Delegation Members

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Jim Bosco, Professor, Western Michigan University, Chair, CoSN International Committee

James Bosco holds the rank of Professor in the Department of Educational Studies at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan and he is also the Director of External Educational Technology Relations for the College of Education at WMU. As such he works at the state and national level to foster linkages between WMU and other agencies and organization to expand and improve the use of technology in K-12 schools and in the preparation of education professionals. He played a major role in connecting schools in Michigan to the Internet and has continued to be involved with a number of technology initiatives at the state level in Michigan. He was a member of U.S. Senator Carl Levin's technology working group that resulted in a series of school ICT initiatives in Michigan. He coordinated the development and teaches in a on-line graduate program for educational technology directors. He is currently a member of the State Advisory Committee for the Michigan one-to-one K-12 wireless initiative. He has been extensively involved with ICT at the national level as well. He was a past -chair of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN). and is the current co-chair of the CoSN International Committee. He was responsible for the establishment of the Technology Standards for School Administrators which was adopted by the International Society for Technology in Education as NETS*A and he serves on the ISTE advisory committee for technology for school administrators. The focus for his research and writing for the past several years has been on ICT as it pertains to school reform. He was co-director of a Kellogg Foundation project on school reform at the secondary level and is currently at work on a book on the topic of school reform.

Doug Brown, ICT in Schools Division, Department for Education & Skills/UK

Doug has been involved in educational computing since starting as a teacher in the early 1970s. Having taught in secondary schools in Ipswich and Birmingham he joined the renowned Birmingham Educational Computing Centre in1981. As a peripatetic head of department he had a brief to make himself redundant in every school he worked in - by training staff in the school to take over his teaching role.

As computing use spread Doug took on the role of managing the in-service training and rose to firstly head the advisory team for ICT and then act for a short spell as director of the whole of Birmingham's Educational Support Services. In 1991 he became schools ICT adviser in Birmingham and developed responsibility for the strategic direction of ICT in schools across the LEA. During this time he led on creating the Birmingham Grid for Learning - Birmingham's response to the Government's National Grid for Learning which remains a leading example of what is possible.

In 1999 Doug became Divisional Manager of the ICT in Schools Division which leads on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills on the Government's ICT in schools policies in England. His team have responsibility for infrastructure, connectivity, content development, skill development, teacher in-service support and embedding good practice in the use of ICT in all aspects of school life. The systemic national developments in England are causing great interst and the worlds first ministerial seminar on ICT was held last year in association with the prestigious BETT exhibition in London.

Doug also has an international reputation having been the organiser of the 1995 IFIP (International Federation for Information Processing) World Conference on Computers in Education which is held every five years. He is also a member of their secondary working group and has chaired international events on topics such as the school of the future. Regularly invited to present keynote sessions on this topic, in August 2000 he opened the educational strand of the World Computer Congress in China.

Murray Brown, Director, ICT in Education, Ministry of Education, New Zealand

On completing a Masters degree in Geography at the University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand Murray taught at Freyberg High School, Palmerston North where he became HOD Geography and Social Studies.

From 1986 - 1990 he was the school director of a major curriculum development project, the Freyberg Integrated Studies project. This project, a partnership between Massey University, IBM and the school sought to integrate subjects and the use of computers in programmes of work based on field studies and experiential learning. In 1989 Murray was an Honorary Research Fellow with the Education Department, Massey University responsible for developing and publishing curriculum materials generated from the integrated studies project.

In 1991 he joined the Palmerston North College of Education as an adviser in Educational Computing working with schools on professional development programmes and workshops on the integration of computing into classroom programmes. In 1996 he became the Director of the Technology in the New Zealand Curriculum, professional development programme. From 1987 to 1997 he published a number of papers, and ran numerous workshops on the integration of computers into classroom programmes with a particular emphasis on social studies, environmental education and geography.

Murray joined the Curriculum Division, Ministry of Education in 1998 as the curriculum facilitator for technology education and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). He was also responsible for implementing the first stages of national initiatives in Gifted and Talented education.

In the area of ICT he has been directly involved in the development of policy and implementation in schools since 1998 and was specifically responsible for the development and implementation of national ICT professional development initiatives and New Zealand's website for teachers (TKI). In 2003 he was appointed the manager of the ICT unit, Curriculum, Teaching and Learning and is responsible for implementing the various initiatives within "Digital Horizons" the government's ICT Strategy for Schools.

John C. Cherniavsky, Ph.D.Senior Advisor for Research, EHR, National Science Foundation

John Cherniavsky manages multidisciplinary programs at the National Science Foundation involving education and technology within the Education and Human Resources Directorate. Currently he is the program manager for the Interagency Education Research Initiative, coordinator of the Small Business Innovative Research program for education, coordinator of the information technology research initiative, and coordinator for the Advanced Learning Technology activity. Previously at NSF he was the division director for the Experimental and Integrative Activities division in the Computer, Information Sciences, and Engineering directorate. He has published recently in the area of educational technology and previously in software engineering and theoretical computer science. Internationally John has been coordinating eLearning programs with the European Union and Taiwan.

Prior to his NSF activities, he was the founding chair and Professor of the Computer Science Department at Georgetown University. He began his career as an Assistant and then Associate Professor of Computer Science at the State University of New York, Stony Brook.

His research interests were initially on the intersection of computer science and logic. He moved his interests to Software Engineering, in particular, theoretical approaches to software testing. His current interests are in formalizations of descriptions of education technologies. In particular, he is interested in notations for describing both education technologies and their context within society with an aim toward more precise reasoning about technology use in both formal and informal settings.

John has a BS degree from Stanford University in mathematics and MS and Ph.D. degrees in Computer Science from Cornell University.

Heath Cooper, International Channels Manager, myinternet Limited

Heath Cooper is International Channels Manager for Australian Education Technology Company, myinternet Limited. Based in Sydney, he is responsible for spearheading the company's international Content and Partnership Strategy in the Americas, South East Asia and the Pacific.

Heath joined myinternet from Alcatel's Genesys Telecommunications in the United Kingdom where he was Director of Voyager, the company's global sales tendering initiative. Prior to being invited to join Genesys he was Head of Client Services for Pragmatech Software Europe.

Heath's professional career began in 1983 when he was employed by country radio station 2XL as a Panel Operator. An award winning journalist by background, Heath is a graduate of Sydney University who holds post graduate qualifications in Public Affairs, Strategic Management as well as Linguistics, Theology and Organisational Communication.

Keith Krueger, CEO, CoSN

Mr. Krueger is CEO of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), the premier voice in education technology leadership in the U.S. CoSN's mission is to advance the K-12 education community's capacity to effectively use technology to improve learning through advocacy, policy and leadership development. Members include U.S. school districts, states, nonprofits, companies and individuals who share that vision.

Mr. Krueger is a past Board Member for the Organizations Concerned about Rural Education (OCRE) and was Treasurer of the National Committee on Technology in Education & Training (NCTET). He has been honored as an eSchool News IMPACT 30 as a key U.S. leader in educational technology.

He has a Masters of Arts in Public Affairs from the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota. He serves on many Advisory Boards, including The New York Times Learning Network, eSchool News, Riverdeep and Scholastic Administr@tor Magazine.

Mr. Krueger has a strong and passionate interest in creating international dialogue around effective use of information technologies at the elementary and secondary level, particularly at the policy level. He has been a representative for the National Science Foundation on a joint EU/US committee planning a joint research agenda for eLearning. Under his leadership, CoSN has brought numerous ICT ministry of education leaders to the U.S., as well as brought U.S. policymakers to London, Paris, Brussels, Bonn and now Australia.

Tim Magner, Deputy Director, Office of Education Technology, US Department of Education

Tim Magner is Deputy Director, Office of Educational Technology for the US Department of Education.

His work experience includes serving as Executive Director K12 Education for Microsoft, directing the Schools Interoperability Framework (SIF), and working for the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). He was the Director of Technology for Framingham Public Schools, and taught graduate courses at Framingham State College and George Mason University.

Mr. Magner began his career as a high school social studies teacher and taught middle and high school in France and Switzerland.

He has a B.A. from William & Mary and an M.ED from Harvard University.

Bob Moore, Executive Director, Information Technology Services, Blue Valley USD 229, and Chair, CoSN Board of Directors

Bob Moore is the Executive Director of Information Technology Services for Blue Valley School District 229 in Overland Park, Kansas. He earned his master's degree in information technology from Auburn University and has been in educational technology leadership for more than 17 years, the past ten in Blue Valley. He is the chairman of the Board of Directors of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), a leading educational technology association. Among other professional activities, he serves on the editorial advisory board of eSchool News and Scholastic Administr@tor publications. He is frequently invited to speak at education conferences and has authored several articles on technology use in schools.

Owen Lynch, CEO, British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta)

Owen Lynch has been responsible for Becta since its creation in 1998 when it was set up by the new Government to deliver its key programmes for Information and Communication Technology [ICT] in education. Following a new remit for the organisation from the Secretary of State in June 2003, Owen has restructured Becta to enable it to effectively enact its more strategic role. As Chief Executive Owen acts as an adviser to Government Ministers and officials across the UK to support the formation of policy. He also sits on the Northern Ireland Education Technology Strategic Management Group, the Scotland Teaching and Learning Council, and in 2003 was appointed by the Secretary of State for Education to Chair the Curriculum Online Content Advisory Board.

Garry Putland, General Manager, education.au

Garry Putland is currently General Manager, Business Development for education.au. In this role, Garry works closely with each sector of the education and training sector in Australia through his membership on key advisory committees including the Australian ICT Education Committee, the Flexible Learning Advisory Group and the MCEETYA ICT in Schools taskforce.

The role requires significant collaboration with each State and Territory education and training jurisdiction in relation to the development, delivery and uptake of the agency's services. The agency's services are national in scope and freely available to educational leaders, policy makers, practitioners, lecturers and teachers. Garry is an expert in the key challenges and issues that are being worked through in relation to emerging technologies in the e-learning space.

Garry's role also involves the development of strategic alliances, both nationally and internationally. He was instrumental in negotiating key strategic alliances with US, Canadian, European and New Zealand counterparts for mutual benefit. Recently, education.au has led the development of the Global Learning Objects Brokered Exchange (GLOBE) project in which leading agencies from the US, Canada, Europe, Japan and Australia aim to make online content accessible around the world.

Garry's career as a science teacher, technology consultant and Coordinator of Information and Communication Technologies in the South Australia Catholic community laid the foundation for his interests in how information and communications technologies can enhance and extend the learning experience.

Irene Spero, Vice President, CoSN

Irene Spero serves as Vice President of the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) and directs the Data-driven Decision Making Initiative, Vision to Know and Do (www.3d2know.org). In addition, she is the Director, External Relations, at NetDay (www.netday.org), an organization dedicated to expanding the technology opportunities of students.

Prior to joining CoSN in 2003, Ms. Spero was the first executive director of SchoolTone Alliance, a global consortium of education technology and service provider companies. Ms. Spero served as Director of External Relations at the Web-based Education Commission where she was responsible for directing its outreach efforts, organizing its public hearings and managing its public relations and communications efforts. The Commission submitted its report, The Power of the Internet for Learning: Moving from Promise to Practice, to Congress and the President in December 2000.

Ms Spero worked for 16 years as Executive Director for Federal and State Relations at the College Board. Based in Washington DC, her primary responsibility was to represent the interests of the association by conducting and directing a comprehensive government relations program at the federal and state level. As the College Board's representative, Ms. Spero was frequently asked to advise policymakers and comment on issues relating to the transition from secondary to higher education, access and equity issues. In that capacity, she testified before congressional committees and state legislative bodies and appeared at national education association meetings.

Ms. Spero received a BA degree cum laude with honors in political science from Bryn Mawr College and an MA in Public Law from Columbia University. She is married and the mother of two grown sons. She is actively involved in a wide range of community and professional activities in the Washington, DC area.

Kurt A. Steinhaus, Ed.D., Deputy Cabinet Secretary of Education Learning and Accountability.NM Public Education Department and Chair-elect, ISTE

Dr. Kurt A. Steinhaus of Santa Fe was appointed by Governor Bill Richardson as Deputy Secretary for Learning and Accountability in November 2003. His goal is to continue the momentum for education reform in New Mexico and ensure that children enter school ready to learn and graduate prepared for college and future careers. His appointment followed service as Education Policy Advisor to Governor Richardson, beginning in August 2003.

Dr. Steinhaus' history in education dates to 1976, when he joined the Alamogordo Public Schools as a music teacher. While in Alamogordo, he received the Excellence in Action Award (1985) and was named Employee of the Year and Teacher of the Year (1986). In 1986, he conducted the New Mexico State Honor Band.

From 1987 to 1999, Dr. Steinhaus served as Assistant Superintendent and Division Director for Accountability and Information Services for the New Mexico State Department of Education. He directed and led six major units, including Program Evaluation and Student Assessment, Data Collection and Reporting and School Management Support and Intervention, managed more than $20 million in state and federal funding, facilitated strategic planning about education in New Mexico and led major organizational restructuring efforts.

In 1999, he joined Los Alamos National Laboratory as director of Student and Education Programs. Dr. Steinhaus has coordinated the science, mathematics, engineering and technology education programs throughout the Laboratory, directed and led 22 initiatives involving more than 2,000 students and contributed to a systemic change in mathematics and science education.

Dr. Steinhaus earned a Master of Music from Eastern New Mexico University in 1981, a Master of Science in Computer Science from the University of Oregon in 1986, Educational Administration Certification from the University of New Mexico (UNM) in 1994 and an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Organizational Learning from UNM in 1998.

A native of Los Alamos, Dr. Steinhaus and his wife, Jo Beth, have two children, both graduates of New Mexico's public schools.

Sheila Talamo, Assistant Superintendent, Office of Quality Educators, Louisiana Department of Education

Sheila Talamo is the Assistant Superintendent for the Office of Quality Educators (www.louisianaschools.net/lde/offices/qe.html) in the Louisiana Department of Education. A graduate of Louisiana State University and Nicholls State University, she has also completed courses at the University of Virginia, the Education Development Center Ed Tech Leaders Online Program, and the University of California at Los Angeles Online Teaching Program. She has thirty-three (33) years of experience in education including twenty-three (23) in K-12 as a secondary school mathematics teacher and high school principal, two (2) years of experience serving as the state mathematics coordinator for the Louisiana Systemic Initiatives Program (LaSIP), and seven (7) years of experience working at the state Louisiana State Department of Education.

As Assistant Superintendent for the Office of Quality Educators, she is responsible for the administration, implementation, and leadership of all statewide teacher certification, professional development, and educational technology initiatives, including the following: the Louisiana Virtual School; the Algebra I Online Project; the Making Connections online database resource project; Louisiana INTECH professional development model; the Teach Louisiana online career network project; the Louisiana Teacher Assistance and Assessment Program; the Louisiana Principal Induction Program; the LEADTech leadership project for school administrators; undergraduate and alternative certification program requirements; and the LINCS (Learning Intensive Networking Communities for Success) project. While serving as Assistant Director for Instructional Technology, she co-developed and taught the online leadership course called LEADTech: Louisiana Educational Advancement and Development with Technology. Funded by a $1.2 million dollar Gates Foundation grant, the course was designed for superintendents and principals. Over 1200 principals and superintendents have completed the LEADTech Program. Recent participants included the State Superintendent of Education, University of Louisiana System President, State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education members, district superintendents, principals and state legislators.

Most recently, she served as chair of the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) Professional Growth Committee. In that capacity, she was chair of the 2003 SETDA/USDOE National Leadership Institute and guided the development of SETDA's first online course, Leading in Technology. She currently serves as co-project director of Louisiana's Blue Ribbon Commission on Excellence in Education.

Carl Thompson, Vice President, International, PLATO Learning

Carl is Vice President International for PLATO Learning and is responsible for its two subsidiary companies in Canada and the UK. In addition he is responsible for the various business partners that represent PLATO Learning in Southern Africa, Korea and the Middle East. Before taking up this position Carl was the Chief Operating Officer of TeachMaster Technologies, a company that PLATO Learning acquired in September 2001.

PLATO Learning, Inc. is a leading provider of computer-based and e- learning instruction for kindergarten through adult learners, offering award-winning curricula in reading, writing, mathematics, science, social studies, and life and job skills. The company also offers innovative online assessment and accountability solutions and standards-based professional development services. With over 6,000 hours of objective-based, problem-solving courseware, plus assessment, alignment, and curriculum management tools, they create standards-based curricula that facilitate learning and school improvement.

Before joining PLATO Learning, Inc, Carl held several positions in senior management and previously was the Managing Director of the UK subsidiary. In addition he has worked in the aviation training market as well as the IT and services sectors. Carl has spent the last nineteen years working in international markets. Originally from the UK, Carl was educated in London, England.

Gerry White, CEO, education.au, Dip. T., Adv. Dip. T.(distinction), B. Ed., M. Ed., MACS, FACE

Gerry White is currently Chief Executive Officer of education.au limited which (www.educationau.edu.au), is a company limited by guarantee and owned by the Australian education and training Ministers. The business of the company is to build and manage national education networks supported by distributed online information services for schools, vocational education and training and universities. The company does this through the use of collaborative, national processes utilising information and communications technologies, and through the formation of international alliances with similar government nationally sponsored organisations.

Gerry has had the opportunity to work at the cutting edge of information technology and telecommunications in education nationally and internationally. Gerry as Chief Executive Officer provides leadership and direction in the development, enhancement, standards and use of online distributed and managed national education networks. His current work involves oversight of a number of major national projects, worth $12M, and the formation of national and international alliances.

Gerry has been a teacher, Mathematics Consultant, Deputy Principal, Curriculum Management Consultant, and School Principal with the South Australian Education Department, then Deputy Director of Catholic Education and National Coordinator of Information Technology and Telecommunications in Education for Catholic education across Australia.

Gerry has worked in education for over thirty years, specialising in curriculum and technology in education. His Master's graduate thesis examined the integration of computers with curriculum in schools including the impact of computer location and configuration on educational use.

Gerry founded the Computer Education Group of South Australia in 1984 and was Chairperson for five years. He was also a member of the Australian Council for Computers in Education for many years. In 1987, Gerry became Chairperson of the Australian Computers in Education Conference. Gerry was President of the SA Chapter of the Australian College of Education (ACE) and was admitted as a Fellow of the ACE in 1991. His Fellowship was awarded as recognition for his outstanding work in the field of technology in education. Gerry served for several years on the National Council of ACE as a technology in education adviser. Currently, Gerry is a Director of the Internet Society of Australia.