Bringing Educational Opportunities to Rural & Urban America
Broadband Changed My Life Series:
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Capitol Building Room HC - 6
12:00 noon – 1:30 p.m.
Presenters:
Rob Atkinson
President, Information Technology & Innovation Foundation
Andrew D. Summa Ph.D.
PEBBLES: Providing Education by Bringing Learning Environments to Students
Stephen Wooten
Appalachian State University, “Broadband Changed My Life” 2nd Place Winner
Moderator:
Joy Howell
Director, APT’s Broadband Changed My Life Campaign
Program highlights include demonstration of a dual robot system to link medically fragile children with their classroom and a sneak preview of new education technology research data.
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Please RSVP to apt@apt.org or (202) 263-2970.
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The Alliance for Public Technology (APT) is a nonprofit membership organization based in Washington, D.C., which was founded in 1989 to foster public policies that ensure access to advanced telecommunications technologies for all Americans. APT is the leading consumer group focused exclusively on broadband and advanced telecommunications technologies. APT can be found online at www.apt.org. APT's "Broadband Changed My Life!" campaign is a nationwide initiative to raise awareness of the life enhancing benefits of broadband technologies and services. The purpose of the contest was to highlight individuals willing to share their story about how broadband has made a profound difference in their lives.
Joy Howell is campaign director of the "Broadband Changed My Life" campaign, a nationwide effort by the Alliance for Public Technology to highlight the ways high-speed Internet improves the U.S. economy and quality of life. She brings to this position an outstanding track record as a public policy strategist with over 25 years experience. Ms. Howell's expertise encompasses media and business strategy as well as public policy analysis. Prior to this campaign, she directed the Office of Public Affairs of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in Washington, D.C. She served on the FCC Chairman's senior management team, managed 70 employees, and conducted turn-around operations that reduced customer wait time from days to minutes.
Stephen Wooten is the 2nd place winner of APT's Broadband Changed My Life contest. Throughout middle school, Stephen had dial up Internet access and no plans to attend college. He grew up in a family with "a 12-hour shift working father, a disabled mother and a sister who had two children by the age of 17." After he gained access to broadband in high school, his "mind literally became the child sponge that it once was." Wooten sat in his room day and night and just soaked up knowledge. Finally, he realized that he was a smart guy and needed to go on to college. The rest of his family thought it was preposterous, but today he is a student at Appalachian State University.
Robert Atkinson is President of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a Washington, DC-based technology policy think tank. He is also author of the State New Economy Index series and the book, The Past and Future of America’s Economy: Long Waves of Innovation that Power Cycles of Growth (Edward Elgar, 2005). He has an extensive background in technology policy, he has conducted ground-breaking research projects on technology and innovation, is a valued adviser to state and national policy makers, and a popular speaker on innovation policy nationally and internationally.
PEBBLES is an innovative system that combines video conferencing technologies with simple robotics technology to allow medically fragile students confined in the hospital or at home to attend his/her regular school. This is possible by placing one unit of PEBBLES inside the classroom, and its counterpart with the student. PEBBLES allows a student to maintain a connection and presence in his/her normal environment from an isolated and non-normal setting. Having this connection creates a healthier and less stressful situation for a hospitalized child/youth that may in turn reduce trauma levels and health care costs. It may also ease that youngster's re-integration back into the classroom.