Liz Walhof, Academy School District #20 - President
Liz comes to the InnEdCO board with a background as a secondary teacher, ed tech specialist, professional developer, director of IT and PD, and now as an Assistant Principal at Air Academy High School in Academy School District 20 (Colorado Springs). An 18-year veteran of public education, Liz has also presented across the country on using innovative technology tools to encourage students and staff to passionately engage in lifelong learning. Liz is a member of the Colorado Association of Leaders in Educational Technology (CALET), the Colorado Association of School Executives (CASE), and the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN). Email: ewalhof@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @ejwalhof
Sheila Bowman, Weld RE4 School District - Board Member
Sheila serves as a district-level Instructional Technology Specialist at the Weld RE-4 School District in Windsor, Colorado. After several years of elementary classroom experience, the draw to harness the power of technology and design thinking to engage and inspire students led her to seek a position where she champions educator excellence and creativity and empowered learning for students. Sheila holds a B.S. in Human Development/Family Studies, a minor in Early Childhood Education, and a Master’s of Science in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies. Sheila has presented at ISTE, InnEdCO and Colorado Association of Libraries around Professional Development, Visionary Leadership, and Instructional Technology Pedagogy, and serves as a guest lecturer for pre-service teacher courses at the University of Northern Colorado. Sheila’s focus is on supporting educators and Learning Coaches, and developing fresh and relevant professional growth experiences for educators, administrators and their students at Weld RE-4. She is a happy wife and proud mom of three amazing young adults, and enjoys long walks and hikes, sunset paddleboarding and an occasional lazy day on any beach. Email: sbowman@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @techimomma
Brandon Petersen, Microsoft in Education - Board Member
Brandon is an admitted geek, pop culture junkie, and fan of learning all things techie. When Brandon gets the time he loves to see new movies, hang with friends, learn new things from colleagues, swim, and play games. Brandon currently serves as the Microsoft Learning Consultant for Microsoft in Education. He spends his time in schools across Colorado providing free PD and Support in Skype, Sway, OneNote, and Minecraft: Education Edition. Brandon, as well, is co-founder, with Penny Potts, of #COllapporative - an educational network which provides free, year-round professional development opportunities focused on best practices for integrating digital tools into classrooms. Brandon has worked as a Field Support Specialist for Denver Public Schools, and a Teacher and Course Developer for Douglas County School District. Over the past year, Brandon has developed a huge appreciation for Computer Science and the power it plays in a lot of jobs in our world. Brandon enjoys exploring that world and figuring out how to best prepare everyone for the skills needed to fill careers within Computer Science. Email: bpetersen@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @denpetersen
Linda Horne, Challenge 2 Excellence Charter School - Secretary
Linda loves to learn new things and expand beyond her comfort zone. Linda goes to different conferences and help organize regional Geek Camps and EdCamps. Linda currently fills three different positions at the school where she has been for the past 12 years: Director of Educational Technology, English Language Development Coordinator, and School Assessment Coordinator. Linda excels at supporting anytime, anywhere learning. Linda uses her organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills to build systems that empower learners and leaders. Email: lhorne@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @lindaphorne
Mia Williams, Associate Professor of Curriculum Studies & Educational Technology at University of Northern Colorado - Board Member
Listed as one of the nation's 50 top technologists, transformers, and trailblazers, Mia has served as secretary on the ISTE Board and has coordinated the University of Northern Colorado’s (UNCO) Educational Technology and Technology, Innovation and Pedagogy programs for the past 4 years, and also coordinated its EdD in Educational Studies program. Mia looks forward to building partnerships between InnEdCO and higher education institutions throughout the state with the goals of disseminating and inspiring innovative practices, engaging in-service and pre-service teachers, and creating year-round learning opportunities for Colorado's education community. Email: mwilliams@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @mktechteach
Nannette McMurtry, Instructional Technology Coordinator St. Vrain Valley Schools - Board Member
Nannette is an award-winning educator both at the local and national levels, recognized for her implementation of technology in the classroom. Ever since she began her teaching career over a decade ago, she has implemented 21st century learning pedagogy in her curriculum and class environment as well as provided mentoring and training experiences for other educators as part of district leadership teams and roles. In her current role, Nannette is an Instructional Technology Coordinator for St. Vrain Valley School District in Longmont, CO, and she is excited to help other students, teachers and administrators experience the power of educational technology and it's impact on student learning. Email: nmcmurtry@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @edtechmusings
Kayla Swanton, Adams 12 Five Star Schools - Board Member
Kayla began teaching in 2010 after receiving her B.A. in English and Secondary Education from Colorado State University in Ft. Collins. Over the course of her career, she has taught middle school and high school English and ELD in Colorado, as well as overseas in Istanbul, Turkey. She earned her M.A. in Educational Technology from Michigan State University in 2015. She considers herself incredibly lucky to have found a program designed for overseas teachers and completed most of her coursework in Galway, Ireland during the summers. Currently, Kayla serves as the Instructional Technology Coordinator for Adams 12 Five Star Schools. She collaborates with district and school leaders, teachers, and coaches across the system to successfully leverage digital tools and resources to meet the needs of all students. She has presented her work at state and national conferences. Kayla is passionate about building teachers' efficacy to teach all students how to be citizens of a diverse and complex community. Her areas of passion include successfully incorporating the 4C's (creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking) into already demanding curriculum, leveraging digital tools for effective differentiation, and moving students from being consumers of content to creators. Email: kswanton@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @klswanton
Christine Schein, Digital Literacy Specialist Colorado Department of Education - Board Member
Christine Schein is the Digital Literacy Instructional Specialist at the Colorado Department of Education. She has a Master’s degree in Education, Information Technology, and School Library Media. She has also earned CoSN’s prestigious Certified Ed Tech Leader Certification. She has presented at numerous conferences, including ISTE, AASL, CASE, CoSN, EdSpaces, and InnEdCO. Although her undergraduate degree is in Sociology & Criminal Justice and her work experience spans over various business and legal fields, her passion is students and their future as responsible citizens in the world. She is an information geek that also loves to sing, hike, and kayak with her family and her dog Sunny. Email: cschein@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @scheinc
Christine Funk, Douglas County Schools- Board Member
After teaching high-school kids science for 20+ years, Chris moved to a district level position working with teachers to develop a broader understanding of high-quality assessment practices before settling in as an administrator at a middle school in Douglas County Schools. Throughout this time, technology integration and innovative practices have been integral to her classroom, engaging learners on a personal level and connecting learning in new ways. In 2005, Chris earned a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction. She has presented at a variety of conferences, locally and nationally, on technology, science, and assessment.Chris loves “living on the farm” with her family, 3 pups, 2 llamas, and assorted chickens, rabbits, and deer. She has fun visiting new places, is an avid reader, and enjoys spending time in the mountains and under the Colorado sun. She is looking forward to learning and growing as a member of the InnEdCO Board.
Email: cfunk@innedco.org. Follow on Twitter: @cmfunk
Mattea Garcia, Digital Coach for Denver Public Schools - Board Member
Driven by the pursuit of educational equity, Mattea began her education career as a math teacher, graduating from Michigan State University after a student teaching internship in Chicago Public Schools. After moving to the Denver area, she has taught math at various grade levels, from 8th grade math to AP Calculus. While teaching, she discovered her passion for leveraging technology to enhance student learning and promote equitable outcomes, especially for students from traditionally underserved populations.In 2015, she obtained her Master’s Degree in K-12 Instructional Technology, receiving the Outstanding Graduate Award. Mattea has also spent much of her career supporting professional learning, including in her roles as an Online Professional Development Specialist for the JDO Foundation and a Professional Learning Partner for Denver Public Schools. In her current role, Mattea serves as a Digital Coach for Denver Public Schools, providing instructional coaching support for schools implementing the 1:1 Chromebook MyTech initiative.
Outside of work, Mattea enjoys spending time with her family, listening to a wide variety of podcasts, and nerding out about the worlds of Doctor Who, Harry Potter, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Email: mgarcia@innedco.org.
Jennifer Frost, Support Associate for the InnEdCO Board of Directors
Jennifer Frost is one of the newest additions to the InnEdCO team and is excited about her new role as Support Associate. Prior to her role as Support Associate, she had been the Athletics Secretary/Administrative Assistant to the Athletic Director at Castle View High School for the last 6 years.A Colorado native, Jennifer was born in La Junta, CO and attended Rocky Ford High School home of the Meloneers! After high school Jennifer obtained her Business Administration degree through Adams State University while managing a Verizon Wireless retail store. In her free time Jennifer enjoys baking and family time with her two young boys baby girl and husband.
Email: jfrost@innedco.org.