Certified: Certiport Educator Podcast

What does it take to compete in the MOS World Championship? Now you can find out. Our team was privileged to work with the Australian production company, GoodThing Productions, on their new documentary, Spreadsheet Champions. During filming, they followed six students on their journey to becoming Microsoft Office Specialist Excel Champions. The documentary has now premiered at the SXSW and Hot Docs Film Festivals, and we could hardly wait to chat with one of the documentary's stars, Carmina Solares. Carmina is a bubbly 17-year-old from Guatemala who finds comfort in math. During this episode, Carmina tells us all about her love for technology and math, plus how she got involved in Microsoft certification. She shares what it was like to compete in her MOS National and World Championship events. We even dive into the documentary and talk about what she's learned from these once-in-a-lifetime experiences.  Ready to find out how you can help your students become spreadsheet champions?  Learn more about the documentary, Spreadsheet Champions, here. Find out how to help your students compete in the MOS Championship here.  Connect with other tech educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here.   Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here.    

Ready to get a peek into CERTIFIED 2025? We're continuing our series of CERTIFIED Educator Conference breakout session previews, and this is for all our business and entrepreneurship educators.  Are you looking for ways to teach your students business skills that they'll take with them after graduating? There's no better place to learn real-world business skills than in an actual business. So why not start one at your school? Danya Peters did just that.  Danya is a passionate business and marketing teacher, DECA Advisor, and mentor to two school-based enterprises. With degrees and certifications in marketing, secondary education, and entrepreneurship, Danya blends academic expertise with practical business skills. In her first two years of teaching, she secured a $70,000 grant to launch two student-run businesses. Recognized as the Emerging Business Teacher and Regional New Career and Technical Teacher for Idaho, Danya's innovative approach engages students through competitions, hands-on projects, and business management, preparing them for future success. She is committed to fostering student growth, creativity, and a lifelong passion for business.  In this episode, we talk with Danya about how she decided to launch a business, the Bruin Pop Shop, in her school. She shares how she structures her businesses and classes to give students real business experience. Covering everything from funding to community support, Danya's advice will help you succeed in preparing tomorrow's business leaders.  Check out the Bruin Pop Shop Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebruinpopshop/.  Interested in learning more about entrepreneurship? Get ideas from fellow business teachers here.   Connect with educators like Danya in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.   Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here.  

The days of linear career paths are over. People are switching jobs more often, making their career journeys more complex than ever. In fact, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics found that people only stay in their jobs for an average of four years. That much change and complexity can be intimidating for students and professionals to navigate. How, as an educator, do you get your students ready to enter their own careers, when it may feel like a quest without a map? Enter: Jessica Lindl.  Jessica Lindl is the author of The Career Game Loop: Learn to Earn in the New Economy and VP of Ecosystem Growth at Unity Technologies. She has over 20 years of experience running various education and impact business ventures and P&Ls. Over her career, she has focused on empowering millio ns of learners building careers and businesses with technology. In her work at Unity Technologies, Common Sense Media, GlassLab and LRNG (now part of Southern New Hampshire University), Scientific Learning, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, she has worked to improve learning outcomes and earning potential for all learners worldwide by blending effectiveness with ground-breaking engagement.  In this episode, we chat with Jessica about her new book, The Career Game Loop. We discuss helping students upskill and achieve their career goals using gaming principles. Covering everything from quests, levels, and community, Jessica shares how you can prepare your learners for the careers of their dreams.  Want to learn more about Jessica's book? Get all the details here.  Check out resources from Jessica's team at Unity here.  Connect with fellow educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here.    Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here.     

We've finalized our CERTIFIED Educator Conference breakout and workshop sessions, and we can hardly wait to learn with all of you. In the coming weeks, we'll be sharing teaser episodes with some of our breakout presenters. In this episode, we're learning from Amy Water, an AI aficionado.  Amy Waters is a 36-year veteran teacher at Hahnville High School in Boutte, Louisiana, with no plans of retiring any time soon.  She is a complete nerd who has taught everything from Latin to computer programming and still loves learning new things and sharing that knowledge with everyone. She is constantly trying to find new and creative ways to teach lessons that will reach all her students and works hard to make sure that every one of them walks away with a sense of accomplishment.    Amy will share suggestions for using AI both to lessen your workload and improve your students' experience in the classroom. We talk about the benefits and pitfalls of AI, and how you can and should be using this growing technology in your work. If you're nervous about AI, but curious about how to get started, Amy's here to help.    Interested in learning more about AI? Get ideas from another AI expert here.  Connect with educators like Amy in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.  Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here.

What does it take to compete in the MOS World Championship? Now you can find out. Our team was privileged to work with the Australian production company, GoodThing Productions, on their  new documentary, Spreadsheet Champions. During filming, they followed six students on their journey to becoming Microsoft Office Specialist Excel Champions. The documentary premiered at the SXSW Film Festival, and we could hardly wait to chat with one of the documentary's stars, Mason Braithwaite. Mason is a quirky and endearing American teen whose love for spreadsheets is matched only by his fascination with ham radio.  During this episode, Mason tells us all about his love for technology and how he got involved in Microsoft certification. He shares what it was like to compete in the MOS US National and World Championship events. We even dive into the documentary and talk about what it was like to watch it live at SXSW earlier this year.  Ready to find out how you can help your students become spreadsheet champions?  Learn more about the documentary, Spreadsheet Champions, here. Find out how to help your students compete in the MOS Championship here.  Connect with other tech educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here.   Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here.    

It's 2025 and we're ready to close the technology skills gap and support women in tech! According to a report from the (US) National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, women comprise only 35% of STEM professionals.  In this episode, we chat with two amazing women in technology: Ashlyn Dumaw and Ashley Masters. Ashlyn is a senior at Cornell University studying chemical engineering with a concentration in fiber science. She's passionate about the intersection of STEM and design, or the combination of technicality and creativity. Following her graduation in May, she will be working as a Management Consultant with Qral Group, guiding pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies through their product life cycle and business challenges.  Ashley has worked at Microsoft for nearly five years and is currently focused on driving Copilot Adoption for Business Users by meeting them where they are, on Instagram & LinkedIn. She completed her MBA in Finance from WSU in 2023 and her undergraduate degree in Finance & Economics in 2020 from CWU.   Ashlyn and Ashley discuss how they decided to pursue technological careers, and career tips they have for their fellow female techies and their educators. Plus, they share their experiences with Microsoft Office Specialist certification and how getting certified prepared them for educational and career opportunities they never thought possible.  This episode was pulled from a recent CERTIFIED Academy webinar. Join us for future CERTIFIED Academy sessions: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2025/January/Join-us-for-CERTIFIED-Academy-2025.  Connect with other tech educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.  Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.  

One of the biggest challenges teachers face is keeping students motivated. According to a 2023 survey by the EdWeek Research Center, more than 4 in 10 educators said students are not inspired to do their best in school. To help set your learners up for long-term success, it's crucial to create excitement and engagement in your classroom. In this week's episode, we sat down with Aaron Daenell to talk about how to get your students excited about learning. Aaron is a Marketing & Management, Business, and Information Technology educator at Cumberland County High School in Crossville, Tennessee. After leaving the business world in 2005, Aaron earned his alternative teaching certification in Manatee County, Florida and was hired to start a new middle school business program at a Title I school in his area. Within two years, they had the most successful industry certification program of all the middle schools in central Florida. He now works in Tennessee, working in a high school as well as managing the school's FBLA chapter. He strives each day to help his students break industry certification records in their county and region.  Aaron shares his thoughts on student engagement, or lack thereof, as well as how he gets students excited to learn. We dive deeper into his classroom approach, and how he uses relationships to help students see the value in his course, their futures, and industry certification.  If you feel like your students are lagging, or just want to infuse a little excitement into your everyday, Aaron's here to help.  Get additional ideas for student engagement here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2024/November/How-to-spark-motivation-in-your-students.  Looking for more inspiration? Aaron recommends both Mel Robbins (https://www.melrobbins.com/) and Tony Robbins (https://www.tonyrobbins.com/) Connect with educators like Aaron in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/. 

Marketing and technological expertise are critical not only for marketing students, but also for any student who dreams of building a business, growing an online audience, or sharing a message with the world. In this episode, we sat down with a panel of creative and marketing educators: Aaron Daenell, Marketing & Management, Business, and Information Technology Educator; Jenny Mohess, CTE Department Chair and Graphic Design Educator; and Jodi Pelini, Media Production & Digital Literacy Educator. Together we discussed strategies for nurturing the next generation of business leaders, creative thinkers, and storytellers.  Aaron, Jenny, and Jodi talked about resources they love for teaching marketing and creative skills to their students, as well as the role AI is playing in their classroom today. They also shared ideas for projects that help prepare their students for the real world, plus valuable advice to help your students become the marketers, entrepreneurs, and creators of the future.  Looking for more ideas for your creative classroom? We're here to help: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2023/July/Tips-for-Teaching-Graphic-Design.  Empower your creative students with an Adobe Certified Professional certification. Learn more here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/Adobe/ACP/Overview.  Tomorrow's marketers are in your classroom today. Give them skills that matter with the Meta Certified Digital Marketing Associate Certification. Learn more here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/Meta/Certification/Overview.  Connect with educators like Aaron, Jodi, and Jenny in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.     

January rolls in with big plans and ambitions for the coming year. However, commitment to New Year's resolutions often flags by the end of January. To keep you excited and committed to your goals, we sat down with three of our CERTIFIED Ambassadors, Laurene Klassen, Ashley Faulkner, and Karen Coulombe, to talk about 2025 goals.  Laurene is a Microsoft Certified Trainer and Assistant Director of IT Training & Communications at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. She took her first Microsoft Office Specialist exam in 2010 for personal development and has been hooked ever since. In 2017, she spearheaded the MOS program at SMU after attending her first CERTIFIED conference. Their program has now certified over 3 5,000 students within 4 years. Laurene oversees the administrative side of their program working with over 15 faculty members to integrate the MOS exams into their curriculum. She frequently teaches Office workshops to students. She is a native of Massachusetts but now calls Texas her home. Ashley is a teacher at Triton High School in North Carolina, where she is a strong certification advocate. Over the past 11 years, Ashley has earned more than 40 certifications—and helped her students earn more than 1,150 individual certifications. She has also served as an FBLA adviser and as the North Carolina Southeast Region advisor. Outside her teaching career, Ashley is the chief financial officer for Simple Web Solutions, Inc., EM Audio, Inc., and Butler Faulkner Enterprise, and she is the mother of two active children. Karen has taught a variety of Career and Technical Education courses at the 8th -12th grade level as well as the Community College since the early 2000's. Her focus is on expanding hands-on and experiential learning in meaningful ways to add valuable "tools" to the students' toolbox, building confidence and a resume of tangible skills to market in the workplace. Karen has seen certifications used to enhance resumes for those who need to get right to work; as well as to differentiate students working towards competitive internships, scholarships, and college programs. The most significant connection from certification to the real world is understanding how to work to achieve goals using the resources available. Before teaching, Karen worked for over a decade as an Avionics Technician with Boeing, DynCorp Aerospace and the US Air Force on programs including Air Force 1, the B2 Bomber, and multiple F-16 deployments abroad. In this episode, we discuss these three veteran educators' approach to setting goals, how you can decide where to focus your efforts, and how you can keep yourself motivated. If you want to expand your vision for 2025 goal setting, these ladies have the advice and ideas you need.  Connect with your fellow educators to talk about goals and other topics in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.       Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.    

It's a new year and we're so happy to be back with a new episode of the CERTIFIED podcast. In this week's episode, we wanted to talk about money, both for you and your students. We're diving into ACE credit and Perkins funding with Certiport's Vanessa Buffry, Senior Manager of Strategic Funding.  Vanessa Buffry and her team identify funding sources to support educators and workforce initiatives, track policy that governs and enhances certification quality, and ensure certifications meet workforce, industry, and customer needs. Her previous work experience included teaching high school, serving as a school board director, and directing non-profit education initiatives that merited her recognition as a 30 Under 30 (Pittsburgh, 2021). Vanessa holds an MS in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon. Vanessa is based in Denver, CO with her family. She is certified in Professional Communication, Pearson Gen AI Foundations, Intuit Personal Finance, and next plans to conquer MOS Excel Associate and Expert.  Vanessa walks us through the details of ACE credit, and how this can be a huge money and time saver for students looking to pursue higher education. She also shares details about Perkins funding, and how states, districts, and educators can be leveraging this funding in their classrooms. Looking for details on how to access more funding in 2025? This episode is for you.  Learn more about ACE credit: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Learner-resources/College-Credit.aspx.  Interested in connecting with your Certiport Territory Manager to talk about Perkins funding? Contact them here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Buy/School.  Connect with your fellow educators to talk about funding and other topics in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here:   https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.     Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.       

Discover how digital literacy paves the way for a successful IT support career. In this episode, captured during a recent CERTIFIED Academy training, we explore the importance of digital literacy skills with CERTIFIED Ambassador, Jessie Kalloo.  Jessie Kalloo is a CTE Instructor and Program Approval Coordinator for the Information Technology programs at Thomas A. Edison Career and Technical Education High School located in Jamaica, Queens, New York. Jessie is also a Cisco Networking Academy Instructor Trainer for IT Essentials, CCNA, CCNA Security, and CCNA CyberOps covering areas throughout the United States. Being a product of CTE as a graduate of Thomas Edison High has provided him the opportunity to view teaching through a different lens. Through the various partnerships he has formed with the industry he is able to inspire, motivate and provide opportunities to his students that truly help them prepare for their future. The training he has done in and out of the classroom combined with his unique approach to teaching, has allowed for creative ways to spark the curiosity in students, helping them continuously challenge themselves to do better. Jessie shares how basic technical problem-solving, hardware and software knowledge, and strong communication skills are pivotal for IT support professionals. We discuss how digital literacy not only helps in adapting to new technologies but also in navigating diverse digital environments. A large percentage of IT professionals start their careers in IT support roles, and this episode offers valuable insights and practical advice to help you effectively support this career trajectory. Learn more about our IC3 Digital Literacy certification program here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/IC3/Digital-Literacy-Certification/Overview.    Connect with your fellow educators, like Jessie, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here:  https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.  Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.  

The Health Sciences sector employs approximately 16 million people in the U.S. alone and is expected to grow by 13% from 2022 to 2032, which is faster than the averages for other employment sectors. The new Health Sciences Careers program provides students with the foundational knowledge needed to prepare for in demand roles in the Health Sciences field. In this episode, we sat down with Caroline Manning to talk all things healthcare. Caroline Manning is a Medical Administrative Assistant for Easter Seals in Florida. She has used her professional experience to help ensure that Certiport's Medical Administrative Assistant certification certifies that candidates have the knowledge and skills required to be successful in the role. Caroline shares her insights on our newest certification, plus dives into her experience working in the healthcare industry. We discuss what skills learners need to thrive. Preparing students for careers in health science? This episode is a great peek into our new program. Learn more about the Health Sciences Careers program: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/Health/Certification/Overview.  Connect with your fellow educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.  Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.

Artificial intelligence (AI) usage continues to grow, but many educators are still awaiting training on effective use of AI in the classroom. According to a survey from EdWeek, only 43% of educators surveyed had received any training on AI. If you're in the other 57%, or even just looking to learn more about AI and maybe take the fear out of this new technology, we're here to help.  In this episode, we learn from AI expert and CEO, Joshua Wohle. Joshua is CEO at Mindstone, a practical AI training platform for non-technical people, helping them do more and better work, in less time, by using AI in their daily jobs. Previously, Joshua was a co-founder & CPTO at SuperAwesome, which became one of the biggest kids' technology companies in the world before being acquired by Epic Games.   Together we dive into the reason Joshua decided to create Mindstone, and how his team is helping educators get more comfortable with AI technology. We discuss the rapid disruptions caused by generative AI, and how educators can and should use it as a tool in their classrooms. Plus, we learn about new resources to get your feet wet and how to make AI learning fun and low stress. If you're new to AI, or one of the many teachers looking for training about AI in the classroom, this is for you.  Looking for more opportunities to learn about AI? Joshua recommends starting with Ethan Mollik's book, Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI and Stephen M. Kosslyn's book, Active Learning with AI.  Check out Mindstone's tools and resources here: https://www.mindstone.com/.  Learn more about our new Critical Career Skills Generative AI Foundations exam here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/CCS/Certification/Certify/Generative-AI-Foundations.  Connect with your fellow educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.

Security threats and nefarious tactics from hackers are on the rise, demanding more awareness and vigilance online. According to an IBM study of over 150 billion daily security events in more than 130 countries, there was a 71% year-over-year increase in cyberattacks that used stolen or compromised data. Helping learners understand what jobs are available for cybersecurity professionals is of paramount importance to combat the rise in cyberattacks. In this week's episode, we're sharing portions of our latest CERTIFIED Academy: IT webinar. We met with a team of cybersecurity experts from Microsoft: Brodie Cassell, Principal Cybersecurity Consultant; Rod Trent, Senior Program Manager Security/AI; Edward Walton, Microsoft Global Black Belt – Security; and Raae Wolfram, Senior Product Manager, Security.  Our Microsoft experts share their insights and tips for breaking into this rapidly expanding field. We dive into their professional experiences, key lessons they've learned, and effective strategies for educators to inspire learners to pursue these in-demand career opportunities. You'll get valuable insights and practical advice on navigating the dynamic world of cybersecurity professionals. Learn more about teaching cybersecurity here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2024/October/Secure-our-world-for-Cybersecurity-Awareness-Month.    Connect with your fellow educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.  Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.  

The AI revolution has left many educators wondering how this disruptive technology will impact their students' future careers. Today, human resources leaders believe that nearly 90% of their workforce will need to be reskilled in the next five years. Preparing students to embrace AI and add these skills to their creative toolbelt will put them ahead of those late adopters. If you're wondering how you can prepare your students to leverage AI technology, particularly in creative and design fields, then Chana Messer is here to help.  Chana Messer is an artist, consultant, and Adobe Education Leader who has been teaching Fine Art and Digital Imaging at the university level for over 30 years. She has taught and mentored students at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, the USC School of Cinematic Arts, and most recently, at FIDM. She has led hundreds of design workshops and bootcamps through General Assembly. Chana is a subject matter expert who has helped to write and develop the Adobe Certified Professional certification exams.  In this episode, we talk with Chana about the growth of AI and how it's impacting current designers and creative professionals. Chana walks through simple ideas for using AI in the classroom, and even discusses tools from Adobe that can give students a safe place to experiment with AI in their designs and creative projects. With Chana, you'll discover how you can broaden your students' creative abilities.  Ready to test Adobe's AI technology? Learn more at firefly.adobe.com.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Chana, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.

In the real world, professionals need to have multiple tools in their design toolbelts. Understanding how to leverage numerous applications for one project can be a challenge.  For this week's episode, we're revisiting a previous CERTIFIED Academy: Design webinar to learn from industry professional, Charles Hache. Charles is an indie game developer and adjunct instructor for game design at Adrian College. Charles holds an MFA in game development and prepares students with knowledge in coding and design.  In this episode, we learn all about how Charles creates and designs in the real world. He shares how to help learners see which tools are best for various needs, and how you can help students connect more than one application to create more effective results in their design creations.  Learn more about teaching Unity and game design in the classroom: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/Unity.   Connect with your fellow educators, like Charles, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.

According to The Culinary Pro, the foodservice industry is the largest retail employment sector in the world. Bringing in over USD 700 billion annually in the U.S., this career path provides individuals with ample opportunities for jobs and career growth. To help your students prepare to succeed in the accommodations and food service industry, Certiport has launched the Hospitality and Culinary Arts Careers program.  In this episode, we sat down with Gaven Ferguson to talk all things hospitality. Gaven is an international business advisor, mentor, and serial entrepreneur, always focusing on helping others to look outside the box and make their dreams a reality. He's the author of “The Business Procrastinator”, and currently works as a Professor of Industry for Hospitality and Tourism Management at UCSI University in Malaysia. Gaven is an expert in the culinary arts industry, and most recently, lent his expertise in the creation of our newest certification program.  Gaven shares his insights on our newest certification, plus dives into his experience working for the World Association of Master Chefs. We discuss trends in the accommodations and culinary industries, and what skills learners need to thrive. Preparing students for careers in hospitality? This episode is a great peek into our new program.  Learn more about the Hospitality and Culinary Arts Careers program: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/HCAC/Certification/Overview.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Gaven, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.

Career and technical education (CTE) can transform the workforce landscape. Teaching workforce specific skills helps learners find a career specific pathway that leverages their passion and talents. But how can you get others in your school, community, and beyond to see the value of CTE?  We sat down with Jennifer Stubblefield to discuss how you can advocate for your CTE program. A 27-year veteran of a Business Education classroom in Kentucky, Jennifer Stubblefield specializes in teaching courses that lead to industry certifications. Her classroom efforts have led to the development of an award-winning, public high school program that is recognized on the state and national levels for outstanding achievements and high rates of success on state-mandated business education tests and industry certification exams.  Jennifer is a frequent speaker at conferences both in the educational and corporate arenas, where she is known for her high-energy, interactive, and motivational workshops. She loves to "train the trainer" and can also be found in her local community training small businesses in the areas of soft skills, technology, and digital literacy foundations. After retiring from her classroom position, she accepted a position as the Customer Success Manager for Certiport where she works with teachers across the U.S. as they strive to develop certification programs in various areas. In this episode, Jennifer shares how you can get students, parents, community members, and your administration excited about CTE. We also discuss the importance of connecting with local businesses, and how you can secure the funding you need for your classroom. In her trademark frank and fun way, Jennifer will help you see just how amazing your program can be if you just infuse it with a little energy and effort.  Learn more about the value of CTE on the Certiport blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2023/May/Promoting-the-Value-of-CTE.  Ready to learn more or looking for additional advice? Connect with Jennifer via email: jennifer.stubblefield@pearson.com.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Jennifer, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.

Each year, we are so excited to recognize one of our customers as our CERTIFIED Educator of the Year as part of our annual CERTIFIED Educator Conference. We work with so many incredible educators, all of whom deserve recognition for their dedication and efforts. We're pleased to announce that Jenny Mohess is our 2024 CERTIFIED Educator of the Year! Originally from Trinidad & Tobago, Jenny Mohess has lived in Osceola County, FL for over 22 years. She first stepped onto Valencia's Campus in 2000 as an international student. There she earned an A.S. in Graphic Design. While working for Apple, she earned a bachelor's in business from the University of South Florida, and master's in art education from Boston University. These experiences led to jobs at Apple, Microsoft, and eventually, her own design studio. Jenny currently teaches at Valencia College and has found genuine purpose in mentoring future graphic/web designers through the Valencia Graphics Program. She is now building the program at Tohopekaliga High School and sharing real-world experiences with her students. In this episode, we talked with Jenny about CERTIFIED, being named CERTIFIED Educator of the Year, and her experience both in and out of the classroom. She discusses her passion for teaching, and how she overcomes the challenges she faces in education. Plus, she shares her advice for building personal and lasting relationships with her students.  Learn more about Jenny on the blog (https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2024/June/2024-CERTIFIED-Eduator-of-the-Year) and on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qoERZFVcGQ). You can also connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenartdesignstudio/.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Jenny, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.

  Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on July 19, 2023.   Each year, we are so excited to recognize one of our customers as our CERTIFIED Educator of the Year as part of our annual CERTIFIED Educator Conference. We work with so many incredible educators, all of whom deserve recognition for their dedication and efforts. We're pleased to announce that Karen Coulombe is our 2023 CERTIFIED Educator of the Year! Karen Coulombe is a career and technical education (CTE) teacher at Lake Stevens High School in Washington state. Karen teaches both computer applications and computer science to first-year high school students in Lake Stevens. She is also a robotics advisor for the largest VRC Robotics team in Washington. Before becoming a teacher, Karen worked for more than a decade as a licensed avionics technician and airframe and powerplant mechanic for the U.S. Air Force, DynCorp Aerospace, and the Boeing Company. She was also selected for special assignments involving Air Force One and the B2 stealth bomber. Throughout her career, Karen has been a passionate believer in continuing education and giving back to her community. She has participated in the U.S. Naval Academy's SET SAIL, Certiport's National CERTIFIED Conference, STEM Guitars, Space Camp for Educators, the Washington Alliance for Better Schools STEM Externship, and multiple nanotechnology conferences. Karen also serves on the teacher advisory board for the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle, and as a member of two technical advisory committees. In this episode, we talked with Karen about CERTIFIED, being named CERTIFIED Educator of the Year, and her experience both in and out of the classroom. She discusses her passion for teaching, and how she overcomes the challenges she faces in education. Plus, Karen shares her advice for creating a network of professionals to enrich your classroom and curriculum.  Learn more about Karen on the blog (https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2023/June/Karen-Coulombe-2023-CERTIFIED-Educator-of-the-Year) and on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HC1m9kLUgug). You can also connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-coulombe/.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Karen, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on July 7, 2022.   Each year, we have the honor and privilege of selecting an Educator of the Year. The 2022 CERTIFIED Educator of the Year is Carol York.  Carol is a Business Education teacher at Cary High school in Cary North Carolina. After many years of experience in private industry, Carol has been teaching for 12 years. She has been teaching project management for 8 years and was on the curriculum development team for both project management one and two for the state of North Carolina. She's recently earned her PMI Project Management Ready certification, which adds to her MOS Expert certification and National Board Teacher certification. In this episode, we talk about Carol's experience as an educator and her special key to helping students succeed. Find out how she forms connections with her students that last well beyond the classroom.  You can read more about Carol here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/June/Carol-York-2022-CERTIFIED-Educator-of-the-Year.  You can also learn about Carol and her fellow CERTIFIED Ambassadors here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/May/Meet-the-CERTIFIED-Ambassadors.

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on July 7, 2021.   In this episode, we had the privilege of interviewing our 2021 Certiport CERTIFIED Educator of the Year Abner Soto-Henry. His love for education and his students is truly inspiring. He talks about his story and journey to becoming an educator. We also chat about some of the challenges with his unique teaching and his advice to help other educators in similar situations as him.  Abner Soto-Henry has taught information technology education for nearly 20 years at the Latin American Youth Center Career Academy, specializing in Microsoft certifications, IC3 Digital Literacy certifications, and CompTIA certifications. In total, Mr. Soto-Henry has more than 24 years of experience in education. Originally from Costa Rica, Abner speaks fluent Spanish, English, and Portuguese, enabling him to connect with the students he serves. He has received several awards, including the 2013 Community Star Award from D.C. United, the 2015 Hispanic Heritage Innovative Educator Award, the 2016 D.C. OSSE Career and Technical Education Teacher of the Year award, the 2019 D.C. PCSB TIERific Teacher of the Year, and 2021 Certiport CERTIFIED Educator of the Year. A former professional soccer player, his passion for teaching is only rivaled by his love of the game.   Contact Abner: https://www.facebook.com/ctlc.laycca https://www.facebook.com/layccagreatness https://www.linkedin.com/in/a-sotohenry20/   More information about Certiport: Get all the details about Certiport here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/ Find out more about our CERTIFIED Educator Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/. Ready to connect? Join CERTIFIED: Certiport's Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on October 5, 2022.   As an educator, it's easy to get into a silo. Having a demanding teaching schedule can make collaborating and connecting with other educators seem impossible. However, those who reach outside the classroom can learn valuable lessons from other educators and expand their available resources. And Denise Spence has the experience to prove it.  Denise Spence has been an educator for almost 25 years. She has earned her master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction, emphasis in Instructional Technology. Over the years, Denise has taught the correlated course content and earned various IT certification credentials. Her accomplishments include being selected as 1 of 3 finalists for Lee County's Teacher of the Year in 2000; she was the 1st ever Career and Technical Education Teacher of the Year for Lee County in 2006; she was named Certiport's Global Summit's Teacher of the Year for 2010. Denise was also a 2011 and a 2012 finalist for the Microsoft Innovation Forum. During this episode, Denise talked about the value of collaborating and learning from other educators. She gives practical advice for how to find the time and tools to make collaboration easy.  Looking for opportunities to connect and collaborate with your fellow CTE educators? Join our Certiport Academy trainings each month! Get all the details on the Certiport blog: www.certiport.com/blog. You can see past sessions in our Educator Resource Library here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Educator-resources/Resources.

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on December 15, 2021.   Students shouldn't leave their CTE programs without a polished and professional resume. It's impossible to transition to the workforce without one. Building a resume can require some handholding and lots of advice. So we brought in our expert, James Boshier, to help give you all the steps you need to help your students build a fantastic resume. James is the Head of Product Success at Resume-Library. As Head of Product, he owns the Resume-Library roadmap and works out what new features are added to the site.   In this episode, James gives advice on building and polishing the best resume, what students should know about cover letters (spoiler alert: they're on the way out), and how candidates should conduct themselves in a job interview. He also talks through all the resources that Certiport candidates have access to when they're ready for the job search.  You can learn more about Resume-Library on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2021/May/Why-Your-Students-Need-Resume-Library.  Resume-Library also has an entire blog dedicated to career advice. You can find articles and relevant content for your students here: https://www.resume-library.com/career-advice/.  If you're interested in checking out the newly launched UK CV Builder James mentioned, you'll find that here: https://www.cv-library.co.uk/free-cv-builder. 

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on January 12, 2022.   You know when something is so good, you just want to tell everyone about it? That's how we felt about our latest CSB Academy webinar with Jennifer Stubblefield. We couldn't keep this one to ourselves, so we wanted to make sure our listeners had a chance to get Jennifer's advice.  Jennifer Stubblefield is Certiport's new Customer Success Manager, current KBEA President, a former KY business educator, and the 2019 CERTIFIED Educator of the Year. Plus, she's the face and voice behind the LearnKey Communication Skills for Business curriculum. We got a peek inside Jennifer's treasure chest of experience during this episode. We talk about her favorite projects for teaching communication skills in the classroom. We discussed everything from Fortune 500 projects and portfolios to elevator pitches and the importance of an undershirt in mock interviews. If you teach any business course, you'll want to listen, save, and share this episode. Just trust us on this one.  

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on May 25, 2022.   As part of our IT Specialist Academy training, we held a webinar addressing computational thinking. This one was so good, that we just had to share it here as well. We were lucky enough to feature two of our new CERTIFIED Ambassadors on this episode: Tracey Sigers and Damiano Mastandrea.  Tracey Sigers is the Department Chair of Information Technology at the National Center for Urban Solutions in Columbus, Ohio. Tracey holds an MBA with an emphasis in technology leadership, a bachelor's degree in information technology, and an associate degree in technology. Tracey has twenty years of business background in computer systems management, college study skills, and Microsoft software experience. She's eager to bring students into the twenty-first century using enthusiastic and dynamic teaching to help them become lifelong learners. Damiano Mastrandrea is a Career and Technical Education Director at the Brooklyn STEAM Center. He manages the CTE portfolio of the school to ensure that they are highly relevant and rigorous. He also strategizes various career readiness approaches through workplace immersion programs supported by data-driven decisions. Damiano is a big believer in changing education as a system that works for everyone instead of the selected few and pursuing education to all corners. His passion for education has led him to earn three college degrees including a doctorate, as well last 26 industry certifications.  When he has a free moment, Damiano likes to write short stories, play games, and, if he's feeling daring, bake! We sat down with Tracey and Damiano to learn more about computational thinking. According to ComputationalThinking.org, these skills are increasingly critical for individuals and organizations as the use of computation becomes more central to every activity and every innovation. In this episode, we took a deep dive into computational thinking. Our guests taught us more about what it is, why it's valuable for students, and how you can teach this industry-demanded skillset in the classroom. You can learn more about the IT Specialist Computational Thinking certification exam here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/ITSpecialist/Certification/Certify You can also watch this, and other IT Specialist Academy trainings here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/April/IT-Specialist-Academy-2022

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on September 28, 2022.   According to a 2022 study by the CDC, 37% of U.S. high schoolers have faced mental health struggles amid the COVID pandemic. These struggles highlight students' need for a positive, welcoming environment during the new school year. We couldn't think of a better guest to discuss positivity than CERTIFIED Ambassador, Abner Soto-Henry.  Abner Soto-Henry has taught information technology education for nearly 20 years at the Latin American Youth Center Career Academy, specializing in Microsoft certifications, IC3 Digital Literacy certifications, and CompTIA certifications. In total, Mr. Soto-Henry has more than 24 years of experience in education. Originally from Costa Rica, Abner speaks fluent Spanish, English, and Portuguese, enabling him to connect with the students he serves. He has received several awards, including being named Certiport's 2021 Educator of the Year. A former professional soccer player, his passion for teaching is only rivaled by his love of the game. In this episode, we talk with Abner about the positive and negative influences at play in the lives of today's students. Abner paints a picture of the ideal classroom and talks about ways to connect with students to make your dream classroom a reality. And last, but certainly not least, he offers advice for how to fill your own cup, so you can emanate positivity in the classroom each and every day.  Want to connect with Abner for more positive energy and advice? Reach out to him on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/a-sotohenry20/. You can also learn more about Abner, and all our other CERTIFIED Ambassadors here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/May/Meet-the-CERTIFIED-Ambassadors.

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on June 6, 2022.   According to reports from Burning Glass, nearly 2.3 million job postings in the last year have requested project management skills, which is great news for teachers looking to help their students find jobs immediately upon graduation. Plus, project management instills additional skills such as time management, communication, and teamwork; all soft skills that are highly demanded by today's employers. In this episode, we sat down with one of our amazing CERTIFIED Ambassadors, Carol York. Carol York is a Business Education teacher at Cary High school in Cary North Carolina. After many years of experience in Private industry, Carol has been teaching for 12 years. She has been teaching project management for 8 years and was on the curriculum development team for both project management one and two for the state of North Carolina. She's recently earned her PMI Project Management Ready certification, which adds to her MOS Expert certification and National Board Teacher certification. Carol discusses her journey into teaching project management, and why these skills are applicable for all students. With a 100% certification pass rate this year, Carol has helpful ideas for how you can help your students buy into project management.  You can learn more about the PMI Project Management Ready certification here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/pmi/Certifications/Overview. For advice on how to build a project management program at your school, check out this blog post: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2021/April/Building-a-Successful-Project-Management-Program.

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on January 4, 2023. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 13% of engineers are women. Helping the next generation of female students pursue careers in engineering requires concerted focus and dedication from professionals and educators alike. In this week's episode, we're highlighting a panel discussion we hosted with five incredible female engineers: Kaylee Janett, a fourth year chemical engineering student at the University of Idaho; Meridian Haas, a mechanical and aerospace engineering PhD candidate at the University of California at Davis; Samantha Daniels, a Massachusetts Builder Designer with EDM; Natalie Nguyen, Oklahoma Mechanical Engineer with Balon Corporation; and Elowyn Yager, Professor of Environmental Engineering at the University of Idaho.  These incredible women shared their passion for engineering and talked about how they first decided to pursue this traditionally male-dominated field. They shared vulnerable experiences they've had, facing sexist views in their education and workplace journeys. Most importantly, they discuss strategies to expand access to engineering learning for tomorrow's female engineers. If you work with female engineering students, this is one episode you don't want to miss.  Strong design-software skills are a great asset in both the academic and professional arenas. Autodesk Certified User (ACU) certification can make a difference for your learners. Discover more here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/Autodesk/Certifications/Overview.

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our previous episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on February 1, 2023.   Have you signed up for CERTIFIED Academy: Business yet? If not, this is your sign to register and join us! CERTIFIED Academy: Business is an immersive online professional development program for business educators. This is your chance to learn from your fellow business educators and industry professionals.  From now until March, we'll be hosting training sessions to help you learn from business education experts and industry professionals. Discover new ways of teaching, and dive into available resources for your classroom. Plus, those who register will receive a professional development certificate, allowing you to demonstrate the hours you spent learning and growing through CERTIFIED Academy. In our latest CERTIFIED Academy: Business webinar, we focused on the four Cs of workforce readiness with veteran educator and Certiport's Customer Success Manager, Jennifer Stubblefield. We talked with Jennifer about how to teach soft skills in the classroom, specifically communication, critical thinking, collaboration, and creativity. Jennifer also shares how to create projects that nurture these workforce-demanded competencies.  Join us for future CERTIFIED Academy Business sessions here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2023/January/Join-us-for-CERTIFIED-Academy-Business.  This session was sponsored by our Communication Skills for Business (CSB) certification program. Learn more about CSB here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/CSB/Certification/Overview.

Welcome to our Summer Replay series. We wanted to revisit some of our favorite and most popular episodes. These episodes were previously recorded and aired at an earlier date. This episode originally aired on June 30, 2021.   Are you new to the world of certification? New to Certiport? Happy to meet you! In this episode, we sit down with David Watkins, Certiport's Director of Product Management. Learn about Certiport's history, our model for certification success, and our new “My Pathway” resources to help students find their path to certified success. Get all the details about our “My Pathway” resources here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2021/February/Do-You-Know-Your-Pathway Learn more about Certiport here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/

For many students, college has been the main goal. But what happens after college graduation? Are students planning and preparing for their transition into the workforce? Dr. Krystal Rawls thinks there's more that educators can be doing to help students be prepared for their first job.  Dr. Rawls is the designer of the Workforce Integration Program at California State University, Dominguez Hills. Building on a foundation of theoretically sound and data-driven practices, Rawls endeavors to create transparency and equity in workforce development programming to develop a more diverse, digitally competent, and skilled class of worker. Dr. Rawls draws on her transdisciplinary background in Education, Psychology, and Business to inform her innovative approach to empowering students to take their place in the modern workforce.  Using labor market information to identify the skills needs of employers and curriculum data to evidence skills developed in the academic experience, Krystal creates community through skill-based language.  In her role as an analyst and faculty member, Krystal gets to indulge her passion for building opportunities and relationships that are beneficial to the student, educator/worker, as well as industry and community partners.  Dr. Rawls welcomes opportunities to create meaningful workforce partnerships and develop pathways for positive economic outcomes for all. In this episode, we're dishing out advice for both students and educators. We talk about the transition into that first “real-world job”, and how educators can use big and small means to get students ready for that next step. If you're looking for tangible, applicable advice you can start using today, Dr. Rawls delivers.  Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference to learn from educators like Dr. Rawls. Get all the details at https://certified.certiport.com/.    Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Looking for more advice from Dr. Rawls? Listen to her previous episode here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0wGcCPbLY6zTXdNdAO3vLO.   Connect with your fellow educators, like Dr. Rawls, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. If you're looking for additional learning opportunities, Dr. Rawls recommends the following books or resources: Supporting Working-Class Students in Higher Education Assessing and Validating Digital Skills: DRAW Detailed Discussion and Findings High-Impact Practices and Gains in Student Learning: Evidence from Georgia, Montana, and Wisconsin Honing Self-Awareness of Faculty and Future Business Leaders “Psychological safety as an effective measurement in engineering classrooms” from the 2019 ASEE annual conference & exposition. “Preparing culturally responsive teachers: Rethinking the curriculum” from the Journal of Teacher Education.  

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a hot topic of discussion in nearly every industry, and education is no exception. In this episode, we're diving into the world of AI with Aimee Torres and Lauren Miller, who will be sharing their AI expertise and experience in a 2024 CERTIFIED Educator Conference breakout session. Lauren Miller is currently in her fifth year as a full-time lecturer at Auburn University where she teaches Information Analysis to students in the business college. As a part of this course, she certifies her students with the Microsoft Office Specialist Excel and Excel Expert certifications. Prior to teaching at the post-secondary level, she taught middle school and high school business in Alabama and Texas. She holds a bachelor's degree in accounting and Ed.S. degree in business and marketing education from Auburn University. Aimee Torres is currently a lecturer at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. She teaches Microsoft Excel to business students in Information Analysis courses. She also certifies all her students in the Microsoft Office Specialist Excel Associate certification and the Microsoft Office Specialist Excel Expert certification. She has been a lecturer at Auburn University since 2019. Aimee has her B.S. in business administration from Troy University, her M.Ed. in business & marketing education from Auburn University, her Ed.S. in Business & Marketing Education from Auburn University and is currently working on her Ph.D. in Career and Technical Education. In addition to teaching, Aimee presents workshops at local, regional, and national business and marketing education conferences. She is a member of the National Business Education Association (NBEA) and is currently serving as President of the Alabama Business Education Association (ABEA).  In today's episode, we talk about how Aimee and Lauren have incorporated AI into their Microsoft Excel course. They share what AI tools they use, and how these tools help educators focus on teaching. Plus, we talk about what skills their students are learning from these projects and tools.  Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference to learn from Aimee and Lauren. Get all the details at https://certified.certiport.com/.    Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Looking for more AI resources? Get a few ideas here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/December/Tools-for-Teaching-Artificial-Intelligence.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Aimee and Lauren, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.

Project managers need a full toolbox of skills, including communication, organization, time management, and leadership. Sounds like tools educators use in the classroom every day. In this episode, we learn from project management expert, Carol York.    After a successful business career, Carol York has worked as a business education teacher at Cary High School in Cary, North Carolina for 13 years, including nine years as a project management teacher. Carol has served as a CERTIFIED Ambassador and presented various sessions at the CERTIFIED Educator Conference over the years.  She is passionate about the benefits of certification for students.  She has served on North Carolina's state curriculum development team for project management courses, and she has earned her Microsoft Office Specialist Expert, PMI Project Management Ready, and National Board Teacher certifications. Carol gives us a peek into her 2024 CERTIFIED Educator Conference workshop. She shares how educators can use project management skills in the classroom, both with their students and to make their own lives easier. Carol reminds us that no matter what subject you teach, project management can help you!    Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference to learn from Carol. Get all the details at https://certified.certiport.com/.    Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Looking for more project management resources? Get a few ideas here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2021/March/Why-Teach-Project-Management.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Carol, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.

We are excited for our 2024 CERTIFIED Educator Conference in June and are dedicating our next few episodes to previews of some of our breakout sessions. We were lucky enough to sit down with Brittany Hochstaetter and Chad McKenzie to discuss what they'll be sharing at our 2024 #CERTIFIEDConf.  Chad is an Associate Professor in the Information Technology division at Wake Technical Community College in Raleigh and has 17 years of teaching experience within the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS). Chad's teaching style focuses on fostering relationships with his students and creating learning environments, both virtual and seated, that are engaging, positive, and personalized. Brittany is an experienced Professor of Communication with over 15 years of experience in higher education. Like Chad, she's currently sharing her gifts and efforts with students at Wake Technical Community College. She's skilled in research, educational leadership, adult education, curriculum development, soft-skills training, administrative processes, and program development. In today's episode, we talk about teaching Gen Z students, and how the internet has shaped this generation. Chad and Brittany also share valuable classroom strategies to help educators prepare for teaching and engaging Gen Z students and give a peek into the research they'll be sharing at CERTIFIED 2024. Dive into the story of Internet Culture to understand the curious nature of today's students and learn innovative and practical classroom strategies for engaging their hearts and minds. Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Chad and Brittany, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

We're back with another week of insights for our creative educators. By popular demand, we're sharing more insight from CERTIFIED Ambassador, John Beale.  John Beale began his educational career working in museums including the Spanish Colonial Quarter, the Florida Agriculture Museum, and the Florida Maritime Museum. After more than a decade in experiential education he brought his experiences to the classroom, first at middle school level teaching science and STEM marine science before finding his place at Allen D. Nease High School in St John's County, Florida, teaching Introduction to Engineering and Design, Civil Engineering and Architecture, and Computer Integrated Manufacturing and sponsoring the Transportation Technology Club with a focus on Aerospace and Electrathon motorsports. He believes that industry certification creates a solid pathway to college, careers, and creativity and that collaboration and cooperation in and out of the classroom benefits all involved. In this episode, we dive into the concepts of design thinking and creativity. We talked with John about Intuit's Design for Delight approach, and how to teach students design thinking skills that they can leverage in the design and development process. Plus, we discussed the soft and hard skills your students gain by applying design thinking principles. If you're not familiar with design thinking, this is a great introduction!  Learn more about the Intuit Design for Delight Innovator certification program: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/Intuit/Certifications/Certify/Design-for-Delight.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like John, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  John will be presenting at this year's conference, and we know you won't want to miss it.

Research studies consistently demonstrate the power of active learning or learning by doing. Helping students become more engaged in the learning process means creating hands-on learning opportunities.  In our latest CERTIFIED Academy: Design webinar, we sat down with CERTIFIED Ambassador, John Beale, to talk about hands-on learning. John Beale began his educational career working in museums including the Spanish Colonial Quarter, the Florida Agriculture Museum, and the Florida Maritime Museum. After more than a decade in experiential education he brought his experiences to the classroom, first at middle school level teaching science and STEM marine science before finding his place at Allen D. Nease High School in St John's County, Florida, teaching Introduction to Engineering and Design, Civil Engineering and Architecture, and Computer Integrated Manufacturing and sponsoring the Transportation Technology Club with a focus on Aerospace and Electrathon motorsports. He believes that industry certification creates a solid pathway to college, careers, and creativity and that collaboration and cooperation in and out of the classroom benefits all involved. We talked with John about how to make your classroom more playful and hands-on. He also talks about why play is so important for learning and engagement.  Looking for more? Here are some additional resources to get you started.  Bring play into the classroom with one of John's go-to tools: https://www.blooket.com/.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like John, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  John will be presenting at this year's conference, sharing a full “toolbox” of ideas for gamifying your classroom.

The need for video production and editing skills is skyrocketing. In 2024 alone, projections anticipate companies spending over $92B on video marketing. In this webinar turned podcast episode, we dove into the world of video editing and production with CERTIFIED Ambassador, Rob Johnson.  Rob Johnson is a media professional with over twenty years of experience, having gotten his start in live television as a producer for Comcast SportsNet in Philadelphia where he was nominated for three Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards. He brought his industry experience to the classroom and has been involved in various roles as a teacher and digital strategist at La Salle College High School outside of Philadelphia, PA. Mr. Johnson's WEXPtv Media Program has won multiple Mid-Atlantic High School Emmy Awards during his tenure with many students achieving certification in Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Photoshop. We talked with Rob about why video editing and production skills are relevant for today's students. He shared valuable tips and tricks for teaching Adobe Premiere Pro in the classroom, plus additional resources he uses to help his students master these in-demand skills. Best of all, he shares advice for how to weave in ever-changing and even emerging technologies into your classroom, such as AI.  Check out the full webinar recording here: https://youtu.be/Gldz6udM4qw.  Get all the details about the Adobe Certified Professional certification program here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/Adobe/ACP/Overview.  Check out additional CERTIFIED Academy: Design sessions here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2024/March/Join-Us-for-CERTIFIED-Academy-Design-2024.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Rob, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Learn more about our annual CERTIFIED Educator Conference here: https://certified.certiport.com/.  

REPLAY: This episode has been previously aired. Education is the scaffolding around which students can build a successful life. However, students and young people often don't see the big picture. Educators, particularly in the CTE space, need to connect students' experiences more explicitly with relevant job roles and future career pathways. But how do you open your students' eyes to the skills they have and the future jobs they can pursue? Offering context and integrating your classroom with the workforce is crucial.  In this episode, we were privileged to discuss skills contextualization with Dr. Krystal Rawls. Dr. Rawls is the designer of the Workforce Integration Program at California State University, Dominguez Hills. Building on a foundation of theoretically sound and data-driven practices, Rawls endeavors to create transparency and equity in workforce development programming to develop a more diverse, digitally competent, and skilled class of worker. Dr. Rawls draws on herd transdisciplinary background in Education, Psychology, and Business to inform her innovative approach to empowering students to take their place in the modern workforce.  Using labor market information to identify the skills needs of employers and curriculum data to evidence skills developed in the academic experience, Krystal creates community through skill-based language.  In her role as an analyst and faculty member, Krystal gets to indulge her passion for building opportunities and relationships that are beneficial to the student, educator/worker, as well as industry and community partners.  Dr. Rawls welcomes opportunities to create meaningful workforce partnerships and develop pathways for positive economic outcomes for all. With Dr. Rawls we discussed how to help students contextualize and understand their skillset, and how to let go in the classroom, and create authentic learning experiences. With context, your students will see that they're not “just” students, but professionals in training.  Dr. Rawls mentioned some incredible resources to continue your learning. Check them out here American Council on Education: https://acue.org/?acue_courses=acues-effective-practice-framework “Growing Fairly: How to Build Opportunity and Equity in Workforce Development” by Stephen Goldsmith and Kate Markin Coleman: https://www.amazon.com/Growing-Fairly-Opportunity-Development-Innovative/dp/0815739486 Want to know more about implementing a Legacy project of your own? Contact Dr. Rawls on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professorrawls/ Email: kmrawls@csudh.edu Or through the CSUDH Workforce Integration Network : https://www.linkedin.com/company/csudhwin/

According to a Greenlight survey, 74% of teens surveyed reported that they don't feel confident in their personal finance knowledge and yet, 73% reported wanting to learn more! Personal finance is a hot topic. Not only among students but within schools and governments. As a teacher, you can make a difference that goes beyond the classroom. In this CERTIFIED Academy: Business webinar recording, we sat down with educators Dan Tedor and Imani Butler. Together we dove into the impact of personal finance education on students, how to make financial education relevant for the students in your classroom, and how integrating personal finance into your curriculum can equip students with essential skills and the confidence to make savvy financial decisions in their personal and professional spheres. Check out the full webinar recording (with additional information from our partners at Intuit) here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDjeDis9HAg&t=1s.  Get all the details for the Intuit Personal Finance certification exam here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2023/November/Intuit-Personal-Finance-certification.  Learn more about personal finance education at CERTIFIED this year! Get more information here: https://certified.certiport.com/conference/.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.

Summer is quickly approaching, which means that we're in full CERTIFIED mode at the Certiport office. We are weeks away from our annual CERTIFIED Educator Conference.  Taking place in Orlando, FL, June 17-19, CERTIFIED is the only education conference dedicated exclusively to exploring the full promise of certification in the classroom—by providing administrators, teachers, and industry experts with an engaging, energized forum for professional development, sharing their ideas, and experiences.  In this episode, we chatted with our Corporate Events Manager, Dominique Delbar and Director of Field Marketing, Ben Lambert. They gave us an inside view of CERTIFIED 2024, including an overview of the keynotes and breakouts, what parties are happening, and how to get involved in the student competitions. We talked about the total costs to attend, so you can budget with your districts and administrators ahead of time. Finally, we took a stroll down memory lane to talk about how CERTIFIED has changed over the years, and what new resources are available to help teachers year-round.  We can't wait to see you all at CERTIFIED this year! Get more information here: https://certified.certiport.com/conference/.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators before CERTIFIED this summer in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/.

This one's for all our Microsoft educators. In a recent CERTIFIED Academy: Business webinar, we sat down with a panel of education veterans from middle school, high school, and higher education.  Jan Went is a business technology instructor at Lakeview High School, a rural jr.-sr. high school of 469 students near Columbus, Nebraska. She is in her 40th year of teaching and is the organization administrator for the Certiport Microsoft Office Specialist Program. She was instrumental in their school becoming a part of the Nebraska Microsoft IT Initiative in 2016, and have qualified to remain members of the initiative for seven years. From 2017-present, Lakeview has been the home to seven state champions, one national champion, and one 5th place finish in the Worlds Competition in 2022. She currently has two state champions who will be competing at the national competition this summer in Orlando. Jan also served as a presenter at the Certiport Educator's Conference in Orlando in 2021. Karen Coulombe has taught a variety of Career and Technical Education courses at the 8th -12th grade level as well as the Community College since the early 2000's. Her focus is on expanding hands-on and experiential learning in meaningful ways to add valuable "tools" to the students' toolbox, building confidence and a resume of tangible skills to market in the workplace. Karen has seen certifications used to enhance resumes for those who need to get right to work; as well as to differentiate students working towards competitive internships, scholarships, and college programs. The most significant connection from certification to the real world is understanding how to work to achieve goals using the resources available. Before teaching, Karen worked for over a decade as an Avionics Technician with Boeing, DynCorp Aerospace and the US Air Force on programs including Air Force 1, the B2 Bomber, and multiple F-16 deployments abroad. Laurene Klassen is a Microsoft Certified Trainer and Assistant Director of IT Training & Communications at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. She took her first Microsoft Office Specialist exam in 2010 for personal development and has been hooked ever since. In 2017, she spearheaded the MOS program at SMU after attending her first CERTIFIED conference. Their program has now certified over 5,000 students within 4 years. Laurene oversees the administrative side of their program working with over 15 faculty members to integrate the MOS exams into their curriculum. She frequently teaches Office workshops to students. She is a native of Massachusetts but now calls Texas her home. These ladies share strategies to harness the power of project-based learning and MOS certification, helping prepare students for the demands of the workforce and post-secondary education. Listen to student success stories, discover effective tools, and acquire practical insights to enhance student success rates, teacher effectiveness, and program efficiency. Discover some valuable tips for getting started with MOS on the blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2023/May/Getting-started-with-Microsoft-Office-Specialist.  Like our educators mentioned, connecting with industry is crucial to the success of your program. Get additional advice here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/November/Successful-Cert-Program-with-Industry-Education.   Learn more about the MOS certification: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/Microsoft/MOS/Overview.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Jan, Karen, and Laurene, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Is your student the next U.S. National Champion? Learn how to help students earn an invitation to compete with veteran MOS teacher, Kathy Schmit. Kathy is a 10-year veteran teacher with 25 years of firsthand experience applying Microsoft products in the business industry, now serving as the statewide Actualization Manager for CCI Learning, for the WA legislatively funded Microsoft certification support team. Kathy entered the Career and Technical Education field to prepare students for the rigors and realities of the work world. Having been passed over for workplace advancement because she lacked certification or college credentials, she understands the importance and value of certification. Kathy taught Microsoft certification for 10 years. She has had the pleasure of witnessing 3 of her students compete at the Certiport Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship in Washington, DC, 4 students compete at the MOS U.S. National Championship, and several students win national and state championships through FBLA for Microsoft certification. Kathy takes great pleasure in the fact that, through their Microsoft certification and skills, many of her students have become mentors for local businesses and adults in their community, not to mention the jobs they have qualified for.  Kathy will be the first to tell, in her enthusiastic manner, that certification matters! But above all else she will share with you and make you a believer that certification is for EVERYONE! In this episode, Kathy and Certiport's Corporate Events Manager, Dominique Delbar, sit down together to discuss all things competition. Learn how you can prepare students to compete, and how the competition can change lives. You can also discover resources that will help your students prepare. Prepare the next generation of MOS Champions!   Learn more about the MOS Championship: https://moschampionship.certiport.com/us/.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Kathy, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Students need to see that business, particularly entrepreneurship, is everywhere. In a recent CERTIFIED Academy: Business webinar, we learned from entrepreneurial education experts: Christina Deibler and Marjorie Mitchell.  In this episode, Christina and Marjorie share why it's so important to teach entrepreneurship in schools (even if students don't open their own businesses). We dive into the skills students learn as entrepreneurs, and projects to help teach entrepreneurial expertise. Plus, Christina and Marjorie list some of their favorite free resources they use in the classroom.  Get some valuable entrepreneurial teaching ideas on the blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/February/Bringing-Entrepreneurship-into-the-Classroom.  Learn more about the Entrepreneurship and Small Business certification: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/ESB/Certification/Overview.   Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Christina and Marjorie, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Year after year, communication consistently appears among the top skills requested by employers. In fact, LinkedIn just published its 2024 report of the most in-demand job skills. Is anyone surprised to see communication in the number one position? Clearly, teaching learners this crucial skill has never been more important. In this week's episode, we revisit a CERTIFIED Academy: Business webinar from earlier this year. We sat down with Wake Technical Community College educators, Chad McKenzie and Brittany Hochstaetter, and Certiport's own Certiport Success Manager, Jennifer Stubblefield, to discuss the importance of embedding communication teaching into your curriculum.  Chad, Brittany, and Jennifer shared how you can help empower students with valuable communication and soft skills. You'll also learn how to build students' digital emotional intelligence, making them effective communicators and employees in the modern workplace. Discover new and creative ways to teach this in-demand workforce skill.  Get some valuable communication teaching ideas on the blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2024/February/Embedding-communication-teaching-in-the-classroom.  Learn more about the Communication Skills for Business certification: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/CSB/Certification/Overview.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Chad and Brittany, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Every day we use and interact with devices that use artificial intelligence (AI). Help your students understand and get excited about the power of AI technology with the Microsoft Imagine Cup Junior competition. The Microsoft Imagine Cup Junior (ICJ) is a global student competition for students ages 5-18. Through ICJ, educators utilize lessons to teach their students about AI technologies, students form teams, and apply these lessons to dream up a concept or idea to make a difference in their local community or world around them. In this week's episode, we had the opportunity to chat about ICJ with Microsoft's Jeff Johnson. Jeff Johnson is Senior Business Manager for the Skills & Employability team in the Worldwide Public Sector Education group at Microsoft. In his role, Jeff leads the company skills strategy with K-12 and higher education institutions, government workforce agencies, educators, and partners around the world surrounding adoption and engagement with technical skills solutions for students including learning pathways and Microsoft's industry recognized certification portfolio. Jeff is instrumental in helping Microsoft form broad education alliances with schools, higher education institutions, and governments globally to assist learners in gaining future-ready skills and technical credentials for the digital economy. We talked with Jeff about the importance of AI skills, and how educators can introduce students to the world of AI through the Microsoft Imagine Cup Junior competition. Jeff gave us all the details about ICJ, how students can compete, how educators can support them, and how to keep the AI momentum going after the competition has finished.  Jeff mentioned several resources during this episode. Get everything you need to dive into ICJ here:  Imagine Cup Junior blog post: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2024/January/What-is-Microsoft-Imagine-Cup-Junior.  Imagine Cup Junior website: www.imaginecup.com/junior.  Microsoft Certified Fundamentals certification information: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Certifications/Microsoft/MCF/Overview.  Free learning materials for Microsoft Certified Fundamentals certification: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/.  For teachers working with students over 18, check out the Imagine Cup: www.imaginecup.com.  For teachers looking for additional competition opportunities for their learners, check out the MOS World Championship: https://www.moschampionship.com/.  Get other ideas for teaching AI in your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/December/Tools-for-Teaching-Artificial-Intelligence.   Connect with your fellow educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a hot topic of discussion in nearly every industry. We are so excited that we were able to rally two experienced experts to help us dive into the world of AI, Jeff Felice and Joe Brutsche.  As President of CertNexus, Jeff is responsible for advancing the company's mission of closing the emerging technology skills gap. With 25 years of experience within the training and certification industry, serving in general management and practice leadership roles, Jeff combines his passion for professional performance with technology to bring change within global organizations while improving the opportunities for individuals in emerging tech. When not working towards improving the lives of others Jeff can be found doing the same for his own as an avid reader and cycling enthusiast.  Joe is a customer focused and data driven product management leader with a proven track record of successful product launches, fostering innovation and cross-functional collaboration.   Driven and strategic with a unique combination of Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) expertise, product management leadership and passion for analytics, Joe is responsible for determining Pearson VUE's Security & Compliance, OnVUE and Analytics & Reporting product roadmaps. In addition, he leads Artificial Intelligence (AI) Governance Committe, which promotes and oversees the responsible use of AI within Pearson VUE. Before joining Pearson VUE, he was a Risk Assurance Director at PwC, and held roles of increasing responsibility in compliance, auditing, security and third-party assurance.  During this episode, we learned all about the impact of AI in the world of IT and beyond. We discussed what information individuals should know about AI, including machine learning, generative AI, and ethical practices. If you're looking to dip your toes into the world of artificial intelligence, this episode with Jeff and Joe will help you take the plunge.  This episode is co-sponsored by the Microsoft Certified Fundamentals and IT Specialist certification programs. Get more information about Microsoft Certified Fundamentals at www.certiport.com/mcf and more information about IT Specialist at www.certiport.com/its.  Looking for more? Here are some additional resources to get you started.  Check out the full webinar recording on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_W6kV0dfvE.  Get other ideas for teaching AI in your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Blog/2022/December/Tools-for-Teaching-Artificial-Intelligence.   Connect with your fellow educators in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Your students inherently understand play. Engaging in hands-on learning and gamification is a natural way to discover, learn, and retain information for learning, regardless of age. CERTIFIED Ambassador, John, sees that in his classroom every day.  John Beale began his educational career working in museums including the Spanish Colonial Quarter, the Florida Agriculture Museum, and the Florida Maritime Museum. After more than a decade in experiential education he brought his experiences to the classroom, first at middle school level teaching science and STEM marine science before finding his place at Allen D. Nease High School in St John's County, Florida, teaching Introduction to Engineering and Design, Civil Engineering and Architecture, and Computer Integrated Manufacturing and sponsoring the Transportation Technology Club with a focus on Aerospace and Electrathon motorsports. He believes that industry certification creates a solid pathway to college, careers, and creativity and that collaboration and cooperation in and out of the classroom benefits all involved. In today's episode, John shares why it's so important for educators to focus on play. However, it's not just play for play's sake. He teaches how you can make your learning objectives and assignments more playful and hands-on, helping drive student engagement and buy-in. You'll love John's practical advice for making your classroom more engaging and playful.  Looking for more? Here are some additional resources to get you started.  Bring play into the classroom with one of John's go-to tools: https://www.blooket.com/.  Learn more from the Harvard study John mentioned, “A Pedagogy of Play: Supporting playful learning in classrooms and schools”: https://pz.harvard.edu/resources/pedagogy-of-play-book. Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like John, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Research studies consistently demonstrate the power of active learning or learning by doing. Helping students become more engaged in the learning process means creating hands-on learning opportunities. CERTIFIED Ambassador and Autodesk educator, Brian Flores, is here to help you find a balance between theoretical concepts and hands-on activities.  Brian Flores is a dedicated educator with a unique blend of experience and expertise, currently working as the Robotics and Engineering Teacher at JM Hanks High School. Brian holds a Bachelor of Science with a minor in Secondary Education and is currently working on his master's in educational administration. His professional journey is equally compelling, having worked as a Professional Aerial Videographer for the City of El Paso and spent four years at Apple, where he honed his technological acumen. With certifications in Technology Education 7-12 grades, Microsoft Office, Google Project Management, and Autodesk Inventor, Brian ensures his students are well-prepared for the dynamic world of engineering and technology. Currently, Brian imparts his knowledge to 10-12th-grade students, teaching Engineering Design and Problem Solving, Robotics I and II, Digital Electronics, and administering Certiport certification in Autodesk Inventor and Fusion, making him an asset to both his students and the educational community at large. In this episode, Brian talks about how he incorporates theoretical teaching and hands-on projects. He's built his own curriculum from scratch, and offers fabulous advice about creating personalized learning experiences, and meaningful hands-on activities. He also shares the value of learning opportunities outside the classroom. If you're ready to create a more hands-on classroom this year, this episode is for you.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Brian, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Helping students succeed in the workplace is about more than just hard skills. It's about helping them understand how to be successful in a corporate environment, how to interact and communicate with others. But how can you give students the interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence they need to succeed, particularly in today's digital workplace? Chad McKenzie and Brittany Hochstaetter have collaborated on that very topic.  Chad McKenzie is an Associate Professor in the Information Technology division at Wake Technical Community College in Raleigh and has 17 years of teaching experience within the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS). Chad's teaching style focuses on fostering relationships with his students and creating learning environments, both virtual and seated, that are engaging, positive, and personalized. Brittany is an experienced Professor of Communication with over 15 years of experience in higher education. Like Chad, she's currently sharing her gifts and efforts with students at Wake Technical Community College. She's skilled in research, educational leadership, adult education, curriculum development, soft-skills training, administrative processes, and program development. In this episode, we talked with Chad and Brittany about digital emotional intelligence, and why it's a focus at Wake Technical Community College. Together they share their experience in pioneering a new communication program. We discuss what they've learned, and how educators can successfully teach digital emotional intelligence in their classroom.  Interested in learning more about digital emotional intelligence? Here are some of the resources that Brittany and Chad mentioned during the episode.  Community College Daily Article: https://www.ccdaily.com/2024/01/between-us/  Inquisitive Culture Article: https://www.strategy-business.com/blog/Six-reasons-successful-leaders-love-questions  Employability Framework: https://cte.ed.gov/initiatives/employability-skills-framework  Rich Skill Descriptors: https://www.openskillsnetwork.org/rsd.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Chad and Brittany, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.  

Coming in with our second episode of 2024, and we're so excited to continue our series with our CERTIFIED Ambassadors. In our last episode, we covered student engagement. But what do you do if you're struggling to help students get started and stay motivated to succeed? Christina Davis, CERTIFIED Ambassador and educator, has some great ideas for you.  Ms. Christina Davis is a teacher in Colorado Springs, CO. She received both her bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of South Carolina – Columbia. She started out by spending her first nine years in the classroom as an English teacher in South Carolina and then moved to Colorado Springs where she has spent the last seven years. Even though her heart is in teaching Shakespeare to teenagers; she stumbled upon a computer lab in 2019 and has now transitioned completely to the world of business and computer science certification courses. Christina has implemented a very successful Microsoft certification program. Since she started teaching Microsoft in the middle of the pandemic, she has had more than 400 students earn their Microsoft certifications. In addition, she runs a certification lab program for students to earn their Entrepreneurship and Small Business certifications and Communication Skills for Business-Professional Communication certifications for college credit. More than 100 students have been able to complete those credentials in the last few years! Last year, Christina was named Certification Coordinator for her entire Charter School Network. She is fervently excited about creating new opportunities for her students to excel as their work towards earning their associate degrees while still in high school!  In this episode, we talk with Christina about how to increase student motivation in and outside the classroom. She also talks about helping students motivate each other, so you're not the only one driving progress in the classroom. Covering everything from college credit to discovering your students' love languages, this episode is sure to give you some new ideas.  Learn more about ACE credit for your students here: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/Educator-resources/College-Credit.  To help discover your students' love languages and increase motivation in your classroom, you can visit https://5lovelanguages.com/quizzes/love-language.  Get other ideas for your classroom on our blog: https://certiport.pearsonvue.com/blog.  Connect with your fellow educators, like Christina, in our CERTIFIED Educator Community here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/8958289/. Don't miss your chance to register for our annual CERTIFIED Educator's Conference at https://certified.certiport.com/.