Our Mission & Vision
InnEdCO, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, exists to inspire and sustain communities of innovative learners. We strive to tell the story of education innovation, risk-taking, and problem-solving across Colorado. We seek to engage in meaningful and ongoing institutional, district, school, and individual partnerships to connect and inspire educators to grow their practice.
What does Innovation mean to us?
At InnEdCO we believe innovation in education is the introduction of ideas, perspectives, and practices that empower and transform lifelong learning. It’s not just about new tools and technologies but reimagining proven strategies to meet diverse needs and foster meaningful change.
Our Beliefs
We believe that building connections between educators within and between districts will enhance the capacity and desire to innovate and develop equitable learning environments.
We believe that our organization is at its most helpful when it is providing opportunities for educators to connect their ideas, work toward common visions and celebrate with one another.
We believe in empowering educators to experience a vast range of new possibilities with innovative learning experiences that meet their constraints (time, cost, etc).
We believe all learners deserve innovative learning environments and believe that developing educators is the best way to get there.
Our Dedication to Educational Equity
At InnEdCO, we believe that equitable education consists of innovation that uplifts and supports students and educators of all backgrounds. We believe that equitable education is built upon and must include:
Bylaws, Policies, & Procedures
As a 503c tax-exempt organization, InnEdCO strives to be transparent in its operations. Our Board Bylaws and our Policies and Procedures are below.
Should you have any questions about our organization, feel free to peruse these or to email Board President Brandon Petersen ([email protected]) to request additional information.
InnEdCO History
Before InnEdCO, we were TIE (Technology in Education Colorado).
In the Beginning...computers were being introduced into schools and teachers were hungry for guidance in using them to educate their students. Technology leaders from Colorado traveled to California for the Computer Using Educator (CUE) conference and a group of these educators proceeded to program a “scathingly brilliant” idea (as Pat McCartney so often recalled): Colorado and the surrounding region could support its very own technology conference!
Thus, in October of 1986, a creative and visionary group of educators met to explore the possibilities. Kathy Brabec, Jan Bybee, Randy Donahoo, Rick Dutton, John Emerson, Steve King, Phil Lingwood, Carole Martinez, Kathy Nutting, Bernajean Porter, Jerry Scezney, and John Speckien devoted many hours to planning that first conference and shaping Colorado’s Technology In Education.
1987 And the story of TIE really is as much a story of people as it is of technology. It would take the entire program to mention all those who have contributed over the years, but a few must be mentioned. Lee Hayward ran the shareware booth for many years, helped us develop Appleworks as a tool for more than we could imagine, and taught us how to troubleshoot pesky technology problems. Those who attended TIE during the 1980s and 90s will always associate the T-shirt distribution with Jeff Koneck of Omaha. We remember his extraordinary zany costumes for the parties, as well as his generous humor and warm smile.
There are many who have continued to provide quality presentations: Len Scrogan, Steve Cowdrey, Spence Cutting, Mary McAuliffe, John DeTroye of Apple, Susan and Bruce Wenzlau, Anne Scott of IBM, Tracy and Richard Sutherland, Gary Murphy, Dave Robnett, Christine Archer-Davison, Denise Shorey, and Martha Wilcox are just some of the presenters who have informed us year after year. We would be remiss not to mention the continuing support of Forest Barbieri from his days with Educational Resources to the Forest Technologies company to Quickmind. He has been a loyal friend of TIE. The contribution of those at ISC (and their previous incarnation as GMT) has been enormous. Without their able assistance, the dream of networking an entire conference while retaining the signature of hands-on presentations as we grew would never have been possible. Hats off to all.
Finally, to all the previous Board members, our eternal gratitude. If you check over the years, you’ll find they made presentations at the conference before they were elected to the Board...and continue to bring their enthusiasm and expertise to the conference as presenters after retiring from the Board. Look around at your presenters this year and you’ll see the faces of some who will join the Board of Directors and lead us through the 21st Century. If history is our guide, it will be a glorious ride!
Thanks to Nancy Jentzsch, who served as historian for this project with the help of Ruby Severson, Kathy Brabec, and Lee Hayward.
