Each year, VSTE recognizes exemplary educators through several different awards. We are proud to announce this year’s recipients who will be recognized at the Annual Educational Technology Conference.
Congratulations to the VSTE Teacher of the Year, Kristina Peck, a third- year mathematics teacher from Riverbend High School in Spotsylvania County Schools. According to her principal, Dr. Troy Wright, she makes mathematical instruction relevant and engaging to her students and is a leader in the school and the division in the use of technology in education. Ms. Peck incorporates a variety of online resources to improve communication with parents and student-support groups. Further, she requires her students to construct their own online resources to help process, review, and document their learning. She is active in the profession working with new teachers as well as presenting at local, regional and state conferences.
Congratulations to the VSTE Leader of the Year, Tom Woodward, Assistant Director of Instructional Technology, for Henrico County Public Schools. Mr. Woodward is described by his colleagues as an inspirational leader with a clear vision of 21st century teaching and learning. He has been instrumental in putting his vision into practice in Henrico County by working towards ways to clarify, document and assess 21st century skills in the classroom through the development of the Teaching Innovation Progression Chart and providing recognition and support to teachers for their work in creating high quality 21st century lessons through the Henrico21 effort (http://blogs.henrico.k12.va.us/21). Dr. Wendy Krickovic, Education Specialist from Henrico County, shared that these initiatives were “successful because of Tom’s vision to build the capacity of individuals across the district to understand and model the use of effective technology use in the 21st century.” Mr. Woodward is an active contributor to the profession through writing (http://bionicteaching.com) and presenting at local, regional, state, and national conferences.
Congratulations to Dr. Matt Dunleavy, Assistant Professor of Educational Technology, at Radford Universitywhose groundbreaking work in augmented reality has led to an intellectual property disclosure, a patent submission, and a private commercial spin-off as well as numerous awards and recognitions. Additionally, he has created a YouTube channel where graduate students taking classes created and uploaded technology tutorial videos for the larger education community, which have been viewed over 390,000 times from nine different countries (http://www.youtube.com/user/RadfordEducation), served as Principal Investigator for a National Science Foundation and a Virginia Department of Education grant, developed 18 K-12 iPod touch and iPad apps, which have been downloaded over 110,000 times from seven different countries, and received 2nd and 3rd place awards for both 2009 and 2010 Virginia Mobile Learning Apps Development Challenges.
Congratulations to Making It Happen award winner, Janene Gorham, Director of the Center for Teacher Leadership, Virginia Beach City Public Schools. She has been a dedicated champion of technology in education from her classroom days, through her work as a technology and professional development leader in one of Virginia’s largest school divisions, and through her tireless efforts as a member, Board Director and Chair of the Virginia Society for Technology in Education (VSTE) Board of Directors. She has been nationally recognized as a National School Board Association’s “20 to Watch” recipient. She continues to facilitate enhanced professional development models and promote technology in education for teachers all over the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Congratulations to VSTE Hero, Tim Stahmer, Instructional Technology Specialist for Fairfax County Schools. Mr. Stahmer has been actively involved in VSTE for more than a decade, volunteering his time and effort on projects such as Virginia’s Community of Learning and the VSTELive! webinar series. He is a renowned presenter whose sessions at the conference are usually standing room only. A former teacher, Mr. Stahmer now works closely with teachers, administrators, and technology trainers to help them better integrate technology in their classrooms. A well-known blogger, Tim’s observations on education and technology are regularly read by educational leaders, and he has been included on several lists of “best educational blogs.”
