Keynote Speaker
Alec Couros, Faculty of Ed., University of Regina, Regina, Canada
Follow on Twitter: @courosa
Dr. Alec Couros is a Professor of educational technology and media at the Faculty of Education, University of Regina. He has given hundreds of workshops and presentations, nationally and internationally, on topics such as openness in education, networked learning, social media in education, digital citizenship, and critical media literacy. His graduate and undergraduate courses help current and future educators understand how to use and take advantage of the educational potential offered by the tools of connectivity.
L. Kay Abernathy (@ kayabernathy) ,Associate Professor, Lamar University , Houston, TX.
Dr. L. Kay Abernathy is an associate professor in the Department of Educational Leadership at Lamar University. A PreK-12 educator, she has served in three Texas school districts where she held positions as teacher, instructional technology specialist, technology director, vocational (CATE) director, and independent national consultant. Abernathy received her doctorate in Educational Administration from Texas A&M University and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Texas Austin, and a Master’s Degree in Educational Supervision from Lamar University. The Texas Computer Education Association awarded her the Lifetime Achievement of Technology in Education in 2013.
Dr. Sheryl Abshire (@sherylabshire) , Chief Technology Officer , Calcasieu Parish Public Schools ,Lake Charles, LA.
As CPSB Chief Technology Officer, Dr. Sheryl Abshire provides leadership on national, state, and district committees focusing on the role of technology and curriculum in changing practice. For 40+ years she has worked as a CTO, school principal, K-5 teacher, library/media specialist, classroom teacher, and university professor. In 2010 the FCC appointed her to the USAC board representing the nation’s schools/libraries on ERATE. Abshire won the 2013 NCTET Community Builder Award for exemplary service in facilitating the effective integration of technology into teaching and learning across the nation’s education system. ISTE awarded her their first Public Policy Advocate of the Year Award in 2009 for decades of work promoting educational technology. She was the first teacher inducted into our country’s National Teachers’ Hall of Fame. She serves on the board and is past chair of CoSN and is on the K -12 Advisory Boards for a number of companies and publications.
Leslie Barrett (@lesliebarrett13) , Education Specialist: Technology & Library Media Services , ESC Region 13, Austin, TX.
Leslie Barrett has taught 2nd, 3rd and 5th grades and has been a school librarian at both the elementary and secondary levels. She currently creates and delivers professional learning opportunities for teachers and librarians. Her passion is finding innovative and engaging ways to help educators reach all learners in their classrooms.
Dr. Susan Borg, Associate Superintendent for Instruction and Student Services, Klein ISD, Klein, TX .
Dr. Susan Borg is currently serving her twenty-third year with the Klein Independent School District in Klein, Texas, a suburb of Houston. Prior to becoming associate superintendent, she served the Klein ISD as an assistant principal, principal and executive director of curriculum and instruction. She was also a teacher of Biology and Chemistry at the high school level prior to her administrative positions. Borg has served in the educational field for 33 years. After receiving her undergraduate degree from Central Michigan University, she earned master and doctoral degrees from Sam Houston State University. Dr. Borg is the district supervisor of the academic programs for approximately 49,000 students in Klein ISD. She facilitates the collaboration of five departments at the district level with forty-two campuses, prekindergarten through grade twelve.
Aimee Bartis, Technology Specialist, Sunnyvale ISD, Sunnyvale, TX.
Aimee Bartis is a 16-year veteran of instructional technology. Over the last six years, she has worked at Sunnyvale Middle School, where she led an initiative to change the school's philosophy on integrating technology. Her close network of associates lends to her vision of seamless technology integration and student choice and has positioned her as a leader in educational technology in Texas. Her blog, Plugged In Edu, provides insight to others in the field and is regularly highlighted by her colleagues. Bartis is passionate about serving teachers as they seek to make school relevant and exciting for all students.
Stuart Burt (@stuartburt) , Director of Technology , Community ISD, Nevada, TX .
Stuart Burt started his career as a high school math teacher, after which he served as a counselor, and eventually moved into the technology department. As the technology director for Community ISD, he helps his teachers innovate and integrate technology into their instruction. Community has also added 1-1 projects in grades 3-12 under Burt’s leadership. Burt, his wife, and twin three-year-old girls all live in Rockwall, TX.
Lisa Carnazzo (@SAtechnoChic) , Teacher, North East ISD, San Antonio, TX.
Lisa Carnazzo has been a primary grade educator for over 20 years in North East ISD and previously in the Omaha Public Schools. She shares her passion for technology in the classroom through presentations at her campus, her district, and national conferences. Being a teacher on a “Leader in Me” campus, Carnazzo feels strongly that students should be empowered as technology leaders. She has placed her second graders in this role by allowing them to lead iPad professional development for teachers at Las Lomas Elementary. Her students have gained a global audience by regularly publishing the digital artifacts of their learning on their class wiki at carnazzosclass.wikispaces.com as well as tweeting out the daily happenings in their classroom. Follow them on Twitter @CarnazzosClass.
Rafranz Davis (@rafranzdavis) , District Instructional Technology Specialist , Arlington ISD, TX.
Rafranz Davis is an instructional technology specialist for a Dallas/Fort Worth area school district. As an advocate for passion-based learning, she uses her experience as a secondary math educator to help teachers integrate technology using innovative teaching strategies aimed at empowering students to be autonomous learners.
Bryan Doyle (@bryanpdoyle) , Director of Technology , KIPP Austin Public Schools, Austin, TX .
Bryan Doyle has spent the last 13 years promoting the use of educational technology in public education. For the past 2+ years he has been the director of technology at KIPP Austin Public schools – a network of public charter schools serving the Austin area (and part of the national KIPP network). He has helped to support the implementation of blended learning models in two newly opened schools, and across the entire KIPP Austin region. With a strong focus on innovation, and a belief in personalization, Doyle has worked constantly to build environments where students are inspired and empowered.
Scott Floyd (@WOScholar) , Director of Instructional Technology , White Oak ISD, White Oak, TX.
Scott S. Floyd currently serves as the director of instructional technology for White Oak ISD, after spending 10 years in the classroom at both the elementary and secondary levels. His current focus is on helping teachers integrate technology tools into their curriculum with a focus on transparency. He also works with educators on creating electronic portfolios to better showcase themselves outside of school walls. He was the ATPE Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year and an ISTE Making IT Happen recipient.
Carolyn Foote (@technolibrary) , Digital Librarian , Westlake High School/Eanes ISD, Austin, TX.
Carolyn Foote is a "techno-librarian" from Westlake High School. She believes libraries can be hot spots for innovation in schools, and promotes innovative uses of technology through her library program. Named a 2014 White House Champion of Change, she is fascinated by the impacts one-to-one has on teaching and learning, and by how that impacts learning spaces in the school as well as materials like e-books. Her blog can be found at www.futura.edublogs.org.
Karen Fuller (kfuller1@kleinisd.net) , Chief Technology Officer, Klein ISD, Klein, TX.
Karen Fuller has been in K-12 Education for 23 years. She served as a classroom teacher and a technology coordinator at Diboll ISD; a technology manager for ESC VII; and the district technology trainer and director of technology for Marshall ISD. She has been with Klein ISD since 2006, first as the director of information technology and now as CTO. She has designed, implemented, and supported campus LAN’s, district WAN’s, and regional networks, and conducted workshops on technology integration, grant writing, supporting district hardware and software, technology planning, and more. In her time at Klein she has overseen the deployment of five successful 1:1 campuses, involving over 38,000 computers, and eight new campuses with technology integrated in all classrooms. She has served on state committees for developing hardware standards and teacher standards in technology; served on TCEA Committees in various capacities since the mid 1990’s; and served on the ISTE (formerly NECC), national convention committee in 2007.
Todd Gratehouse, Chief Technology Officer, Del Valle ISD, TX.
Todd Gratehouse is an educator with over 20 years of diverse experience, ten of them teaching in Title 1 schools. He has extensive experience managing curriculum, assessment, and technology projects as well as strong instructional experience involving teaching, professional development, curriculum alignment, and local and state assessment management. Before assuming his current position at CTO for Del Valle ISD, he managed projects for the technology department in Pflugerville ISD, supporting district-wide local and bond initiatives. He is a thorough planner, incorporating systems design and Socratic learning methodologies into all of his work.
Peter Griffiths , Executive Director of Federal Programs and Accountability , Dayton ISD, Dayton, TX.
For the past three years, Peter Griffiths has been involved in getting curriculum and technology to be seen as one source and not two separate entities when dealing with instruction. He has pushed developing a data-rich culture and increasing staff awareness on the importance of understanding the need to be more data oriented.
Carl Hooker (@mrhooker) , Director of Innovation & Digital Learning, Eanes ISD, Austin, TX.
Carl Hooker has been a part of a strong educational shift with technology integration since becoming an educator. His unique blend of educational background, technical expertise, and humor make him a successful driving force for this change. As director of innovation and digital learning at Eanes ISD, he has helped spearhead and launch the LEAP program (Learning & Engaging through Access and Personalization), which put one-to-one iPads in the hands of all K-12 students in his 8,000-student district. He is also the founder of “iPadpalooza” - a three-day “learning festival” in celebration of the shift iPads have brought about in education and beyond. This year began the first of many future spin-off iPadpalooza events in various states across the country. He’s been named Tech & Learning magazine’s 2014 Leader of the Year and is a member of the Apple Distinguished Educator class of 2013. Follow him on twitter @mrhooker and his blog: hookedoninnovation.com
Wendy Jones (@wejotx) , Director of Technology Curriculum and Innovation , Leander ISD Leander, TX.
Wendy Jones believes innovative teaching and learning can transform education. She has been in education for 25 years. In her career she has worked as an elementary classroom teacher, a special education teacher, and a coach in Lake Travis ISD prior to leaving the classroom to work as a professional development trainer with Apple Computer and Intrada Technologies. Jones led the Texas team for National Semiconductor's Global Connections program to empower Texas teachers on ways technology supports teaching and learning. She was able to bring the innovative experiences from across the country back to Leander ISD where she has worked in a number of capacities for the last 15 years. During the past three years she has worked with the Curriculum and Innovation team to transform teaching and learning to promote more student ownership in the classroom. She and her team have presented at both local and national conferences included Learning Forward, TCEA, and numerous Leander ISD Continuous Improvement Conferences.
Andrea Keller (@akbusybee) , Instructional Technology Specialist , Irving ISD, Irving, TX .
Andrea Keller is an instructional technology specialist who spends every waking moment encouraging the youth of today. She spent 11 years in the special education world as a self-contained LIFE (living in a functional environment) teacher where she pushed her low-verbal and non-verbal students to new heights using various forms of technology. She was named Texas Computer Education Agency (TCEA) Classroom Teacher of the Year in 2011-2012 and one of 20 Educators to Watch by the National School Board Association. Keller has also been recognized by both the local Irving and Region 10 Association of Texas Professional Educators as classroom teacher of the year and State ATPE. In her current role she is able to help train teachers in using technology to increase instruction. She has instituted monthly technology challenges on her campus, and has created the same games through Techformers Unite. To reach all students she opens her computer lab in the morning for extra tutoring and for students to have a chance to do technology projects through the Flight Program. When not on school time, she is helping lead students into a world of unlimited possibilities through “Destination ImagiNation.”
Linda Lippe (@lindalippe7) , Elementary Science Coordinator , Leander ISD Leander, TX.
Linda Lippe has worked as a classroom teacher, mentor, science facilitator and now as Elementary Science Coordinator in Leander ISD. She has been a presenter at state and national conventions including the 2013 National Science Teachers Association. She has a passion for hands-on, minds-on science for all students.
Juan Orozco, Education Technologist, Eanes ISD, TX.
Juan Orozco has been an educator for 16 years. An Intel Teach Master Teacher, Google Certified Teacher, PBS Teacherline facilitator, Discovery Star Educator, and a Texas Staff Development Conference board member (TSDC), he has developed and led numerous instructional technology staff development sessions and has presented at various conferences including ISTE, TCEA, FETC, Tech Forum, Learning Forward Texas, and SXSW Interactive.
Ian Powell, Partner, PBK.
Ian Powell's entire professional career has been in the field of educational architecture and he has been involved in the master planning, facility condition assessment, programming, design and administration of a large number of projects, including ones he will be talking about involving Klein ISD. Since 1979, he has participated in and led educational programs with bond/construction values ranging from $20,000,000 to over $525,000,000. Individual projects have spanned a diverse array of educational project types including all configurations of primary and secondary educational facilities, higher education buildings and campuses, ancillary and support facilities (administrative facilities, professional development/conference centers, technology centers, distance learning facilities), CTE and vocational curriculum centers, athletic and recreational facilities (stadia, natatoriums), etc. Powell presently serves on the boards of professional and educational associations and has made presentations on education topics regionally and nationally.
German Ramos, Project Coordinator, Education Service Center 13, Austin, TX.
German Ramos is the project coordinator for Transformation Central T-STEM Center at the Education Service Center Region 13. He received his Bachelors and Masters in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas Pan-American. He was a Physics and Robotics teacher in Valley View High School T-STEM Academy for 5 years before becoming a T-STEM Specialist at ESC Region1. After a year of providing professional development with STEM Focus, Ramos accepted his current position as a project coordinator for the T-STEM Center, were he continues his support of STEM-Focused Education.
Randy Rodgers (@rrodgers), Director of Digital Learning Services , Seguin ISD, Seguin, TX.
Randy Rodgers has been in education for 23 years, having taught both elementary and middle school before entering the educational technology field in 2002. He regularly consults, shares, and speaks on topics such as Web 2.0, 21st century skills, and technologies for creativity and innovation at local, state, and national conferences. He has been an active advocate for collaboration among Area 13 technology leaders, starting a group called TC13 in 2012. He recently started the #roboedu hashtag and Twitter chat. A certified gadget junkie, Rodgers is fascinated by technologies that let students build, invent, and create. He believes that schools should be focusing on these and other 21st century skills, then finding strategies, technologies, and other resources to develop them. To that end, he is working to create district-wide robotics clubs, summer tech camps for "maker tech", robotics, and Minecraft, and has changed the focus of the district's annual technology fair from a student showcase to an interactive experience emphasizing inventiveness and creativity. You can find all of Randy's contact and social media information at about.me/randyrodgers."
Steve Young (@atemyshorts) , Chief Technology Officer , Judson ISD, Live Oak, TX.
Steve Young has served since 2006 in his current position , where he oversees network operations, server hardware, desktop hardware, data services, application support, programming, help desk support, telecommunications, radio, and the Texas state data reporting system known as PEIMS. He has held several positions in instructional technology at North East ISD and at Northside ISD, where he started teaching in 1992. In 2007 Young founded the San Antonio Area Technology Directors group, serves as a vendor-agnostic informal community of technology leaders who share project ideas, concerns, and solutions to common problems. In 2011-2012 he was selected as the Chair of the Texas K-12 CTO Council, the first state chapter of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN). In 2013 under Young’s leadership, Judson ISD was awarded a coveted Digital Education Achievement Award from the Center for Digital Education for its Judson ISD Connect mobile app. Also in 2013, HP and Intel featured Young in their Profiles in Leadership series. In 2014 he was the recipient of the Texas K-12 CTO Council Grace Hopper CTO of the Year Award for Texas. In addition to his roles at Judson ISD and the Texas K-12 CTO Council, Young also serves as an advisor to SchoolCIO, which features insight from school technology leaders around the country.
