The NCESD STEM Summit provides professional learning opportunities for teachers and educational staff members in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics taught by experts and specialists in their fields. The Summit hosts 500+ participants over three days (morning and afternoon) and is offering approximately 90 sessions.

More information is available on our STEM Summit landing page.

The ACT team will be back in Palm Springs for the annual Spring CUE Conference. Join us, connect with fellow educators, and learn about the latest ideas in teaching and learning through technological innovation.

Join us in Palm Springs for the ultimate educator experience!  Be inspired, connect with fellow educators, and learn about the latest ideas in teaching and learning and the best educational technology for your classroom!  CUE 2023 will be a celebration of coming together after two years apart. It's time to come together and celebrate all that is good about being an educator.  CUE 2023 will feature hundreds of informative learning sessions, keynotes from thought leaders and renowned educators, hands-on experiences in eSports, AR/VR, wellness, and more.

REGISTER TODAY

Live Conference:
Thursday, Mar. 16, 10:30 AM — Saturday, Mar 18,  4:45 PM
Select session recordings are available for everyone until April 30, 2023

Pay for Spring CUE with Visa MasterCard American Express Discover
Purchase Orders Also Accepted
Bulk Registration Available

Dee Lanier

Dee is the Lead Experience Designer at Lanier Learning, LLC and is an Education Coach for Samsung. Dee is dedicated to co-designing equitable learning experiences for school leaders, staff, and students. Lanier Learning also partners with non-profit and for-profit corporations that are committed to community good.

Dee is the author of Demarginalizing Design and a passionate and energetic educator and learner with over two decades of instructional experience on the K-12 and collegiate levels. Dee holds Undergraduate and Master’s degrees in Sociology with special interests in education, race relations, and equity. Dee is an award-winning presenter, TEDx Speaker, Google Certified Trainer, Google Innovator, and Google Certified Coach that specializes in creative applications for mobile devices and Chromebooks, low-cost makerspaces, and gamified learning experiences. Dee is a founding mentor and architect for the Google Coaching program pilot, Dynamic Learning Project, and a co-founder of Our Voice Academy, a program aimed at empowering educators of color to gain greater visible leadership and recognized expertise. Dee is also the creator of the design thinking educational activities called, Solve in Time!® and Maker Kitchen™️ and co-host of the Liberated Educator podcast. 

KEYNOTE: Lessons Learned From My Hip Hop Heroes

What they can teach us all about culturally responsive education. AKA, parasailing past the pitfalls of poor pedagogical practices.

Sonal Patel

Sonal Patel is the Program Manager for Digital Learning and Computer Science Education, leading a team at San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools. She works to build, plan, and facilitate the design, development, and implementation of equitable educational technology and Computer Science programs across 33 school districts that serve upwards of 450,000 students. Sonal collaborates with educational partners to lead state-wide efforts in broadening K-12 access and participation in computer science, and she is a member of the California Department of Education’s Digital Learning Advisory Group. Sonal is a dedicated advocate for digital accessibility and inclusion and works to bring transformative, culturally responsive-sustaining pedagogies into blended and online learning settings. 

Sonal is a doctoral candidate at the University of Redlands, researching the collective impact approach to broadening computer science participation of K- 12 students of color. She is also a Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) Equity Fellow, a co-founder of the California Inland Empire Computer Science Equity Network, a Google Certified Trainer and Innovator, and a member of Our Voice Alliance (OVA). Recently, she was the recipient of ISTE’s 20 to Watch Award. She was also the 2021 recipient of the CUE administrator award.

Sonal has been a classroom teacher, and an Instructional Coach focused on educational technology and ELA/writing,  both in California and the U.K., where she was born.

In her personal realm, Sonal is a wife, a mom of two children (aged 10 and 12),  and an avid traveler. 

KEYNOTE: Educate to Eradicate

Our students have names, stories, cultural backgrounds, and identities. In today’s world, technological advancements and innovations enable us to redefine how, where, and what students learn in unexpected ways. We can use these solutions to personalize education, centering students’ identities and lived experiences. ‘Educate to Eradicate’ is about using technology and innovations to help every student feel like “school” is a place for them to thrive, challenge societal norms, and build a future in which everyone prospers.

The California Charter Schools Association is hosting the CCSA Conference this March 13-16 at the Safe Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, CA. Charter schools from all over California will be in attendance and so will Advanced Classroom Technologies. Below are this year’s Keynote Speakers.

TUESDAY KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Dr. José M. Hernández
Founder and CEO, Tierra Luna Engineering, LLC

José Hernández is a University of California Regent and President and Chief Executive Officer at Tierra Luna Engineering, LLC, an aerospace engineering consulting company.

Dr. Hernández worked at NASA Johnson Space Center from 2001 to 2011, where he was an astronaut, legislative analyst, branch chief and materials research engineer.

Prior to that, Dr. Hernández worked 17 years for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and worked on the X-ray laser project, co-developed the first full-field digital mammography system for the earlier detection of breast cancer and worked in the nuclear non-proliferation arena where he served as the Lab’s Deputy Program Manager in the Russian Highly Enriched Uranium Implementation Program and as Program Manager at DOE Headquarters for Office of International Material Protection and Cooperation.

Dr. Hernández holds a Master’s of Science in Signals and Systems Engineering from University of California, Santa Barbara, a Bachelor’s of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of the Pacific and has been honored with eight Doctorate Degrees, honoris causa.

WEDNESDAY KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Myrna Castrejón
President & CEO, CCSA

As the leader of CCSA, Myrna manages the membership organization representing California’s public charter schools, since January 2019. Prior to assuming the role of President and CEO, she served for nearly three years as the Founding Executive Director of Great Public Schools Now, an organization created in winter 2015. As the Executive Director, Myrna led Great Public Schools Now's strategy in transforming education in Los Angeles by expanding high-quality public schools of diverse governance models in the areas most in need of support.

Prior to Great Public Schools Now Myrna worked at the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) in various key leadership roles since its founding in late 2003, most recently as the Acting Chief Executive Officer and prior to that heading the government affairs, local advocacy, quality, school development, and research and evaluation portfolios at various times. Her work with CCSA was preceded by a decade in school reform efforts in Texas and Los Angeles. In the late 1990s-early 2000s, Myrna served as a consultant to the state-funded Urban Education Partnership/LAUSD where she helped to develop eight innovative early education service centers in the most high-need areas of Los Angeles; she served as VP of School and Family Networks for the Los Angeles Alliance for Student Achievement and the director for family engagement for the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project. In Texas, Myrna spearheaded parent and community engagement efforts at the El Paso Collaborative for Academic Excellence, a K-16 systemic reform initiative and piloted a model for pre-service teachers to work organically with parents and community during their clinical assignments, which was adopted as a program requirement for all teachers at the University of Texas at El Paso.

She served for nearly a decade as a key education leader, supporting organizing strategies for the Southwest Industrial Areas Foundation and its statewide Alliance Schools Initiative to develop parent, teacher and community capacity to transform low-performing schools into high achieving centers for community-wide change. An experienced trainer and public speaker, Myrna receives frequent invitations to lead professional development seminars, deliver keynote presentations and make media appearances, particularly on matters of Latino student achievement and effective parent and civic engagement in transforming public education. She served as Vice President and then a term as President of the National Board of Parents for Public Schools, a network of twenty-four local organizations that support public education reform across the United States.

In these positions, Myrna saw parents' deep desire to give their children real high-quality education opportunities when faced with so few choices. Her passion for this critical work comes from her background as a mother and an immigrant, and what she has seen is possible when commitment, opportunity and urgency meet to help families carve out better futures. In 2013, Myrna was named "Education Reformer to Watch" by the Walton Family Foundation. She is also a fellow of the Aspen Pahara Education Fellowship's eighth class and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.

WEDNESDAY KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Hardy Brown II
Managing Principal, Chief Relationship Officer, Footsteps to Freedom Inc. Emeritus Chairman, Black Voice Foundation Inc. Trustee, San Bernardino County, Board of Education (retired)

A leader in conversations of historical empathy, Hardy Brown is a collector of over 15,000 historical freedom artifacts. They date as early as the 1600s and concentrate on stories of resilience. Brown leads conversations on empathy with hundreds of teachers and thousands of students where learners gain knowledge and inspiration through primary sources.

As a two-term elected policy maker, Brown represented 33 school districts and over 400,000 students as the President of the San Bernardino County Board of Education, where he held many statewide leadership roles including with the California School Boards Association, State legislative affairs committee, and Board policy committee. He has also been awarded multiple times for the impact of his work.

Brown has over 26 years experience in social impact, research, fundraising, college career development, and the solicitation of major gifts for multiple national and regional organizations such as United Way of Orange County, the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) and Wilberforce University. Brown has volunteered his time as a board member for the Girl Scouts and United Way, and serves on the Board of Advisors for Executive Education at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Brown has been a columnist for the National Association of Colleges and Employers and the Black Voice Newspaper.