Dan S. Myers

I'm an associate professor of computer science at Rollins College in Winter Park, FL. I teach classes across the computer science curriculum, including introductory programming, simulation, and AI. My textbook, Data Structures and Algorithms in Java: A Project-Based Approach will be published by Cambridge University Press in October 2024.

My student research group, the Rollins Community Impact Lab, conducts impact assessment projects with Central Florida nonprofits. Learn more about our work.

Since the introduction of ChatGPT, I've been heavily involved in writing and speaking about new AI tools with faculty, community groups, and the local media. I offer hands-on faculty development workshops that provide concerete models for collaborative, reflective teaching and learning with AI.

CV in PDF format
GitHub repositories with class materials

dmyers@rollins.edu

Data structures and algorithms sit at the heart of the computer science curriculum, but even excellent students often finish their data structures course with no idea how the material applies to real software development.

This book takes an active learning approach to the core undergraduate data structures course. Each theoretical topic is paired with at least one significant project that illustrates its application and builds students' programming skills. The projects are interdisciplinary, and include:

• Fractal art generators
• Artificial life simulations
• A tiny web browser
• A textual search engine for a Shakespeare play
• Password cracking
• Particle effects graphics

Some of the projects are proven classics, but most are new, having been developed for my own classes over the past decade. Students will build key skills in object-oriented programming and gain familiarity with Java's graphics and user input frameworks.

Instructors who adopt the text have access to lecture slides, exercise solutions, a test bank, and a chapter-by-chapter teaching guide to help you use the book in your own course.

The book is available from Cambridge University Press or wherever fine textbooks are sold.

Cute yarn robot made by my son using DALL-E 3

New large-language AI models are challenging instructors, but can also open new opportunities for teaching and learning. It's time to move beyond simply policing AI use and show our students how to use AI in a reflective, collaborative way.

I offer a one-day in-person workshop to help faculty develop AI-first assignments and courses, drawing upon my own experience using AI in the classroom, resources I've developed for the Rollins faculty, and the best ideas from other leading AI-engaged professors. Attendees will leave with:

• Concrete examples of successful assignments you can adapt to your own classes
• Practical tips for designing AI-first courses, including balancing AI and non-AI skills
• Interactive activities to help develop your own AI-supported assignments
• Strategies for teaching students to use AI collaboratively and with agency
• A guided group brainstorming and vision activity for the future of AI in your curriculum

Click here for more information, example materials, and an outline of topics.

Steampunk airship by me using Playground

The Rollins Community Impact Lab works with nonprofits and community organizations to assess the impact of their programs. We use a focus group methodology called Ripple Effect Mapping (REM) to capture the key outcomes of a program in the words of its participants and stakeholders. Our projects are collaborative: partners are highly involved in defining the scope of the study, the important questions, and reviewing and validating the results.

Each project leads to a whitepaper summarizing the important themes of the REM data and answering questions identified by the partner. Here's an example that we developed in partnership with Crave of Central Florida.

If you'd like to talk about scheduling a Ripple Effect Mapping session with your group, please feel free to reach out to me.

Arctic sublime landscape; beautiful and imposing by me using Playground

Before joining the Rollins faculty, I received my Ph.D. in computer sciences from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2014, advised by Mary Vernon and Remzi Arpaci-Dusseau. My dissertation developed analytic performance models for storage systems and new approximations for queue length distributions. Prior to attending UW, I worked as a software engineer at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, NM, applying computer vision algorithms to national security problems. My bachelor's and master's degrees are from the University of Florida.

I like to play the guitar