Stephen Gagnon, Elementary Teacher at Stratham Memorial School, in Stratham, NH received the NHSTE Pat Key's Technology Using Educator Award.

Stephen has been a classroom teacher at Stratham Memorial School for 19 years and is viewed by his administration as a leader for his utilization of technology in his classroom. He passionately promotes the need for students to be technology literate, and goes to great lengths to see that all of the students at Stratham Memorial School have the opportunities and resources to achieve this. He has championed technology as a tool for learning and is skilled in teaching his students to use technology for individualized learning and for creating products that creatively display their knowledge.

Not only do his students benefit from Stephen’s passion for technology, but he willingly shares his knowledge and expertise with others. When Steve is not teaching his own students he can be found around the school assisting other teachers. He is viewed as a mentor always willing to assist others in developing their skills and confidence around the use of technology in their classrooms. Most recently Stephen served as one of the organizers of the Seacoast EdCamp Unconference, a day of free professional development for K-12 educators.

Pamela McLeod, Technology Director, Alton School District, Alton, NH received the NHSTE Susan Janosz Technology Impact Award.

Pam has worked for Alton School District as the IT Director for the past eight years and has been an integral in helping her district move forward in terms of educational reform, best practices, workplace efficiency, and communication between home and school. This is due to her forward thinking vision and incredible knowledge and expertise of 21st century digital tools. Pam is passionate about finding the best technology for the diverse needs of students that she serves in Alton in a way that is sustainable by the IT staff, and manageable by the skills and interests of the teaching body in her school district.

She is also an invaluable asset to the collaboration that occurs between schools throughout NH as she is always willing to offer her vast knowledge, insight, and experience in many situations to assist people as needed. Joshua Olstad, Director of IT, Oyster River Cooperative School District notes, “For several years now, Pam has been instrumental in helping district technology staff to collaborate more. This is evident in her efforts to create the Microsoft consortium as well as the “Geek Meets”. Her willingness to share what has worked for her has been very helpful to New Hampshire Schools. While it may seem that much of her focus is on the IT side, she is always able to connect the technology back to students and learning.” Sonja Gonzalez, IT Manager of NH Community Loan Fund and friend states that, “Pam has an innate ability to understand that different teachers, students, and different districts have different needs, but there are common variables and that’s where we can work together.”  Pam is truly an exceptional leader and has impacted so many.

NHSTE congratulates both Stephen and Pam for their incredible contributions to educational technology in our state.  They are inspirations to us all!