An alumnus of the Department of Educational Technology, Research and Assessment has
returned to NIU to share his knowledge – and, he hopes, to spark more students to follow
his unique path.

J.A. Allen, who earned his Ed.D. in Instructional Technology in 2006, is “a visual learning
innovator, cartoonist and entrepreneur” who creates comics, coloring books and graphic
novels.

Allen delivered a Nov. 21, 2024 workshop on “Cartoon Learning for Education and Business Applications” at the 71 North Partnership Studio inside Founders Memorial Library. Participants saw, and experimented with, ways to incorporate comic strip design techniques when portraying a complex topic. - NIU Today