When I began the PhD program in 2001, I was employed as the Coordinator of Instructional Technology in Stafford County Public Schools. Inasmuch as my program is closely tied to integrating technology into schools, I felt it would be appropriate here to discuss some of the responsibilities and products from that time.

Like most public school divisions in Virginia, Stafford has struggled with the infusion of technology over the past several years. Money has flowed in from state and federal sources, computers and peripherals have been purchased, and training has been conducted for teachers and staff. Despite all of these good-intentioned programs, Stafford lacked a clear vision of how to effectively integrate technology into schools and how to educate its teachers in the appropriate use of technologies.

My task as Coordinator was to create that vision and help define steps to achieve our goals. Prior to my participation in the ITS Cohort in 1998-99, this generally took the form of offering a series of 'how-to' seminars on various hardware and software pieces. As a result of the ITS program, I was able to redefine both the goals and programs for technology integration.

One of the first products I worked on was a review and revision of Stafford's Technology Plan. This plan was unique in that, for the first time, the focus was on the human element involved in technology integration - as opposed to the technical site and the purchase of software and equipment. Drawing on ideas and knowledge gained in the leadership component of the ITS program, we created a document that was responsive to the needs of teachers and students rather than to the technical needs of the county.

When the Commonwealth of Virginia mandated that all teachers be certified in technology as a requirement for licensure, our task was to implement a program which would meet that goal. Concurrently with my research class in the ITS program, we created a plan for the education of Technology Lead Teachers. This plan sought to identify teachers in each building to become TLTs. These TLTs would participate in technology certification program at a local college, and then return to their buildings to provide certification training to the teachers in their buildings. The emphasis of these sessions was on integration, rather than on simply operating the technology.

Near the end of my tenure in Stafford County, our work revolved around providing educational opportunities for teachers who had completed their technology certification and were ready to move to a higher level of technology use in the classroom. With co-workers in the Instructional Technology department, a Post-competency training plan was created to meet that need.The focus of this plan was the creation of Technology Mentors who would work with their peers in implementing units utilizing technology.

For many years I have been involved with the Virginia Society for Technology in Education. I was elected to the board of directors and have given presentations at numerous annual conferences.

For two years I was a member of the Editorial Board for the VSTE Journal. I was the editor of the Technology Implementation section. This experience gave me the opportunity to read and review a number of articles submitted and also to write and publish articles and editorials of my own.

The first article I published, Implementation Responding to Student and Teacher Needs, expanded on my concerns at that time about the direction that we were heading with technology implementation in the schools. I focused on the issue of teachers and students being left out of the equation when planning for technology in schools.

I was also able to write editorials on issues that were important to me. The editorial presented here, illustrates my interest in the Internet and its use in the schools. Values for Sale or Rent deals with content filtering in schools. A process I am strongly opposed to.

In September of 2001, I was offered an Instructional Faculty position at George Mason University. Since my goal has been to teach at the college or university level, I eagerly accepted the job. Despite the fact that I had for many years taught classes as adjunct, I found my introduction to the university world quite different from expectations. I find that I look on my position now as that of an intern or apprentice. There is much to learn about the design and implementation of courses and programs. I am enjoying all of it - and making adjustments to my thinking at every turn.

I had been working with Dr. Norton in the ITS Cohort for some time prior to coming to Mason. We have continued teaching together this fall and spring. I find it quite interesting to work on the actual development of the courses and the philosophical discussions about the program are quite stimulating. As one of the instructors of the ITS Cohort, I am sometimes called upon to visit my students' classrooms and participate in activities. I love being able to visit schools and interact. One of the "fringe benefits" that also helps me to stay in touch with the k-12 schools.

I have also taken over a cohort of teachers in Fauquier and Warren Counties. These teachers previously completed the ITS Certificate program and are now working towards their Master's degree. Since these teachers live and work some distance from GMU and each other, we have worked out a number of different online scenarios in which to conduct the courses. In the fall of 2001, Dr. Norton and I created an environment where the class would be conducted in three modes: online discussion; small group work; and large group meetings. We researched the participants evaluation of the quality of interaction with peers and instructor as well as their evaluation of their quality of learning in the three modes. Our findings were interesting. We found that the participants rated their quality of learning and interactions with peers very highly in the small group mode. This reinforced our feeling that the best learning took place as a result of interacting with peers in a small group environment. This was the basis for a paper which we presented at the annual SITE conference in Nashville.

I have also been involved with the development of the ITS OnLine Certificate Program. This program, described in more detail here, provides an online environment in which to pursue the ITS Certificate. I have been very fortunate to not only participate in mentoring participants in the program but also to be involved in the design and implementation of a new design.

In 2002 I was given the assignment of teaching a new course at GMU. EDIT 772 - Electronic Portfolio. This course is designed to assist PhD students in the development of their Online Portfolios for the program. The course has been very successful thus far inasmuch as it fills a very real need for PhD students.

Working at George Mason is giving me invaluable experiences in teaching and learning. The benefits go far beyond what I had originally expected. More than just being a part of the university culture and interacting with others in the field, I find that I am extremely fortunate to be involved in the genesis of new programs utilizing new technologies.

Summary of Student Evaluations