As Executive Director, Dr. John Opper oversees the operation of the Consortium and its members. Dr. Opper interacts regularly with state policymakers, education leaders, community agencies, educational entities, and industry regarding issues pertaining to technology and education, and participates in creating statewide distance learning policy and programs affecting Florida's schools, colleges and universities.

Dr. Opper has 13 years of experience working for the Postsecondary Education Planning Commission as a Policy Analyst and Director and he has authored policy studies and recommendations in the area of undergraduate education, academic libraries, funding policy and educational technology. In addition, he has served on a variety of state, regional and national workgroups and boards.

He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from Armstrong Atlantic State University, a Masters in Education from the University of Georgia, and a PhD from Florida State University. Dr. Opper is the current President of the Florida Association of Educational Data Systems.

Ms. Thompson monitors the status of operations and all projects, providing recommendations for action to the Director. She coordinates the activities of negotiated contracts, assists in the mangement of external customer relationships and assists the Director with Consortium advancement and special projects including monitoring Legislative affairs, communication with the Department of Education, state agencies and other external groups as needed.

In her most recent position with Florida State University’s Learning Systems Institute, she was a project manager for U.S. Navy projects, leading a team to design and develop electronic performance support tools and recommendations for implementing distance initiatives. Mrs. Alfano holds a M.S. in Instructional Systems from Florida State University and a B. A. in English from the University of Florida.

Leah Cook joined the Florida Distance Learning Consortium as Project Manager of the Cisco Girls Get IT! initiative.  As the statewide Project Manager, Ms. Cook works closely K-12 educators, community college partners, IT companies, and businesses to develop and coordinate marketing activities designed to recruit more women in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Information Technology fields. 

In addition, she coordinates all training for regional academies and dissemination of gender tools and resources.  Ms. Cook manages and coordinates all public relations and outreach activities related to Girls Get IT.  In addition, Ms. Cook acts as a liaison between the Florida Community College System, Florida Department of Education, IT Partners, focus groups, and targeted educational institutions.

Mitzie Cordle serves as the Staff Assistant for the Consortium. Her responsibilities include monitoring the Consortium financial accounts as well as handling all purchasing, billing and invoicing duties. She coordinates all travel arrangements and schedules all appointments for the Consortium staff and also assists with the coordination of statewide quarterly meetings and conference calls.

Ms. Cordle compiles and publishes the FDLC Newsletter as well as maintains the Consortium files, information inquires, and general correspondence with the membership, Department of Education and our fiscal agent, Tallahassee Community College. She is also responsible for answering and redirecting phone calls and assisting callers with questions they may have about the Consortium.

Ms. Johnson previously worked for the Office of International Programs at Florida State University—first at the FSU London Study Centre in England, where she managed the Library/computer lab, and then in the Tallahassee office where she served as Assistant Director of Information and Publications. She holds a M.S. in Information Studies and a B.A. in English from Florida State University.