Meet Your Instructional Design Team — Named Experts, Not Anonymous Vendors

Jeff has had the privilege of playing several roles in higher education over the past thirty years. He earned his BA from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, his MA from Northwest Missouri State University, and his PhD from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His academic focus has been on teaching college-level writing, literature, and film, with an emphasis on African American writers, music, and culture . His teaching has also involved starting a college writing center, opening a free library for students, mentoring new faculty members, serving as college liaison for dual-credit instructors, and serving as president of a Faculty Senate. He also embraced distance education early in his career and has long been an advocate for online learning. While continuing to teach and tutor online, Dr. Kosse is now a full-time instructional designer. He has trained in Quality Matters scoring methods and is a strong believer in the values of backward design, inclusion & equity, and student-centered learning, as well as utilizing emerging technologies to enhance accessibility and potential learning opportunities for students. His latest interest involves harnessing AI as a means of course enhancement and teaching students how best to navigate this paradigm-shifting development. When not working, Jeff is a full-time chauffeur for his kids, a play thing for his dogs, a litter cleaner for his cats, and a date for his wife. And he likes to read a book or two when he has time. He is halfway through Les Miserables and hopes to finish it before the end of the ‘20s.

As an Instructional Designer with a background in the creative arts, visual design, voice acting, and education, Melody specializes in creating meaningful learning experiences for all learners. For 10+ years, designing content and curriculum through storytelling, scenarios, and games, Melody tries to make learning fun, out of the box, and effective. With a mindset of learning for all, she hones in on accessibility within her courses while always striving to find work arounds for activities to make them accessible for all learners. Melody has design and development experience within a number of industries including healthcare and higher education. As a past English and Theatre educator, she has multiple years of experience with writing scripts, editing, and maintaining high quality standards. She earned her BA in Theatre Performance and BFA in Management: Business & Theatre from Long Island University, her teaching license from Indiana University, and her MA in English from Valdosta University. She currently lives in Indiana with her husband.

A native of the Deep South, Laura resides in the Boise, Idaho area with her husband Brian, their sons Corey and Hunter, two cats named Xander and Mocha, a terrier mix named Dany, and a feisty corgi named Lucy. Their daughter Logan attends college nearby. Laura earned her Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education (social studies and English concentrations) from the University of Louisiana at Monroe, her M.Ed. in school counseling from the University of Southern Mississippi, an Ed.S. in school counseling from the University of South Alabama, and her Ph.D. in instructional design from Capella University. Laura has worked in education for 30 years as an educator, course writer and reviser, instructional designer, research methodologist, and dissertation chair. She also has a number of publication credits to her name. When she’s not working, Laura enjoys playing golf, bocce, and pickleball, traveling, watching Netflix documentaries, and spending time with family and friends.

Monica has a diverse educational and professional background. She was an associate professor at Montgomery College where she participated in the American Council on Education Task Force on Internalization of the College Curriculum and in the college's initiative to provide opportunities for global and international learning to non-traditional students. As the Administrator for Online Learning at Community College of Baltimore County, Monica helped faculty design high-quality online courses and provided training in the use of Blackboard for online, blended, and face-to-face instruction. She also worked as an Instructional Designer at Johns Hopkins University where she collaborated with faculty to design high-quality graduate courses. At Laureate Education, Inc., Monica contributed to the design of high-quality, effective online content for higher education institutions around the globe. As a Senior Manager, Client Experience at Blackboard, Inc (now a part of Anthology), Monica led a team of customer success professionals who ensured that faculty optimized their technology platforms to foster student engagement and success. Monica is excited to apply her expertise and enthusiasm to Babb Education's clients.

Nicole Dhanraj, PhD, is an Instructional Designer and Quality Assurance Specialist dedicated to ensuring every Babb Education course meets the highest standards of accessibility, rigor, and learner engagement. With extensive experience in instructional design, adult learning, and higher-education compliance, Dr. Dhanraj meticulously reviews every element of a course—from alignment of learning outcomes and assessments to ADA compliance, navigation, and visual design—to guarantee a seamless and equitable experience for all learners. Her keen eye for consistency and clarity ensures that course materials not only meet institutional and accreditation standards but also reflect Babb Education’s commitment to excellence. Beyond design review, Dr. Dhanraj oversees the full quality-assurance process for Babb Education’s client projects, collaborating with subject-matter experts, media developers, and project managers to verify content accuracy, functionality, and accessibility before launch. She applies best practices from Quality Matters, OLC, and universal-design frameworks to elevate every deliverable, ensuring that courses are pedagogically sound, learner-centered, and technologically robust. Her focus on precision, usability, and continuous improvement strengthens Babb Education’s reputation for producing courses that are not only visually engaging but academically outstanding.

Jeff Puhala has been working in the field of education for 26 years. He began his career in K-12 education serving as a music educator in the Pennsylvania Public School System. After completing nearly 16 years of service in that sector, Jeff has been working in higher education as an instructional designer and adjunct faculty member designing and teaching fully online courses. He is passionate about teaching and learning with technology and making adult learning engaging. Jeff earned his Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Curriculum Leadership from Northeastern University, Master of Education in the Administrative Program for K-12 Principals from California University of Pennsylvania, Master of Music in Performance from Penn State University, and Bachelor of Science in Education (Music Education) from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. He has completed Quality Matters certification and incorporates the framework into his design approach. In his spare time, Jeff enjoys playing golf, convertible rides, and spending time with his two daughters. He considers his home in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania to be the best small town in the state.