair for 10+ years holding various positions. He is currently the primary administrator of Canvas, all of its integrations, as well as the other systems that the ITDS group manage.
Terry Steckowich
Instructional Technology Specialist
973-655-6930
steckowicht@montclair.edu
Terry is an Instructional Technology Specialist within ITDS. He assists both faculty and students with Canvas and other software and campus technologies. Terry also conducts training classes on Canvas and other campus technologies and enjoys making everyone feel at ease and confident in using them to promote online learning. He received his BA in Communications/Media Studies from UNC-Chapel Hill.
Marissa Callahan
Instructional Technology Specialist
973-655-3308
romanom@montclair.edu
Marissa Romano is an Instructional Technology Specialist within the ITDS team and Montclair alumnus (BA Elementary Education). Marissa has 3 years of experience in higher education and is currently responsible for researching emerging technologies, providing private instructional technology training, and assisting with the management of the ITDS website.
Student and Graduate Assistants
Jacob Kulyeshie
Instructional Technology Assistant
Shivani Vyas
Instructional Technology Assistant
Hannah Hirsch
Instructional Design Assistant
Daniel Genzale
Instructional Design Assistant
Jack Philp
Multimedia Assistant
Elian Saldivar
Multimedia Assistant
Andres Lopez
Multimedia Assistant