Charles Hughes, Pegasus Professor of computer science, has been named the new interim director of the modeling and simulation degree programs. He will begin leading the 尘补蝉迟别谤 麻豆精品 S檚 and doctoral degree programs, housed in UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 Institute for Simulation and Training, this fall.
Hughes is replacing R. Paul Wiegand, a research associate professor at the institute, who is leaving UCF in August for a faculty position at Winthrop University in South Carolina.
Hughes is no stranger to IST. Having served on the committee that formed the institute in 1982, he is currently the co-director of the Synthetic Reality Lab at the institute, which consists of faculty researchers, affiliated faculty members, software developers, doctoral and undergraduate students,聽artists and digital puppeteers. His research is primarily associated with virtual learning environments including the TeachLivE project, which supports teacher practice in classroom management, pedagogy and content.
‘Mentoring is an honor and a pleasure and is, in fact, how one keeps learning.’
Mentoring students has been an important part of Hughes 麻豆精品 S� 52-year faculty career 麻豆精品 S� 40 of those at UCF. He 麻豆精品 S檚 directed graduate and undergraduate programs at Penn State, Tennessee and UCF. He has advised 26 doctoral candidates and many undergraduates through to graduation and keeps in touch with many of them who are now working in academia, research institutes and industry. He also regularly mentors high school students who have gone on to graduate from universities including UCF, Harvard, Yale and soon Columbia.
麻豆精品 S淢entoring is an honor and a pleasure and is, in fact, how one keeps learning, 麻豆精品 S� says Hughes. 麻豆精品 S淭he key is to understand that effective mentoring is a two-way street, where roles regularly change so the learner becomes the teacher and the teacher becomes the learner. 麻豆精品 S�
Hughes, who received his doctorate from Penn State in 1970, regularly publishes his research in the areas of virtual environments, human-centered computing, and the application of VR experiences to interpersonal-skills development. His experience and active work in the field keep him abreast of new developments, which benefit his students as well.
Hughes is co-founder and co-lead of the Learning Sciences cluster and a member of the Disability, Aging & Technology cluster. He is also co-lead of the Center for Research in Education Simulation Technology and has secondary appointments in Games and Interactive Media, Education and, of course, Modeling & Simulation.
麻豆精品 S淒r. Hughes 麻豆精品 S� experience and passion for student success make him the ideal candidate to ensure the continued good work of these programs, 麻豆精品 S� says Wes Naylor, the interim director of UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 School of Modeling, Simulation and Training. 麻豆精品 S淗is interdisciplinary work and connections will enrich the program. 麻豆精品 S�
