ABOUT BLEGROUP

The  BLEgroup provides—

• Information and intelligence for the education industry
• Technology planning and management for school systems

The BLEgroup brings together 60 working CIOs, superintendents, and curriculum directors of school systems and state education departments who are knowledgeable about and dedicated to using technology to improve K-12 instruction and management. The BLEgroup provides services to help education firms develop and deliver high-quality products and services to schools, and provides services to schools to manage technology to improve education results and make operations more efficient.

BLEGROUP ORGANIZATION & PEOPLE

Advisory Board | CEO | Technology Planning & Management for School Systems
Sr. Education Consultants | Focus Groups & Market Research Work

Advisory Board

The BLEgroup industry advisory board is made up of leading members of the education industry who provide direction on services that the BLEgroup should offer to the industry.

The following people are members of the advisory board:

• Lil Kellogg, Vice President of Marketing of ENA
• Randy Wilhelm, CEO of Thinkronize
• Lou Pugliese, Chairman of Spectrum
• Christopher Curran, Managing Director Berkery, Noyes, and Co.

CEO

Eliot Levinson, CEO, is the founder of the BLEgroup. Levinson launched the BLEgroup (www.blegroup.com) in 1998 to help schools implement technology for better results. Levinson felt that there was a need for professional services from a group of educators who understood technology and could address the unique needs of K-12 schools.

Levinson is known for his work in implementation of technology for accountability and his knowledge of educational-technology products and services. Eliot's background integrates education and technology. His experience in education includes being a teacher in California and Pennsylvania, a middle school principal in Massachusetts, and an assistant to the chancellor of schools in New York City. His technology and research background ranges from having worked as a management scientist at the Rand Corporation and directing a research program on the organizational impact of technology at MIT's Sloan School of Management to being the co-founder of a Web-based instructional-management company.

Eliot works as a strategic technology advisor to school systems and charter schools of all sizes and state departments of education. He also assists several educational-technology firms in strategic planning and implementation. In addition to publishing SuperTECH NEWS, he is a regular contributor to THE newsletter and speaks frequently on topics of education policy, technology, leadership, and school management.

Technology Planning and Management for School Systems

Bruce Heimbuck, Director of Wyoming Standards-Based Teaching Project and Director of Pilot Project

Mr. Heimbuck is the former Superintendent of the Guernsey-Sunrise School District and a former board member of the Wyoming Association of Elementary School Principals (WAESP).

The Wyoming project consists of implementing a statewide Web-based instructional portal in 15 Wyoming districts. The aim of the project is to have 80% of teachers utilize the system for standards-based instruction, assessment, and data management.

Mr. Heimbuck also conducts market research and manages pilot projects for technology companies.

Kamal Kumar, Director, Virgin Islands Data Reporting and IT Reorganization Project

Mr. Kumar is the former Vice President of Celt Corporation and the former Director of Networks and Operations for the New York City Board of Education.

In the Puerto Rico data management project, the BLEgroup, working is establishing specifications and developing the management capacity for the Puerto Rico Department of Education to report its NCLB data, to maintain high-quality data, and to develop the management capacity to utilize its data.

Mr. Kumar formerly directed the data reporting project for Virgin Islands Department of Education where he assisted the VIDE in establishing a process for doing all NCLB reporting and data driven Decision making.

Senior Education Consultants

The following people manage technology planning and management projects for the BLEgroup:

Don Hall, Former CIO, Kent Washington

Don Hall is the President of Mind Source Technology. Don is the former Executive Director (CIO) for Information Technology with the 27,000+student Kent School District in the Seattle metropolitan area, which is known nationally for its use of technology to improve instruction. In 2003, the district under his leadership was recognized as a Microsoft Center of Excellence for achievements in this area. As a career educator with over 15 years experience in teaching and administration at the K-12 and college level, he has also previously held senior leadership roles within the General Electric Corporation, Cincinnati, OH and the Kentucky Department of Education, Frankfort, KY. Don currently serves as an editor and author with ISTE’s monthly journal, Learning and Leading with Technology. He also serves as a K-12 representative on Microsoft’s Global Academic Licensing Council and Lexmark’s Educational Advisory Board.

Rich Mincer, Former CIO, Idaho Department of Education

Rich Mincer is an executive consultant for the BLEgroup. Rich is the former Bureau Chief for the Bureau of Technology Services within the Idaho State Department of Education. The bureau includes IT programming, Educational Technology, and Idaho Student Information Management System (ISIMS). Idaho has a statewide computer based assessment system wherein all 2-10th graders are tested both fall and spring and has a new state law that requires all districts to participate in a statewide system that will integrate student and curriculum management, reporting and analytics, and a state data warehouse for 250,000 students. Rich holds three degrees in educational administration and communications technology and has been an educational technology consultant for over 26 years after spending a decade as a classroom instructor and school principal. He also spent several years in private industry as national program manager for Satellite Systems Corporation overseeing the installation of several national radio and television satellite networks as well as the NASA TDMA system. Rich is a member of the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) and services as the National Chair for State Policy.  Mincer is currently the interim CIO of Friendship Public Charter School, the largest public charter school in Washington D.C where he is responsible for the development of a wide area network and the establishment of an IT Organization.

Patrick Kelly, Former CIO, Frederick County, Maryland

Pat Kelly is the President of Trinity Consulting. Pat is the former Executive Director (CIO) of Technology Services for Frederick County Public Schools, a district of 39,000 students in Maryland. Nineteen of his thirty-three years in education have been in the technology arena. In 1990 Frederick County was awarded the HP "Most Innovative Application" award for technology. He has served on numerous state and local technology planning and advisory committees, founded the Maryland Instructional Computer Coordinators Association, and recently completed installation of an integrated voice-data fiber-ATM network. Recent initiatives include implementation of PeopleSoft HR and Financial management system, Pentamation/Orion student system, and Blackboard On-Line learning initiative.

Focus Groups and Market Research Work

Kathleen Florio, SuperTECH News Editor	Cathy Everett, Coordinator of CIO and Instructional Leader Panels	Ann Watson, Director of Sales	Sharon Blust