STA hosts Google Summit conference

Selected to host the event, St. Teresa’s welcomed teachers from across the region to learn more about technology integration in schools.

Teachers+pose+at+a+photo+booth+in+the+Windmoor+building+during+the+Google+Summit+Conference+hosted+by+St.+Teresas+Academy.+photo+courtesy+of+Barbara+McCormick

Teachers pose at a photo booth in the Windmoor building during the Google Summit Conference hosted by St. Teresa’s Academy. photo courtesy of Barbara McCormick

by Elsa Feigenbaum, Sports Copy Editor

Over the weekend, St. Teresa’s held a Google Summit conference, aiding technology integration in education. Around 300 teachers and administrators from the region attended the Google sponsored event to learn more about the company’s technological tools.

The conference, which started Feb. 5, offered three days of breakout sessions, where attendees were able to pick and chose where they wanted to go. While Friday included only two hands on sessions mostly attended by information technologists (IT), Saturday and Sunday offered a variety of sessions including “Keeping them Appy in Math Class” and “Getting Geeky with Chromebooks the Sage Way!”

According to principal of academic affairs Barbara McCormick, STA had to be selected to host the event. After writing a proposal and long distance conference calls to headquarters in Los Angeles, St. Teresa’s ceded control of the event to Google. They walked faculty through what needed to be in place at the school, how to go about marketing, and how to run the event.

“All we had to do was provide the Wi-Fi, the facilities, and other things they might have needed,” said McCormick.

McCormick believes that the Google Summit Conference was beneficial to teachers. With the amount of different applications available through platforms like Google Drive and Google Docs, it gave teachers an ability to understand the add on features and how to implement them.

“It was just a stupendous conference,” said McCormick. “It will be interesting to get any feedback.”