Mary Bucy has been on the faculty of the Division of Teacher Education at Western Oregon University since 1997. She teaches educational technology courses and coordinates the MSEd Information Technology program and the Instructional Design Certificate program.

Prior to joining the faculty at WOU, Mary spent 20 years as an informal education specialist, planning and designing educational experiences for visitors in leisure settings such as National Parks, wildlife refuges, visitor centers, and museums. Her special emphasis was on visual communication.

In 2003, Mary completed a PhD in Education at Oregon State University with a focus on online learning. Many of the free-choice concepts associated with designing informal learning experiences also underlie instructional design for online classes. Her particular research interest is in understanding the student experience in online classes in order to improve course design.

Mary lives in Corvallis with her husband, Dave. They have two sons, both currently pursuing PhD degrees. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, hiking, gardening, and photography.