Your Educators Found Another Tech Tool - Now What?

Tuesday, April 14, 2026

8:00 AM - 9:00 AM CT

Location: Sheraton 2

Speaker(s)

Christopher Hoang, Ed.D. (he/him/his)

Director, Technology Services
Los Angeles County Office of Education
Downey, California
Ellen Palmer, M.Ed.

Assistant Director, Technology Innovation and Outreach
Los Angeles County Office of Education
Downey, California
Christine Feenstra (she/her/hers)

Executive Director
California Association for Leading Innovation in Education
Sacramento, California
Joe Ayala

Director of Technoloy
Santa Clara Unified School District
Santa Clara, California

Technology decisions in schools aren’t just about what works, but what works for learning. Yet too often, the process of selecting, securing, and deploying digital tools is isolated from the work of teaching and learning. IT teams focus on infrastructure and security. EdTech leaders focus on instructional goals, engagement, and student outcomes. Without collaboration, innovation stalls, and students lose out when these groups aren't aligned.

This session advocates for a collaborative approach: one where IT and instructional leaders operate as true partners in shaping how technology supports learning. This conversation will explore how to build systems that bridge the divide between infrastructure and pedagogy.

We’ll share tested insights, name the pain points, and offer a practical mindset shift: one that values shared language, ongoing communication, and respect for each team’s role in the larger learning ecosystem.