Dr. Darcy Hardy most recently served as Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, and Director of the Anthology Education and Research Center at Anthology Inc. (formerly Blackboard Inc.). Her work focused on the online learning ecosystem, and how it impacts all parts of an institution or organization. Areas of expertise include strategy & vision; organization & governance; policy, process & practice; quality oversight; and course and faculty development processes.
Prior to her position with Blackboard, Dr. Hardy spent over 25 years in public higher education, including The University of Texas System, The University of Texas at Austin, The University of Texas at San Antonio, and Texas State University-San Marcos. During her tenure with UTSA, she worked with the Obama Administration, completing a two-year Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) appointment at the US Department of Labor, and a one-year IPA appointment at the US Department of Education.
From 1997 to 2010, Dr. Hardy served as Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at The University of Texas System & Executive Director of the UT TeleCampus. She was a founding member & is a past president of the Texas Distance Learning Association (TxDLA). Currently, she serves as Chair Emerita with the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA). She is the co-founder (started in 2004) of the popular WCET-sponsored Annual Summit for Women in E-Learning (ASWE), formerly known as the USDLA International Forum for Women in E-Learning (IFWE), an event that focuses on issues faced by women in the industry as well as on the importance of networking and mentoring in the growth of women leaders for tomorrow.
Dr. Hardy was honored by Texas State University as a Distinguished Alumna in 2012. She was inducted into the USDLA Hall of Fame in 2009 and received the Mildred and Charles Wedemeyer Outstanding Distance Learning Practitioner Award in Madison, Wisconsin in 2006. In addition, she was inducted into the Texas Distance Learning Association Hall of Fame in 2006 and received the WCET Richard Jonsen award in 2005. She earned her PhD in Curriculum & Instruction (Instructional Technology) from The University of Texas in 1992.
Dr. Hardy and her husband, Rick, live in the beautiful Texas Hill Country city of San Marcos, with their two Pitahoula pups, Frank Zappa and Ruby Tuesday. She is the proud mom of two grown daughters and a son-in-law, but she’s most thrilled to be Gamma to her precious grands, Owen and Emmy.