In December 2020 I started on a journey that was to take me across the state of North Carolina, but figuratively and literally, by agreeing to work with the North Carolina Student Connect Tech Teams. Little did I know what a great journey that would be. It lasted for about five years. The Tech Team network is coordinated by the North Carolina Business Committee for Education (NCBCE) and I joined the team through Advanced Learning Partnerships.
Part of that journey involved getting to know and work with the student Tech Team at Granville County Schools. Called the STAR Team and coordinated by Ernie Conner, Granville’s IT Director, the STAR Team members showed just how flexible student tech teams can be. Their students do far more than device repair; although, so do repair devices. Their team members are getting experience in website development, social media production, digital media production, cybersecurity, and harnessing artificial intelligence.
You can read about the STAR Team and some of the accomplishments of the Student Connect Tech Teams in the January issue of School Administrator published by AASA. My article, “Student Tech Teams Expand Districts’ IT Capacity” can be found on page 14.
I want to give a shout out to Ernie Conner, who was so focused on making sure a tech team would work in his school system. I got to collaborate with him on developing some customer service training for his STAR Team members and always enjoyed hearing what the students were getting up to. There have been some IT Directors that have been reluctant to allow student tech teams in their districts, but not Ernie! He showed other IT Directors in the state what a valuable addition they can be. Ernie has just this month matriculated to a well-deserved status of retirement, but his legacy will live on in his district and through the statewide tech team network. Congratulations, Ernie!
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