Cory Ondrejka , former chief technology officer at Linden Lab who played a huge role in the development of the popular 3D online virtual world Second Life, will join USC Annenberg in spring 2008.
Ondrejka will be a lecturer, co-teaching a graduate-level introduction to online communities class and facilitating a bi-weekly faculty seminar on virtual realities.
"Cory Ondrejka is a pioneer in the development of virtual reality environments, most importantly Second Life, and he will bring to the Annenberg School a wealth of knowledge and experience in this important new dimension of contemporary life," said Larry Gross, director of USC Annenberg's School of Communication. "As new and newer information and communication technologies reshape our lives it is critical for communication scholars and students to become familiar with the challenges and opportunities for teaching and research that these new realities — virtual or not — present."
A Jan. 4 Chronicle of Higher Education article featured Ondrejka's move from Linden Lab to USC Annenberg. The article said that besides teaching graduate students in the Charles Annenberg Weingarten Program on Online Communities (APOC), he also will be “consulting, writing, and speaking about the economic and technological impact of virtual worlds.”
"It's a wonderful coup for APOC's students and faculty," said Karen North, director of APOC. "Few others in the world could bring as much to APOC and USC Annenberg as Cory Ondrejka."
Ondrejka will host a semester-long discussion group with faculty to talk in-depth about the current status and the future issues, opportunities and challenges facing online communities and other online ventures. North said Ondrejka's arrival brings an unprecedented opportunity for a dedicated group of faculty to work together with high-level industry leaders during the bi-weekly seminars.
"We know that our faculty will gain invaluable insights from an industry-led look over the horizon, and we also expect that the industry professionals will benefit greatly from the knowledge conveyed by our faculty."
