ISTE Honors Education Leaders for Transforming Learning Through Innovation With 2014 Awards
Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) May 06, 2014 -- Today the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE®) announced its 2014 award winners. Each year ISTE recognizes individuals who are transforming learning, teaching and leading in the digital age. The winners will be honored at ISTE 2014, one of the biggest, most comprehensive ed tech events, to be held June 28-July 1 at the Georgia World Conference Center in Atlanta.
“A school district leveraging the power of 1:1 learning, a superintendent who has dedicated his career to advancing student achievement, a champion for technology-embedded learning – these are among the 2014 ISTE award winners. All of this year’s honorees exemplify the incredible ways that leaders around the world are transforming learning and teaching,” said Brian Lewis, ISTE CEO. “We look forward to congratulating them on their achievements at ISTE 2014 in Atlanta.”
South Carolina’s Richland School District Two is the winner of the 2014 Sylvia Charp Award for District Innovation in Technology. Presented by ISTE and T.H.E. Journal, in honor of the magazine’s founding editor, this award recognizes a school system for exhibiting effectiveness and innovation in the application of technology. Richland School District Two is honored for bringing innovative practices to its classrooms, through both a 1:1 and BYOD programs that are being implemented with a focus on ensuring that the proper policies and procedures to support learning are in place. Technology integration coordinator Donna Teuber will attend ISTE 2104 to accept the award on her district’s behalf.
ISTE’s 2014 Outstanding Leader Award goes to Clayton Wilcox, Ed.D., superintendent of Washington County Public Schools in Maryland. This honor, which goes to a leader outside of the classroom, recognizes outstanding achievement and leadership in implementing technology to improve education. A former classroom teacher, assistant principal, principal, superintendent at numerous districts and corporate executive at a leading education company, Wilcox is recognized for his unwavering commitment to academic achievement for all students.
Honored with the 2014 ISTE Outstanding Teacher Award is Linda Dyck, a grade four teacher in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada. Dyck is recognized for demonstrating outstanding achievement in, and understanding of, educational technology implementation as well as for her passion for teaching.
ISTE’s 2014 Public Policy Advocate Award, honoring an outstanding and enthusiastic individual for advocating for education technology policy, is awarded to Barbara Nemko, Ph.D., superintendent of Napa County Schools and long-standing member of CUE, ISTE’s affiliate in California. Nemko is honored for her efforts to expand student-centered, problem-based education using technology and as a champion of technology-embedded learning at the school, community and state levels.
Bill Selak, a second-grade teacher in California’s Covina-Valley Unified School District, is the winner of the 2014 Kay L. Bitter Vision Award. Given in memory of Kay L. Bitter, an early childhood educator for more than 20 years, this award recognizes a PK-2 educator whose work has had a significant positive impact on the use of technology in education. An active ISTE member, Selak teaches using project-based learning with digital resources naturally integrated into lessons.
The recipient of ISTE’s 2014 Outstanding Young Educator Award, honoring a teacher under the age of 35, is Diana Neebe, instructional technology lead teacher and peer coach at Sacred Heart Preparatory School, an independent high school in the Silicon Valley. Actively involved in the school’s 1:1 iPad implementation, Neebe helped develop the English 1:1 iPad Curriculum.
In addition to naming Neebe Outstanding Young Educator, ISTE also honored seven Emerging Leaders:
Kristy Andre, digital learning coach, Tustin Unified School District, Irvine, California
Mehmet Ali Dogan, social studies teacher, Private Bahcelievler Ihlas Primary School, Istanbul, Turkey
Catherine Flippen, Upper School teacher, Mount Vernon Presbyterian School, Atlanta
Kathryn Lawyer, teacher, Cesar Chavez Elementary School, Salem, Oregon
Ixchell Reyes, lecturer, University of Southern California Language Academy, Los Angeles
Jennifer Schlie-Reed, library media teacher, Kenosha Unified School District, Kenosha, Wisconsin
Tiffany Whitehead, school librarian, Central Middle School, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
The winner of the SIGOL (ISTE’s online learning special interest group) Online Learning Award for the use of telecommunications networks to provide innovative learning opportunities for students is Karen Stadler, head of digital learning at Elkanah House Senior Primary, Cape Town, South Africa, for The Travelling Rhinos project. With the goal of raising awareness of the dire rhinoceros poaching situation in South Africa, Stadler has five unique stuffed African rhinos that travel the world, visiting schools and classrooms and sharing their adventures online.
Teams honored with the SIGLIB (ISTE’s special interest group for librarians) Technology Innovation Award, honoring a school librarian and collaborating teacher who conduct an exemplary program extending beyond the library, are:
Primary School Category: Caitlin McLemore, technology integrationist, and Melissa Powers, school librarian, Currey Ingram Academy, Brentwood, Tennessee.
Secondary School Category: Petra Willemse, high school teacher, and Bryan Hughes, teacher librarian, Seycove Secondary School, North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
ISTE’s Special Interest Group for Teacher Educators (SIGTE) Award for Excellence in Teacher Education goes to Dave L. Edyburn, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Exceptional Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. An active ISTE member and volunteer leader for more than 30 years, Edyburn is honored for his teaching and research focused on the use of technology to enhance teaching, learning and performance for students of all abilities.
All of this year’s honorees will receive complimentary registration to ISTE 2014 as well as a one-year standard ISTE membership, in addition to various other prizes.
About ISTE
The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE®) is the premier nonprofit organization serving educators and education leaders committed to empowering connected learners in a connected world. ISTE serves more than 100,000 education stakeholders throughout the world.
ISTE’s innovative offerings include the ISTE Conference and Expo – one of the biggest, most comprehensive ed tech events – as well as the widely adopted ISTE Standards for learning, teaching and leading in the digital age and a robust suite of professional learning resources, including webinars, online courses, consulting services for schools and districts, books and peer-reviewed journals and publications. For more information, visit http://www.iste.org. Connect with ISTE via Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
Jodie Pozo-Olano, Chief Communications Officer, ISTE, +1 804-986-6911, [email protected]
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