IELOL Global 2022 Group 3

Identify the gaps in technology equity and recognize the blind spots created through worldviews and lived realities. Build bridges through strategic connections and partnerships for change to reduce the gap between hope and despair.

Collaboration

Our team is built on a collaborative effort of equitable engagement, which leverages our collective assets and human capital. Jenn is our Podcast producer who makes us sound better than we could without her skillset. Working together has provided many growth opportunities that we will continue to harness through project expansion.

Photo of black and silver headphones and screen by Will Francis on Unsplash

Working together toward successful technology access, accessibility and engagement practices

Meet the team

The goal of the group is to identify inequities in digital education through the lens of SDGs 3 (Wellness and well-Being), 4 (Quality Education), 10 (Reduced Inequalities), and 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions). The group comprises four actors, listed alphabetically, who seek to mitigate the inequities by alleviating the gaps and using their voices as a catalyst for change starting with Kenya, Qatar, and the Americas and working to move the process into new areas by inviting others to the table.

Paul Kahenya was born in rural Kenya in a big family. Big enough to form a football team plus 5 substitutes and the center ref and two outer refs. Growing up was fun in such a humble environment. Kahenya trained as a high school teacher of mathematics and geography. He ended up teaching in high school and eventually in higher education. Online learning and learning at a higher level proved to be quite an attractive area for him. It seems the areas of instruction come naturally to him. He is always ready to instruct on best practices and adventure in the unknown worlds of eLearning. He longs to see the time he will enroll for the terminal degree or a time when the paradigm shift for qualifications will happen.

Mohja Jerbi was born and raised in Tunisia, North Africa. Mohja started her career as an ESL teacher and corporate trainer but always wanted to be a part of a global experience. So when she was offered a Fulbright scholarship to study/work in the US, she embarked on a new journey of learning and discovery. This unique opportunity in 2010 was one of the most rewarding experiences for her. After the program ended, she decided to pursue a degree in instructional technology and design. She worked as an instructional designer for TTU Health Sciences Center where she met amazing colleagues and connections. In 2017, she moved to South Carolina and lived there for 2 years, during which she worked as a director of instructional design and educational technology at the Medical University of South Carolina. During this role, she also taught courses in the field of teaching and learning and was able to help shape several initiatives. She recently accepted a job in Qatar for one of the Qatar Foundation universities. As part of the Provost's office, she tries every day to make a difference and drive change

Jennifer Panton was born and raised in Portsmouth, Virginia in the United States. She currently lives within the same area she was raised in and is close to her small family that remains close by. Jenn has worked in a variety of fields, starting as a Theater Technology Manager training other managers during the conversion of film to digital projection while working on her undergraduate. She started her career in the education field as a middle school English teacher and Title I Outreach Liaison in several Title I schools in Norfolk, Virginia, before becoming an Instructional Coach at a large middle school in Chesapeake. During this time, she worked with the school's community outreach, founded a new teacher cohort initiative, created training programs for teachers, and wrote curriculum for several subjects. After three years, Jenn moved into higher education, where she is in her current position as an Instructional Designer at Eastern Virginia Medical School. As a part of a illustrious Instructional Design and Technologies team, Jenn works collaboratively to make better learning experiences for students, faculty, and staff. She is currently working on her Ed.D. in Curriculum and Instruction. Jenn believes that anything can be accomplished through effective collaboration and communication.

Flo Williams was born and raised in the small Caribbean island of Jamaica and is interested in the culture and context of people. She is the sixth of nine children who were instructed early that education was the only means of upward social mobility in a family that had no discernable assets and many mouths to feed. She completed her education as a teacher of Art but found that new information was needed when her students struggled to convey their practice into theoretical frames for their secondary exit exams. Flo's return to university saw her completing a terminal degree in language and literacy with work in curriculum development. She has engaged in teacher training and support working across the Caribbean through USAID projects. Her work brought her to the notice of the Caribbean Ministries of Education and OECS where she continued to support curriculum development and design for teachers. She currently works as an instructional designer at the University of Central Florida where she leads their award-winning professional development program. Flo's philosophy is that you can make something of function from any scraps that you can find and so she continues to find opportunities to support others every day.

The group seeks to create a collective roadmap for change with a built-in call to action for everyone who desires to join the effort toward the UN 2030 Global Goals.