VSTE

Virginia Society for Technology in Education

event

Maker Mindset Conference 2025: Let’s Make it Work in K-12!

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Conference website: https://sites.google.com/view/maker-mindset-conference/home

 

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Anyone can be a maker. A maker mindset requires creative and critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and perseverance. These are all skills that not only help students to succeed in the classroom, but also in the world around them. 

The conference planning committee invites you to submit a proposal for this year’s fall conference in the following formats:

  1. Panel Discussion - These are discussion sessions that aim to bring together experts on a topic, which they will discuss during the session and will have a longer and more interactive discussion with the audience. 
  2. Workshop - Workshops are subject focused sessions that provide participants the opportunity to gain knowledge and learn skills together. This can range from professional development topics, such as teaching strategies, to timely theoretical topics. 
  3. Traditional Presentation - A formal, speaker-led session where an expert or group of experts present on a specific topic related to the maker mindset. This session is designed for attendees to gain new information, insights, or perspectives on a focused area, typically including slides, data, or case studies. Audience interaction is limited to Q&A at the end, allowing for in-depth exploration of the presented material.
  4. Campfire - Campfire sessions are a more informal take on the traditional presentation. Its aim is to break down the barriers of the lectern.  While the session starts with a 15-20 minute presentation from a speaker, it then shifts to focusing on gaining key participation from the audience. The presenter turns facilitator allowing attendees to answer questions and provide comments. It allows attendees to drive their own learning, listen to different perspectives and share experiences.

Note – All sessions are 50 minutes long

Interested presenters should submit a proposal by 11:59 pm October 31, 2024. The conference committee will review the proposals and electronic acceptance communications will be sent to the lead presenters by no later than November 15. 

Please submit your proposal online: https://forms.gle/HiCwKRwryei7qJqP6 

 

Kindly,

Conference Planning Committee

 

 

Brainstorm 2021: Innovate, Integrate, Motivate

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VSTE partner, SVETC, is excited to present the 10th Annual Brainstorm Conference, coming April 13-17, 2021.

Brainstorm 2021 will be a fully-virtual Ed Tech Conference designed to motivate educators to innovate their classrooms and integrate ed-tech tools. Presenters and keynote speakers will focus on the future of Ed Tech in education and strategies, tools, and resources to transform classrooms to meet the needs of the 21st-century learner.

Graphic with information for Brainstorm conference

The conference will be powered by the Canvas Platform from Virtual Virginia and will feature:

  • 25 LIVE and interactive Keynote & Sessions (All live sessions will be recorded)
  • 30 on-demand sessions at your own pace
  • Blending Learning with Google by Kasey Bell Book Study
  • professional development points
  • learn in different ways, including book study, live sessions, and on-demand sessions
  • discussion and follow up with presenters and keynotes after sessions
  • collaboration with peers throughout the Shenandoah Valley and beyond
  • LOTS OF LEARNING & FUN with a Social Hour and PRIZES

Learn more on the SVETC website and view the Brainstorm 2021 Schedule.

And follow the conference and our participants on social media using the hashtag #vabrainstorm21

REGISTRATION IS OPEN!

There are two registration options for this conference:

  • Option 1: Individual- $20.00 for one individual will receive access to the Canvas Course
  • Option 2: District- $100.00 for access for 100 participants from your school district in our Canvas Course. (If your district selects this option, a separate google form will be sent directly to the participant contact on the registration.)

Register NOW for Brainstorm 2021. Registration will close on Friday, April 9th, 2021.

Don’t forget to invite your friends, colleagues, and/or team members to join you for this wonderful learning experience!

Joe Freddoso to Head Panel Discussion at Leading Ed Forum 2017

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The VSTE CoSN Council and the Virginia Department of Education are pleased to welcome Joe Fredosso, USAC consultant and co-founder and COO of Mighty River, as a speaker for the second annual Leading Ed Forum. Joe will lead a panel discussion on Friday, October 20. This event, designed for school division technology and instructional leaders and presented through a partnership of VSTE and the Virginia Department of Education, will be held October 19 & 20, 2017, at Daniel Technology Center in Culpeper, Virginia. Learn more about this event here.

Mighty River was founded by April and Joe Freddoso in July 2014 as an advise and do company in the broadband infrastructure space.  

In its first three years of operation, Mighty River clients have included:

  • EducationSuperHighway
  • Extreme Networks
  • Universal Service Administrative Company
  • Person County, NC
  • The Walton Family Foundation
  • NC Rural Economic Development Center
  • Several client relationships under non-disclosure

One of Mighty River’s roles has been to assist E-rate applicants in navigating the second E-rate modernization order.  E-rate reimbursement for applicant construction of fiber broadband networks either owned by the applicant or by a broadband provider, greatly expanded under the terms of the second modernization.  In its role Mighty River provided advisory assistance to over 1500 E-rate applicants over a 3-year period from 2014-2017.  

In July 2014, Joe completed a 7-year stint as President and CEO of MCNC.  MCNC operates the North Carolina Research and Education Network (NCREN), which provides broadband connectivity to most Community Anchor Institutions in North Carolina.  Under Joe’s leadership, MCNC quadrupled its revenue, grew NCREN's connector community by 700% and now possesses a book value of over one quarter billion dollars.
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Also, during Joe’s time at MCNC, the organization completed a $144 million expansion of NCREN, called the Golden LEAF Rural Broadband Initiative (GLRBI). This expansion included building over 1800 miles of new fiber optic infrastructure, acquiring 800 miles of fiber optic infrastructure through Indefeasible Right to Use (IRU) agreements and adding these fiber assets to the NCREN network.  The result is an NCREN that covers over 80% of North Carolina’s counties. 

Joe led the effort to negotiate the fiber leases as the lessee and the lessor and all types of lit service, colocation, above the net services arrangements.  MCNC successfully IRU'd to broadband service providers worth over $25 million of fiber on the GLRBI. Joe and MCNC were recognized as White House Champions of Change in 2012 and Computer World Laureates in 2013 for their efforts.

Freddoso has also served in senior executive roles at Cisco, Turner Broadcasting, LLC, Walt Disney World and for several entities in the Olympic movement including as President and CEO of the 1999 Special Olympics World Summer Games.