Kecia Ray chairs the ISTE board of directors and until recently, served as the executive director of the Learning Technology Department at Tennessee's Metro Nashville Public Schools. A pioneer who cut her teaching teeth in the 1980s, spending time in computer labs and working the Oregon Trail computer game, Ray said she wants to make a bigger impact in moving education technology forward in schools.
Since that time, she expected to see education further along in its adoption of technology. Instead, education has been stuck in a rut that's made it difficult to go anywhere on the path to systemwide change.
"There should be a sense of urgency to make sure that kids are well-armed with all of the skills that they need to navigate society," Ray said. "As technology-rich as our society is today, that should be the first layer of armor — their technical skills. And, I mean, it's not."
During her time at Metro Nashville Public Schools, Ray spearheaded a department that launched the first virtual school in Tennessee to award a high school diploma. That was a big deal because she had to work with legislators and lobbyists for other school districts to change the state's law against virtual schools.
"I think people wanted it to happen, but we had to make sure that the for-profit vendors didn't come in and destroy what a true virtual school can do, and that almost happened here," said Jay Steele, chief academic officer for Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, who worked closely with Ray.
A true virtual school focuses on the student, provides a user-friendly platform and makes sure students can interact with local teachers in real time, Steele said. And it provides guidance counselors as well as rigorous curriculum that's tied to standards.
Since the school started four years ago, it's become the highest-performing virtual school in the state, he added. And every year, students graduate who would not have done so without the different learning environment that the virtual school provides, Ray said.
Speaking of high-performance, a blended learning initiative at Walnut Creek, Calif.'s Buena Vista Elementary School that Ray's team helped implement has helped lead to an increase in the school's academic scores by 15 points. And this happened in a high-poverty school where nearly one-third of students are homeless.
And as the Federal Communications Commission sought to reform the E-Rate program that traditionally gave schools discounts on telecommunications and Internet services, Ray helped in her role at ISTE to bring school districts' perspectives to the FCC's attention over the past few years. Now, she's trying to make sure that money for an education technology program stays in President Barack Obama's proposed budget.
As she moves into her new role at the Center for Digital Education, Ray will drive change at the system level and give back to the education technology community.
"She'll be able to help other school districts," Steele said, "and she'll be able to connect people around best practices and exemplars across the country and the world now, so I think that'll benefit more people."
