Election Results

ITEC Board elections are held annually. All ITEC members are encouraged to vote. Board members serve three-year terms.

There were three (3) seats on the board up for election this December.  

Learn a little more about our newly elected ITEC Board Members!

Patrick Donovan

Current Position/Title: Instructional Coach

Current School / District / Employer: Ames High School – Ames Community School District

Please tell us about yourself:

I am currently an Instructional Coach at Ames High School. I have been a high school Science Teacher in 3 districts across Iowa, a Technology Integration Specialist in Ames CSD and Nevada CSD, as well as the Director of Technology at Ames CSD. I have my Masters in Curriculum and Instructional Technology from ISU as well as my Masters in Transformative School Leadership from ISU. I have also taught multiple courses at Iowa State University as part of the educational technology program.

While teaching science at South Hamilton HS in 2009, our school district went 1:1 and I was able to fully explore the use of technology in my teaching and learning. The technology was finally fully available to my students, and not just me as the teacher, to use in the classroom. I implemented various ideas and methods that helped my students learn better than ever. From those days of my flipped mastery classroom to the work that I do with teachers today, technology has been a way to do things in our classrooms that was not possible before, to help remove barriers to student learning, and to help students and teachers alike learn as best as they can.

My role as an Instructional Coach allows me to work with many teachers as they continue to grow and learn in order to better improve teaching in learning at our school. I help plan professional development and develop resources to assist in teacher learning as well as to assist students in their learning as well. Professional learning is a major focus of my day job as well as the work I do with the ITEC Board and others, it is something that I value as I work with others to improve learning in as many classrooms as we can.

What role do you see ITEC playing in the next five years in regard to education?

The Fall Conference must continue to evolve as technology becomes more prevalent in all aspects of learning and it needs to continue to provide a focal point for the learning of educators across the state. There also has to be other outreach methods that could be used to help the learning continue to happen throughout the year and not just during the fall, finding ways to support and direct that learning will be powerful. As we have begun a greater focus on our webinars, newsletters, social media posts, the IT Conference, and the Student Tech Fairs, we have found many ways to support educators beyond just a single event.

Technology is still rapidly evolving in our classrooms and you can see that just in how the discussion around AI has blown up over the last year. While the pandemic provided a boost to the amount and types of technology that entered the classrooms across the state, we still need to focus on what we do with that technology and how we can truly best support students in their learning. ITEC has to continue to support teachers who are innovating as soon as the technology changes but we have to continue to support all educators in Iowa as best we can when it comes to their learning around technology in teaching and learning.

Andrew Fenstermaker

Current Position/Title: Instructional Technology Coordinator

 

Current School / District / Employer: Iowa City Community Schools

 

Please tell us about yourself:

 

Previously, I had the privilege of instructing students across various elementary grade levels. After ten years in the classroom, I was afforded the opportunity to transition into a role where I supported teachers in reimagining learning through the lens of technology and innovation. I currently serve as the Instructional Technology Coordinator for the Iowa City Community School District. In this role, I am tasked with empowering educators and students with innovative instructional technology solutions, fostering a dynamic and inclusive learning environment.

 

What role do you see ITEC playing in the next five years in regard to education?

 

Over the next five years, I see it being critical that ITEC diversifies the services offered to assist with growing community and providing supports so educators can thrive.

 

(1) Organizational Structure: ITEC has continued to refine the different working groups within the organization. This has assisted with cross-functional collaboration to ensure rich experiences for all educational end-users. Within the next five years, I see value in adding a group focused on artificial intelligence. This group could collaborate with experts in the field to gain new insights as well as work to curate just in time learning and resources as all stakeholders navigate the new AI infused educational landscape. In addition to a group focused on AI, I see value in adding some form of student voice into the organizational structure. As we are all ultimately designing for students, it would be beneficial to infuse more student voice or advisement into the ongoing mission of ITEC.

 

(2) Annual Conference/Services: The annual conference has been a powerful networking opportunity for educators across the state. However, there have been some barriers (sub shortages, travel expenses, registration fees) for people to attend. I envision ITEC offering more informal opportunities for stakeholders to connect around trending topics such as Artificial Intelligence. This may take the form of virtual or regional in-person meetups, self-paced mini-courses or book groups.

 

(2a) Student Voice: I envision ITEC playing a pivotal role in amplifying student voice. This has been accomplished through the annual Student Tech Fair, but I anticipate additional opportunities to promote students. This may come in the form of having students play a key role during our annual conference such as leading a session, participating in panel discussions or even sharing some performances to kick off the conference.

 

(2b) Bite Size Learning: Time is a barrier for educators so expanding bite sized options for learning will continue to be important. ITEC has launched Grab and Go microlearning opportunities but I see it being critical for ITEC to continue expanding the quick, relevant and ready to use resources, ideas and strategies. In addition, leveraging multiple modalities will be important to ensure ample entry points. If bandwidth of board members allow, this could take the form of podcasts, blog posts, short video insights and more.

 

(2c) Diversification: ITEC is already moving in this direction by partnering with CSTA as well as emphasizing the growing space of Esports and Artificial Intelligence. I see ITEC exploring additional opportunities to leverage the expertise of amazing organizations and experts across the state to ensure all educational stakeholders see added value by the ITEC organization.

Jamie Petersen

Current Position/Title: Technology Integrationist

Current School / District / Employer: Woodward-Granger CSD

Please tell us about yourself:

I am in my 15th year in education! I taught in the elementary classroom for 6 years before shifting into tech/instructional coaching at the elementary level. My current position is tech integrationist for Woodward-Granger CSD, which has been my role for the past 5 years.

I am currently leading our district in implementing an innovative and high quality k-12 computer science program. I also lead and facilitate our district’s innovation team and sit on our district leadership team. Outside of those projects, my work consists of supporting building coaches, principals, and teachers in innovative practices.

What role do you see ITEC playing in the next five years in regard to education?

ITEC has a great reputation for offering opportunities for educators to grow. I see ITEC playing a huge role in helping educators narrow to the right tools and practices in order to implement innovative practices in an efficient way. I see ITEC making strides to continue to adjust and meet the needs of Iowa educators in their conference and learning that can happen outside of the conference. I also see ITEC being a hub for all things computer science and being able to provide a range of experiences for educators working to implement CS.

Brian Unruh

Brian UnruhCurrent Position/Title: Director of Instructional Technology

Current School / District / Employer: Cedar Falls Community School District

Please tell us about yourself:

I started my educational career as a 3rd grade teacher in Reinbeck for 5 years. I loved teaching and using technology to help create experiences for students. When students used technology, they were more motivated and we were able to showcase their thinking and products better. My interest grew in using technology and I received my Masters in Educational Technology from UNI. I was the Technology & Curriculum Director at the Meskwaki Settlement School for 2 years, which was an amazing experience before getting a job at AEA 267 as a Technology Integration Consultant. I worked with our school districts on technology planning and integration for about 10 years before moving into my current position at Cedar Falls Schools.

As the Director of Instructional Technology for Cedar Falls, I get to work with an amazing team of Technology Integration Coaches. As a team, we support technology integration within our curriculum, computer science, maker challenges, and quality teaching and learning with technology. I also support the use of PowerSchool & Schoology within the district along with other tools. I have also helped to coach our Esports teams for the past 7 years. As part of our district leadership team, we work toward creating supports and resources to help best meet our district’s goals.

What role do you see ITEC playing in the next five years in regard to education?

I would like to see ITEC continue to offer our annual conference. This is a great event to share learning and network with others that have similar responsibilities. I would like ITEC to continue to provide different learnings throughout the year and be a resource that can be trusted by educators within the state.