Retired World Campus director receives lifetime achievement award

International Council for Open and Distance Education recognizes Gary Miller for contributions

University Park, Pa —The International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE) has awarded the 2009 Prize of Excellence for Lifetime Contributions to the Field to former associate vice president for Outreach Gary E. Miller.

ICDE, recognized by the United Nations, is a global network of distance and online education institutions. The council promotes intercultural co-operation and understanding through flexible and online learning throughout the world.

Miller, who retired in 2007 after more than 30 years of service, is executive director emeritus for the Penn State World Campus.

“For more than 70 years, ICDE has been the global community of distance education professionals. Distance education is a truly international field,” Miller said. “I have learned much from my international colleagues through the years, and I am very honored to have been recognized by them with this award for lifetime contributions to the field.”

Miller has been involved in ICDE since 1988. He served as the board’s vice president for North America and organized and chaired the 1997 ICDE World Conference at Penn State’s University Park Campus--the same year that the World Campus was planned and launched.

Craig Weidemann, vice president of Penn State Outreach, said the ICDE award is a well-deserved recognition of Miller’s contributions to online learning.

“Gary is truly a distance education pioneer and recognized as one of the global leaders in online learning. He was instrumental in building the Penn State World Campus into a leader in online education,” said Weidemann. “This award is a fine way to honor a career spent serving the needs of our distance and online students.”

For more information about the World Campus, check out http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/ online.

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Contact: Matt Swayne, Penn State Outreach, (814) 865-7600 or mls29@outreach.psu.edu or Melissa Kaye, Penn State Outreach, (814) 865-7600 or mwk10@outreach.psu.edu.