Mary Burgess (they/them) is an educator and practitioner with 20+ years in teaching, learning, and educational technology. Previously the Director of the Centre for Teaching and Educational Technologies at Royal Roads and later the Executive Director at BCcampus, Mary now teaches graduate courses in Digital Facilitation and Organizational Design and designs and facilitates custom workshops on human-centered leadership, values and inclusion.
Their academic work centers inclusion, flexible assessment options, and recognition of diverse collaboration styles, particularly supporting neurodivergent learners. Current research uses SoTL methods to study the impact of assignment redesigns in small graduate cohorts, examining effects on cognitive load, engagement, and belonging, and translating findings into practical resources for faculty and programs.
Experience
Mary Burgess (they/them) has worked in B.C.’s post-secondary system since 1998 across technical, instructional design, and leadership roles, including Director of Royal Roads’ Centre for Teaching and Educational Technologies. As Executive Director of BCcampus, they led system-wide open education and digital-learning initiatives with provincial partners.
Today they teach at RRU, lead inclusive course and assessment redesigns, and design and deliver custom workshops for leadership teams on human-centered leadership, values-aligned practice, and inclusion.
Education
2009
Master of Educational Technology
University of British Columbia
1998
Graduate Certificate Applied Management of Information Technologies
University of Victoria
1993
Bachelor of Arts
University of Victoria
Research
Research interest
Instructional Design
Inclusion