Academic Credentials:
B.S., Montana State University; Air Command and Staff College
M.P.A., University of Oklahoma
Ph.D., Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Relevant Professional Experience:
Prior to joining the IRM College, Dr. Toavs was a military officer in various positions within command and control and intelligence disciplines. He was involved with the IRM College Romanian Capacity-Building Project, April 2004 - April 2005, and was awarded the NDU “President’s Award of Merit for Group Achievement” for his efforts. Dr. Toavs was a strategic and project planner for the DoD Intelligence Information System and participated in the IRM College Distance Education Prototype Project for evaluating and selecting an IRM College/NDU Learning Management System.
Scholarship:
Dr. Toavs is the designer and creator of “Policy World,” the first virtual reality representation of public policy, issue transformation and policy change. His presentations include demonstrations of Policy World as well as discussions on visualizing research in virtual reality and non-linear holographic rhizomes and he is a reviewer for the International Journal of Electronic Government Research, an online scholarly publication. Dr. Toavs was awarded Virginia Tech’s 2004-2005 “Outstanding Dissertation in the Humanities” award in March 24, 2005 for his doctoral dissertation, “Pixelating Policy: Visualizing Issue Transformation in Real and Virtual Worlds.”
Courses: Advanced Management Program (AMP), eGovernment (EGV), Experimentation, Simulation, and Gaming: Testbed for Transformation (ESG), Transformation as Strategic Alignment (TAS)