Beginning in 1993, Doug led the construction of the SUIE program in academic assessment. Because of its visibility and success, he had represented the university via assessment presentations at over four dozen national and regional conferences, consulted on assessment with nearly 90 US institutions of higher learning from Canada to the Caribbean, and published refereed articles on the subject of authentic assessment.

SIUE's assessment program was cited as early as November, 1998 by the AASCU as a "best practice" site for academic quality assurance. Doug accepted the invitation to serve in 2000-01 as the Emerson Visiting Distinguished Scholar at Hamilton College in New York. He wrote and co-delivered the Assurance of Learning assessment seminars for the Association for Advancement of Colleges and Schools of Business International (AACSB). He has twice received his university's Teaching Excellence Award and received its Research Scholar Award as well. His teaching joys include anatomy and physiology, introductory biology for non-majors, web-assisted courses, learning communities, neuroscience, bioethics, and summer marine biology field experiences. Non-academic pleasures include sailing, scuba diving, amateur radio, music, flying, and our 9-year-old granddaughter.