I have loved technology since I was a kid. Or more generally, I love putting things together and making them work, especially when it's audio and video gear, computers, websites, or even lighting equipment. Below are a few areas I am especially interested in (and how I spend a lot of my time!)
Live Streaming
Live streaming is a combination of some of my favorite things: creativity, video and audio production, computer technology, providing value to others, and connecting people virtually.
Since 2011, I’ve been fortunate to oversee the live streaming technology for 150+ events per year at the Kelly Writers House at the University of Pennsylvania + the creation of the Wexler Recording Studio and the technical overhaul of the Arts Cafe live event space. In addition to streaming daily special events at the Writers House, we also stream a popular series of live webcasts for the critically acclaimed online course (MOOC) “Modern and Contemporary American Poetry”, which has had more than 200,000 enrolled students since 2012. We typically stream via YouTube Live and Facebook Live.
And, if that isn't exciting enough, I've been lucky to go "on-the-road" with my UPenn colleagues to live stream and film special events all around the world, including London, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Montreal, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Seattle, Vancouver, Washington D.C., Chicago, New York City, Boston, Providence, and more! I love travel and the unique challenge of consolidating a live streaming show into a couple of suitcases.
I’ve been lucky to speak about live streaming at numerous conferences including Educause, Streaming Media East, Streaming Media West, Coursera Partners Conferences, Penn IT Staff Convention and more. I have also offered consultation to numerous schools and companies across the world.
My undergraduate degree is in Broadcast Radio and TV at Temple University. After graduation, I worked at a local channel at Maris Grove in Delaware County, Pennsylvania before joining the University of Pennsylvania.
I enjoy keeping up with the latest live streaming trends and figuring out ways to incorporate new innovative ideas at our University.
Articles and Videos
In-House Higher-Ed Streaming at UPenn’s Kelly Writers House - University of Pennsylvania IT and Multimedia Manager Christopher Martin discusses streaming operations, use cases, and workflows for UPenn's Kelly Writers House, both in-house and on the road.
How Can Universities Raise the Bar for Remote Learning? - Notre Dame's Eric Nisly and UPenn's Christopher Martin discuss emerging innovations in distance learning at the university level in this clip from Streaming Media East Connect 2020.
How University Media Services Pivoted to Distance Learning - Notre Dame's Eric Nisly and UPenn's Chistopher Martin discuss the challenges they faced facilitating their faculty's pivot to eLearning in this clip from Streaming Media East Connect.
Recommended Tools for Lecture Capture and Streaming - Ohio State's Justin Troyer, UPenn's Christopher Martin and Notre Dame's Eric Nisly discuss their current eLearning solution deployments in this clip from Streaming Media East Connect 2020.
I.T. Support and Tech Consultation
I’ve been using computers since 386 and 486 computers in the 1990’s. By the time Windows 95 came on the scene, some friends and I built computers and installed operating systems for fun. I was extremely excited the day I received a "24x" speed CD-ROM drive. Getting dial up internet, a computer with a pentium processor, a CD burner, and then ultimately DSL internet, were each life changing moments.
Today, I’m primarily an Apple / Mac guy and work on a ton of awesome projects in my role as Senior IT Support Specialist at UPenn. Prior to working at UPenn, I gained professional IT experience at Temple University where I provided help desk support to students and faculty.
Recipient of University of Pennsylvania SAS Silver Award (1 of 2 recipients): "Awarded in recognition of extraordinary contributions to the mission of the school."
Recipient of University of Pennsylvania SAS Bronze Award (Team Award): "Awarded in recognition of extraordinary contributions to the mission of the school."
Online Learning
Online learning has been a major part of my role at the University of Pennsylvania since 2012 when I began working with Al Filreis on his poetry Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on Coursera. To date, more than 200,000 students have enrolled in the course.
Though most of my contributions are in the technology space, such as producing interactive live streams, audio and video production for new course content, and managing the Coursera platform, I have also had the chance to learn more about online teaching methods, fostering community among online students and marketing.
Over the years, I’ve been lucky to attend and present at numerous Coursera Partner Conferences and received the Penn School of Arts and Sciences Silver award for my contributions in the online learning space.
I really enjoy online learning because it is a mix of audio and video technology that is used for the amazing cause of connecting and uniting a global community of learners.
Website Development
I enjoy the process of creating websites, particularly using Drupal/Wordpress, HTML and CSS. I am also experienced in using Shopify for e-commerce.
In my role at the University of Pennsylvania, I have created and support several University web sites.
A few (of many) personal websites that I have created and maintain include WildwoodPizzaTour.com (Drupal), BeachDayGifts.com (Shopify), and ChristopherJMartin.com (this one! Drupal))