Author Biographies

Senior Contributing Authors

Kevin Poaletti

Kevin has held various roles in merchandising at Walmart—supporting both categories and central initiatives. He is currently a senior director of pricing for the United States business with a focus on using data science and machine learning to make better pricing decisions. From the start of his time at Walmart, he has worked to leverage data and technology within the business to increase speed to action and to accelerate growth. In addition to retail, Kevin also enjoys teaching and helping people expand their options through education. At BYU–Idaho he has helped redesign business and finance courses focused on learning to use Excel to solve business problems.

 

Ashley Smith

Ashley Smith is an online Curriculum Designer for Brigham Young University-Idaho where he designs and develops online university courses for a worldwide audience. He also teaches an online business course for the university. Prior to his current role in higher education, he worked for Walmart for 18 years. As a corporate trainer, he traveled coast to coast in the United States facilitating classes to leaders and managers. He led and managed multiple company-wide training projects and programs. Ashley developed many training courses which were implemented across all of Walmart U.S. He is passionate about worldwide higher education. He believes with innovation, and creativity, any individual with a desire to learn, can gain an education no matter where they live in the world.

 

Head Editor

Elizabeth Pingry

Elizabeth Pingry is the Quality and Editing Coordinator for Brigham Young University-Idaho. She collaborates with curriculum designers and a team of editors to ensure quality content for online courses offered to a worldwide audience. Her interests focus on studying the English language and learning about leadership and communication.

 

Associate Editor

Angela Talley

Angela Talley is a student of Interdisciplinary Studies at Brigham Young University - Idaho. Her goal is to utilize both creative writing and journalism to become a well-rounded content writer. Angela has done freelance editing work on novels, poems, and short stories. She is an assistant project manager in the Online Curriculum department at Brigham Young University - Idaho. 

 

Contributing Authors

Mckenzie Foster

McKenzie Foster grew up in Santa Rosa, California. After a year at Santa Rosa Junior College, she transferred to Brigham Young University-Idaho. She received her Bachelor of the Arts in English in December 2021. During her last year at the university, she worked as both copyeditor and internal resource manager for the Online Learning Editing Team, where she helped edit the university's online courses.

 

Hailey Pearson

Hailey Pearson is a copyeditor and graphic designer at Brigham Young University-Idaho. Her recent research includes visual communication, user experience, and human-centered design used to perform functions with efficiency and simplicity. She has been involved in the editing of many online courses at BYU-Idaho, striving to help make education accessible to all across the globe. She is passionate about creativity, problem-solving, and the journey of learning.

 

Kurtis Venema

Kurtis Venema grew up in Lehi, Utah before attending Brigham Young University Idaho in Rexburg, Idaho. He majored in English and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in December 2021. During his time at the university, he worked as a managing editor for four years with the Online Learning Editing Team where he helped promote quality assurance of the university’s online courses.

 

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