Trefz appointed executive director of eStudent Services

Kelvin Trefz recently was named executive director of eStudent Services by Ohio Department of Higher Education Chancellor John Carey.

eStudent Services is a unit of the Ohio Technology Consortium (OH-TECH), the technology and information division of the department. Trefz began his duties July 11.

“Kelvin possesses the leadership skills and educational technology experience that will allow eStudent Services to make an impact upon the academic careers of many Ohio college and university students,” Carey said. “His experience at the high school, community college and university levels gives him a firm understanding of the challenges and tremendous opportunities afforded by online learning.”

Trefz’ comprehensive background in educational technology and instructional design will be an asset as he leads the state-funded educational technology organization. eStudent Services (eSS) will provide “access to knowledge without the barriers of distance and time,” according to the organization’s vision statement.

As a division of OH-TECH, eSS seeks to bring 21st-century technology into the classrooms and homes of Ohioans. Staff members help develop, promote and deploy innovative online support services for all students, including those who take online, blended and face-to-face courses. Distance-learning tools offered through eSS contribute to factors of completion, persistence and retention for students striving toward their educational objectives. At the same time, these tools also contribute to Ohio’s goal of graduating more college-educated citizens.

“Through partnerships with Ohio’s colleges and universities, eSS can positively affect Ohio’s current and future college students through eTutoring and OhioLearns and by implementing Quality Matters as a standard for online courses,” Trefz explained. “Additionally, eSS resources can help those persons seeking certificates or degrees, find a new career, enhance their current career or retool for new opportunities.”

Currently, eSS features eTutoring program, Quality Matters programs and the OhioLearns catalog. eTutoring provides Ohio college students with virtual academic tutoring options. OhioLearns maintains a searchable catalog of Ohio higher education distance-learning courses, degrees and programs. Quality Matters provides standards for online courses, but also can be applied to course syllabi to improve all coursework for K-20 education.

Before coming to eSS, Trefz served as an educational technologist for the Educational Technology group in the College of Education and Human Ecology at The Ohio State University, where he was involved in developing a survey system that would allow professors to receive student feedback during the semester. He also worked on Ohio State’s Quality Matters project, which helps set standards for online course syllabi.  

Earlier, Trefz worked as an instructional designer for Ohio State’s Office of the Chief Information Officer. There, he helped manage Carmen, the university’s online course management system. Before that, Trefz served as a lecturer and demonstrator within Ohio State’s department of physics, taught at a technical college and high school.  

Trefz earned his bachelor’s degree in science education and a master’s degree in instructional design, both from Ohio State.