Jonathan Redeker is a valued and highly respected employee of the Goshen Central School District. He has been with the district for ten years as a beloved social studies teacher. Four years ago, Jonathan was also made the K-12 Technology Coordinator. As both teacher and technology coordinator, Jonathan has an extremely full schedule teaching U.S. History and Participation in Government as well traveling from building to building helping teachers improve their instructional technology. Despite his extremely packed days, Jonathan is always available to assist students and teachers alike when they “pop in” looking for immediate solutions to their technology questions.
Jonathan not only helps us with the questions we have, he also encourages us to go outside of our technology “comfort zone.” He reminds us that our ideas and efforts do not have to be perfect to be effective and he leads by example. Jonathan is constantly trying out new things with instructional technology to both help further students’ education and to help work through potential issues for teachers. Because of Jonathan’s leadership, more teachers are using Google Classroom, which makes work more accessible for students and makes students more responsible for their work. More teachers are incorporating interactive games like Kahoot, which our students love. More teachers are using Sungard to collect and utilize data. More teachers are expanding their professional learning networks by utilizing social media to see what is current in their respective fields. More students are gaining experience in taking ownership for their education through platforms like Google Classroom, which is a skill they will need for college.
Jonathan understands that time, and the lack thereof, is always a primary concern for educators. With that in mind, he has created several professional development opportunities for teachers to learn how to use new and useful technology tools. He has time built in within these workshops for teachers to develop lessons that incorporate these tools so they leave with hands-on experience and something tangible for immediate use. This builds confidence amongst the faculty and helps to further engage students in effective technology inspired learning. I have implemented many of Jonathan’s strategies and my life is better because of them. As more and more faculty successfully implement these tools, others are inspired to try them. Jonathan is at the epicenter of this movement.
Jonathan has only been the K-12 Technology Coordinator for four years; however, our district has grown leaps and bounds in terms of instructional technology. I credit Jonathan with most of this progress. His approachability with students, teachers, and administration allows for open and effective communication between what is needed, what is possible, and what is already happening. He is an asset to this district and I thank you for considering him for this award.