TECHNOLOGY
National School Leadership Conference 2015
Technology Ideas for Early Childhood
*Thursday, June 18 – single session
~ Mr. Jason Schmidt
Technology can be effectively used in early childhood classrooms, too. Participants in this session will come
away with practical and age-appropriate ideas for incorporating technology into the early childhood
classroom.
Administering Chromebooks and GAFE ~ Mr. Jason Schmidt
*Wednesday, June 17 – single session
Many schools are considering adopting Chromebooks because of the low cost and ease of management. In
this session, attendees will be introduced to the Google Apps for Education administration console,
particularly as it can be used to administer Chromebooks.
Mr. Jason Schmidt
Instructional Technologist – Bennington NE
Jason is a former WELS teacher currently working for Bennington Public Schools near Omaha, Nebraska. He
received a Master's Degree in K-12 Education Technology from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in
2013. In addition to his work in Bennington, Jason is an adjunct instructor for Martin Luther College, a
Google Education Trainer, and frequent presenter at edtech conferences.
Building Effective Church and School Websites ~ Mr. Martin Spriggs
*Wednesday, June 17 – single session
Anybody can build a website these days, but can you build one that works for you? This fast moving session
will blow through the excess baggage most websites have and get to the important stuff -- the stuff that
attracts and maintains a healthy web audience. Topics that will be covered include menu systems,
calendars, audio, video, rss, mobile friendliness, and much more. Only attend if you want to hit the
accelerator on your website strategy!
Mr. Martin Spriggs
WELS Chief Technology Officer – Waukesha WI
Martin Spriggs has been serving as the WELS Chief Technology Officer since October 2004. In his capacity as
CTO, Martin speaks at numerous workshops and conferences on varied technology topics including building
evangelistic websites, promoting your church and school, digital Bible Study, and creating the efficient
church office and effective time management through technology. He is more than eager to serve the
membership of our synod and help our churches and schools make effective use of technology to aid in their
ministries. For the past seven years he and his co-host Sallie Draper have hosted a weekly podcast called
WELSTech that explores the intersections of technology and ministry.
A former WELS pastor, Martin earned his MBA from Keller Graduate School of Management, Chicago. He
built the Midwest practice for Net Quotient Consulting Group (a firm that provides Internet application
development for Fortune 1000 companies) and Qwest Communications (a telecommunications firm), as well
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as working on technical development and internet consulting at these companies. A member at Peace,
Hartford, WI, he and his wife Debra, have three children and one grandchild.
Professional Development Tools for Faculty and Administrators
*Thursday, June 18, single session
~ Mr. Andrew Willems
Today information is everywhere. Why pay $400/day for someone to lead your faculty professional growth
sessions? Treat your faculty to a great lunch and do it all yourself! In this session we will share resources,
look at ways to curate information, and reminders on best practices to teach adult learners.
Mr. Andrew Willems
Director of Technology - Mt. Pleasant WI
Andrew Willems is a 1989 graduate of (D)MLC. He was assigned to Trinity-St. Luke's Lutheran school in
Watertown, WI, and taught there for 23 years. His experience ranged from 3rd grade through 8th grade
teaching everything from Phy. Ed., Language Arts, Social Studies, art, music, spelling, remedial math, 5-8th
grade science, 7-8 grade Religion, and Catechism. He coached girls volleyball, basketball, flag football, boys
softball, cross country, judged forensics contests and science fairs, organized Veterans Day, and ran
basketball tournaments. He also taught adult Bible Classes, and adult technology classes, was active on
boards and fundraising committees for Lakeside Lutheran High School, and was a member of the Rock River
Rescue Foundation working for better fish habitat in the Watertown area. In 1993 he became WI State
Certified to teach K-9th grade. In 2006 he received a MS in Education with an emphasis in Integrating
Technology in the Curriculum from Walden University.
Since 2013 Andrew has taught Algebra 1, Computer Essentials, Introduction to Programming, and coached
Freshman Boys Basketball at Shoreland Lutheran High School while being the Director of Technology. This
year he is the first teacher in Shoreland's STEM Academy by teaching the initial course, Introduction to
Engineering Design.
Andrew has been married to Heidi (nee Shuster) for 25 years and they have 5 children ranging from age 1321. Their children attend MLC, are in the work force, SLHS, and WLS Racine. The family goes to Church at
Epiphany in Racine. Heidi currently works at Elliott Optical in Racine. In his spare time Andrew loves to read
educational & leadership books, travel, golf, and landscape.
Developing a (better) Computer Network
*Tuesday, June 16 – single session
~ Mr. James Mahnke
Creating and running a computer network can be a daunting task. Ever wonder what a network admin does
or what his/her responsibilities involve? As a church/school leader, find out realistic expectations of the
position, the types of projects they may be working on and how you can support their ministry. I’ll blend
both a broad overview of a network roadmap with some technical steps to demonstrate the challenges of
the position. The projects covered may include (time permitting & audience preference):
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Budgeting and E-rate
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Servers purchase/maintenance/replacement
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Software licensing
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Workstations vs BYOD vs Chromebooks vs iPads vs laptops
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Compare and contrast Google Apps & Office 365
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Infrastructure – wired vs. wireless
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Consultants vs. training tech director vs. volunteer help
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Patching (security, bugs, upgrades)
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Backups
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Security (physical and network)
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Internet connections
James Mahnke
Technology Director – Onalaska WI
James has been a Technology Director for 21 years, the last 18 at Luther High School in Onalaska, WI. His
day job includes Technology Director, Registrar, Activities Planner, Assistant Principal and Instructor. He
teaches Computer Applications which includes programming, web design, 3D modeling, Photoshop,
Illustrator and InDesign. He also teaches Robotics and coaches a competition robotics team after school. For
fun he helps run an annual Midwest technology conference that hosts over 1000 people. James’ family
includes his wife Dorann and two children Benjamin (16) and Grace (7).
Going 1:1 in the LES: One School's Story
*Wednesday, June 17 – single session
~ Mr. Marvin Wittig and Mr. Benjamin Washburn
This presentation team will describe how Peace Lutheran School in Hartford, WI, put Chromebooks in the
hands of every student. The presentation will cover planning steps, policy considerations, hardware and
networking suggestions, implementation and usage, staff training, and lessons learned along the way. If
you're considering going 1:1 in a large or small school, this presentation is for you.
Mr. Marvin Wittig
Teacher - Hartford WI
I just completed my 26th year of teaching. I've been involved with computers for about 20 of those years. I
served as technology coordinator at my last two schools. I've been honored to present on technology at
State Teachers’ Conventions in the past and some regional workshops. I've found it exciting to watch our
school move to 1 to 1 using Chromebooks.
Mr. Benjamin Washburn
Principal – Hartford WI
Ben Washburn has served WELS schools in Watertown, Eau Claire, San Jose, and Hartford as a teacher and
principal. He has a heart for curricular improvement and technology integration. Ben earned his B.S. in
education from Martin Luther College and M.S. from Concordia University WI.
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Social Media and It's Use in WELS Ministries
Hunter
*Wednesday, June 17 – single session
~ Mr. Jonathan Niemi / Mr. Randy Peck / Mr. Samuel
This sectional will provide an overview of current social medias being used in education. It will also present
suggestions for how social media might be used for churches, schools and individuals. Finally it will provide
a discussion on policies, guidelines and best practices that can be implemented and adapted. To join the
discussion use the hashtag #WELSsocial.
Mr. Jonathan Niemi
Music Coordinator - Watertown SD
Jonathan Niemi (@jonathanniemi) graduated from MLC in 2006. He currently serves as Church and School
Music Coordinator at St. Martin's Lutheran in Watertown, SD. He previously served for eight years in various
roles at St. John's Lutheran in Jefferson, WI.
Mr. Randy Peck
Principal/Teacher – Madison WI
Randy Peck (@peckrd) serves as principal and 7-8 grade teacher at Our Redeemer Lutheran School in
Madison, WI. He has also served as a teacher, technology coordinator and assistant principal at Faith
Lutheran School in Antioch, IL. Randy has continued his education in the areas of educational leadership and
instructional technology.
Mr. Samuel Hunter
Principal/Teacher - West Bend WI
Sam Hunter (@samuelhunter26) has served as principal and 5-6 grade teacher at St. John's Lutheran School
in Newburg, WI, for 7 years. Prior to his ministry in Newburg, Sam served St. Croix Lutheran High School as a
dormitory supervisor and instructor. He is a 2006 graduate of MLC and earned his master's degree in
Educational Leadership from UW-Oshkosh in 2014.
Register to attend today!
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