Charles Balch MBA, PhD Professor of Computer Information Systems Arizona Western College Homepage	Room BA 226 PO Box 929 Yuma, AZ 85366 Email: Charles.Balch at azwestern.edu (928) 317-7619
Skype "VirtualCharlie"

Charlie - Painted Desert Summer 2008

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About Me

My professional career is divided equally between success in academia and in the private information systems sector. My focus has always been on effective use of technology and human-computer interaction.

My academic credentials are eclectic. I am currently a professor of Computer Information Systems at Arizona Western College. That is professor with a small "p" as all instructors at Arizona Western College enjoy the rank of professor.

While an undergraduate at the University of California at Davis, I created a cross-discipline Bachelor of Science degree in Psychophysiology focused on the study of how the mind effects the body and how to train persons to control this interaction to their advantage.

At the University of the Virgin Islands, I earned a Masters Degrees in Education and a Masters in Business Administration while also serving as full-time faculty and covering various administrative positions. UVI faces unique instructional challenges and I was very active in creating distance education technology solutions to address those issues.

I was a Louisiana State University Board of Regents Fellow as I earned my PhD with a focus on Instructional Technology and Computer Information Systems. My dissertation is a case study on Considerations in Internet Survey Design. BIRAT, my Internet based survey system demonstrates my finding and is in international use.

My primary research interests are:

• Effective use of instructional technology;
• Internet based survey design, delivery, and analysis;
• Internet based collaborative decision making; and
• Applied free/Open source software.

My professional experience has focused on applied computer technology. I worked my way through my undergraduate degree creating computer systems for real-time monitoring and analysis of human physiological functions at the University of Davis International Biofeedback Lab. Shortly after my graduation with my Bachelors, I headed the educational center for a national chain of computer stores based in New Orleans.

I then went on to create, build, and sell two business consulting agencies based in the United States Virgin Islands focused on training users and adapting business software to the unique staffing, accounting, and shipping needs of Caribbean businesses. I next spent two years as sole author developing an Internet based Decision Support System for a major stock broker.

In addition to teaching at Arizona Western College, I am currently CIO of Acorn Art Systems, a supplier of wholesale art supplies and Consulting Engineer for RESRC.com, a network security company.

Thanks for the visit,