An Interview with the Director of Technology
As an assignment for one of my Master's classes at the University of Northern Iowa, we were asked to interview a Technology Coordinator. First we were to map out what we thought the responsibilities of the position were, conduct the interview, recreate the map based on what was learned, and then compare the two maps. For my interview, I chose to interview a Technology Director to get a broader scope of technology responsibilities in a school district. The person I interviewed works at a mid-sized school district that serves over 5,000 students in multiple buildings Pre-K through 12th grade in Eastern Iowa. The Technology Director has been employed with the school district for 15 years and has been a part of developing the technology program from one stationary lab in each school, to multiple labs, then mobile labs, and now is in the second year of a digital literacy program where all students in 9th grade through 12th grade have a laptop computer provided by the school district.The Interview
The interview took place at the District Business Office in the Technology Director's office, seated at a circular table in the office. As I look back, it's interesting to think about the number of people that have gathered around that table, the ideas that have been shared, and programs initiated. The conversation started with the path leading to the position of Technology Director, beginning in a classroom, working as a Building Technology Facilitator, and then ending with the current position. When describing the main responsibilities of Technology Director, they were categorized in three areas: the Strategic Systems Side of the job that deals with relationships; the Technical Side of the job that deals with hardware, software, maintenance, and administration; and the Curriculum and Instruction Side of the job that deals with developing and supporting staff to promote deeper learning through the use of technology.Support received in this position is provided by a other directors, technology personnel, and an administrative assistant. A comment was made on how the district has been able to structure the position to fit the strengths of the Technology Director, and that next year the Technology Director will report directly to the Superintendent. This was felt to be a positive change that will provide the Superintendent a more comprehensive picture of what occurring in the district with technology. The technology personnel consists of a small team of technicians that support the implementation, maintenance, and repair of equipment. This area of support is light on personnel, but it was shared that this also promotes a tight team that works well together. The addition of an Administrative Assistant was also significant step forward in supporting the position of Technology Director, which helped overall organization and the ability to handle and address more of the responsibilities of the position efficiently.
The dynamic nature of the position is what this Technology Director enjoys most about the position. It was described as a "Jack of all trades" where you move between the different areas of the job. This provides an on going change of pace. Even when emergencies arise, they provide a challenge to solve and work through. One of the strengths that benefits this person as Technology Director is systems thinking, the ability to see the big picture quickly. The least favorite part of the position is management of personnel and dealing with issues that arise in this area.
The highlight of this position so far was was the implementation of the digital literacy program that provided laptops for all students 9th through 12th grade. The implementation started over 3 years ago as a conversation between two people and then creating a vision where the focus was on learning and literacy, not on providing a device. Once this was in place, then they began to build leadership capacity, and get administrative buy in by visiting different sites and conferences. Once the administration was on board with the, the focus turned to staff. This took about a year, which allowed time to develop and build out the technology side of the program. Now that the digital literacy program has two years of implementation, another committee will be established to evaluate the progress and determine the next steps, if any in the digital literacy program.
Words of Wisdom
The words of wisdom were abundant. However, three stand out in my mind.
- Have a clear vision of what is most important.
- Working with a clear vision of what is important helps to guide your work and keep you on track. It also helps to keep a group focused as a unit when implementing new programs.
- Go for the biggest impact in making a difference for student learning.
- When looking for the biggest impact, think about long lasting effects. At the end of the day if the work accomplished saved the district $100 that's great. But, at the end of the day if the work accomplished made the difference in the learning of a child, that's what really matters.
- Keep your door and heart open at all times, believe everyone has the best intentions.
- When working with others, keep in mind that everyone has a different perspective and is thinking and doing what they think is best. Always be available to listen and not judge.
Map of Director of Technology Responsibilities
A map is included below showing what I thought the responsibilities of a Technology Director were before the interview and a second map is included to show what I had learned about the Technology Director responsibilities after the interview. My initial thoughts were pretty close, but not very well organized. Because of my experience with technology in an education system that helped my understanding of the positions, but I didn't have a very good picture of how it all fit together in a manageable way. Before the interview I saw several avenues of the position as separate areas that needed to be managed. After the interview, I had a better understanding of how they were grouped into three main areas and how they related to each other. The other part that surpassed me was that the curriculum and instruction part of the position was considered to be the most important and the biggest responsibility of the Technology Director. While I know this is an extremely important part of the big picture and the Technology Director would be involved in some way, I thought there would be a position that would be dedicated specifically to this area. I didn't realize this would be a main component of the position. I was also amazed at the depth and breadth of the position. "Jack of all trades" is a gross understatement. Overall, the interview was a very enlightening process. I quickly began to understand how the vast responsibilities of the position were organized and functioned together. The network within the district and peers in the field help to support the success of the Technology Director as well as the entire school district.
Prior to Interview
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Post Interview
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