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Educators Share Successes Against All Odds At the Digital Equity Summit

Educators from across the country shared inspirational stories at the Digital Equity Summit, a part of the 30th annual National Educational Computing Conference (NECC). Attendees participated in an interactive exploration of successful education models that thrived against all odds.

The Summit opened with a keynote address from Jenelle Leonard of the U.S. Department of Education who brought greetings from Secretary Arne Duncan. She said, "I want to share with you the work that you're doing is aligned with the administration’s mission and goals. The goal for us as federal employees is to get back on track to being #1 in the world in education."

Following Leonard's address, Summit organizer Bonnie Bracey introduced Milton Chen, executive director of the George Lucas Educational Foundation. Chen discussed the recently-launched Digital Generation Project, which profiles students from diverse backgrounds who use technology as part of their everyday learning experience. Technology frames their world view, noted Chen. "It's an essential component of every day life. Learning can happen any time, anywhere, everyday, every hour," said Chen.

To illustrate, Chen shared a video profile of Luis Chavez, an 18-year-old high school senior from Cornelius, Ore. The son of two Mexican immigrants, Chavez participates in a robotics program at school and at home he helps the family with online banking and bill paying. Chavez has also created his own online learning community using social media tools like Facebook and YouTube. Chavez tells his parents he stays late after school working with technology because, "I'm trying to help other people. I'm trying to help the community."

The summit ended with educators from states with other successful digital equity projects sharing their achievements at a roundtable discussion.

About ISTE

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE®) is the premier membership association for educators and education leaders engaged in improving teaching and learning by advancing the effective use of technology in PK-12 and teacher education.

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