Domenic J. Licata is an instructional support technician and an
instructor with the Department of Visual Studies at the University at Buffalo, the State University of New York, visualstudies.buffalo.edu.
His primary areas of practice are Communication Design and Emerging Practices. He has a background in photography and graphic design, and recently completed an Ed.M. in Education and Technology.

Domenic has implemented several Mac OS X Server and client management solutions which allow students to customize their work environment and access their desktops and preferences from any computer in the VS facility, or from off-campus. His challenge is to find the balance between security and freedom—to maintain a stable IT environment while
allowing students the freedom to collaborate and construct their own learning experiences.
Domenic is interested in the intersection of visual rhetoric and
semiotics in the age of postmodern mashups and recontextualization. He finds that these cultural practices mesh with teaching and learning theories of social constructivism. Domenic is currently exploring how
the creation and consumption of digital media effects cognitive
development, and how the design student can be guided in the age of the social Web to become a creative and critical thinker.