What a year! 2013 in Review

What a year it has been, huh? From going to my first #edcamps to wearing a pair of Glass, this year in edtech has been something of a whirlwind. It all started last January at the annual Techspo presentation, where I was able to present and meet some great folks, including +Jeffrey Bradbury. I will be presenting again this year and I can't wait to see how that helps me kick off 2014 with a bang. 

I want to thank all of those who made a difference in my life this year and helped me grow as a educator and a person. Even though I was on Twitter for a few years, this year took it to a whole other level. Never in my life did I think that I could make friends, colleagues, and compatriots on the twitter-verse, but I did and many of them I can truly call friends now. Heck, I even ran a 5K with some of my #njed friends, most of whom I had never met face-to-face before. 

To cap off the year, I was promoted to Supervisor of Instruction in my district! A honor and one that is certainly humbling. While my primary mission to serve our district with the best technology will not change, my aim and focus will become more precise. I will work even more with my teachers and students! That is something I can't wait for! I will be able to visit even MORE classrooms. 2014 is shaping up to be a pretty good year so far. 

As for resolutions, I resolve to follow my mantra:

Be attentive, vocal, and present. Be willing to be there for those who need you. Help in any way you can. 

Be an #agentofchange in anything that you do. 

BYOD and a tale of being connected...

Last night, I held my first summit meeting for the Bring Your Own Device initiative at my school district, Green Brook Township Public Schools. The summit was created to invite parents, students, staff, and community members in to learn more about what BYOD was, why we wanted to go to it, and what it could do for our students and teachers. It was also a chance for people to ask questions, give their thoughts, and express their hopes, fears, and joys. The summit was the first in a series of meetings that are dedicated to the BYOD push. 

I have been planning BYOD for over a year now and our pilot only encompasses the 8th grade to start with. I am going SLOW for a reason. I want people to truly understand what we are doing. I want them to be a part of it. I want to be able to plan, plan, and plan. I want this to succeed. 

When I created the event, I knew in my mind that I wanted some help from people who have blazed the trails already. From Twitter and other social media sites, I have connected with so many of those educators. These are people who I consider colleagues but there is a stronger bond that connects us. While I have never met some of these people in person, I trust them, respect them, and would do anything at the drop of the hat for them if they needed it. 

I let the public know about what our plans were and I then I turned it over to some great educators:

+Alex Podchaski 

+Sharon Plante 

+Elissa Malespina 

+JD Ferries-Rowe 

+Sandra Paul 

They gave their testimonials, answered questions, and debated why BYOD is the right push for their schools. They were awesome! +Alex Podchaski even showed up IN PERSON to help me out. I was floored. Shocked even. 

Driving home that night, telling my wife how the event went, I told her I couldn't have been happier. These people stepped up, some on short notice, the others with wrong Google Hangout invites (that one's on me!), and helped me out. 

One thing I learned from doing this - don't stop because of fear. Just because some people may have opposition to what you want to accomplish doesn't mean you shouldn't go out and try. I WANT to bring in those naysayers and have a conversation with them. I WANT them to engage in discussion. The only way to do that is to bring them in.