Home MembershipAffiliatesAffiliates NewsletterArchives March 2008

Conference Connections

Everything you need to know about conferences and more! Okay, maybe not everything, but hopefully some helpful hints, plus a list of upcoming conferences. Your input here is vital!  

ETAN - Take Action at Your Conference

ETAN, the Ed Tech Action Network, provides a forum for U.S. educators and others to engage in the political process and project a unified voice in support of a common cause. ETAN’s mission is to influence public policy-makers at the federal, state, and local levels and to increase public investment in the competitiveness of America's classrooms and students. 

Impassioned educators across the country have gotten involved, made their voice heard, and are seeing real results. Hilary Goldman, Director of Government Affairs for ISTE, knows it’s working and is effective. “There are nearly 11,000 members in the ETAN network now, up from 7,000 last year, and it continues to grow,” says Hilary.

Many Affiliates have become very active in ETAN by hosting an ETAN booth at their conferences. To participate, you just need to provide computers, internet access, and some volunteers. Hilary can supply your volunteers with training, brochures, promotional materials, and more. At the conference, attendees can find out about legislative happenings in their area, and immediately send a letter to their representatives via the ETAN Web site at the booth. Some Affiliates have gotten very creative with promotions and incentives to drive people to the booth and take action. For instance, in Arizona, AzTEA president Chris Johnson says people get a raffle ticket for an iPod Shuffle just by wearing an ETAN button or meeting Chris during the conference.

Visit the Advocacy section of the Affiliate wiki  to get all the details about hosting an ETAN booth at your conference, and learn how to make it fun and successful.

MACUL Conference Expansion

--Ric Wiltse, MACUL Executive Director

The Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning (MACUL) has added several new features for their 32^nd annual conference held in early March.  They include:

Broadcast Center – Established through a collaboration between MACUL, School Video News, SchoolTube, TPC Technologies, Philmagic Productions, and Media Tech Partners, the Broadcast Center provides a facility at the conference for audio and video production by students and educators. 

21^st Century Model Classroom – A working classroom that demonstrates furniture, hardware, and software for the 21^st century classroom.  One-hour presentations are offered throughout the conference by companies contributing technology for the classroom.

RoboFest – Through a grant funded by the REMC Association of Michigan, and in partnership with Lawrence Technological University, MACUL is hosting a qualifying round of the Robofest competition on the pre-conference day schedule. The competition is divided into junior (5th-8th grades), and senior (9th-12th grades) divisions. 

Teacher Education and Professional Development Reception – MACUL is gathering seven Michigan universities to host a reception on the second evening of the conference to promote their graduate programs in educational technology. The event is held at Grand Valley State University's downtown Grand Rapids campus, a short walk from the conference site.

For questions or more information, contact Ric Wiltse, MACUL Executive Director, rwiltse@macul.org, or Ren Baldwin, MACUL Past President & Board member, rbaldwin@sjschools.org.

Affiliate Conferences & Resources

Here's the current schedule that's posted on the Affiliate wiki. Please visit the wiki often to update your own info, and check out other happenings in our network. On the wiki, you’ll also find suggestions for keynote speakers and discussions about other conference planning needs.  Please keep the dialogue going! Use this tool to support each other, share ideas, and strengthen our network.

Also, don't hesitate to post a question - or suggestion - to the Affiliate listserve. To do so, simply send an email to affiliates@iste-listserver.iste.org. Summaries of worthwhile discussions may be posted to the wiki later for everyone's reference.

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