Meet the Digital Directions Writers

Katie Ash | kash@epe.org

“Doing more with less is a high priority for educators right now, especially in educational technology, which was a theme that resurfaced in every story I wrote for this issue of the magazine,” says Digital Directions Staff Writer Katie Ash. “That is so whether it be tapping into new approaches like cloud computing to expand learning opportunities and save money or banding together with local consortia to extend affordable broadband telecommunications services. Now more than ever, it’s essential for ed-tech leaders to explore innovative ways to save money and ensure that existing resources are being put to their most efficient and effective uses.”

Michelle R. Davis | mdavis@epe.org

“My reporting for this issue of the magazine made me realize that while the technology I write about often looks like the cutting edge, it won’t be long before it has to evolve to stay there,” says Digital Directions Senior Writer Michelle R. Davis, who writes in this issue about the debate over simulated vs. hands-on lab experiments and the growing use of electronic gradebooks. “It’s great that students now have access to AP science classes through online offerings, but those classes have to evolve to give students nearly everything, and sometimes more, than they’d get in a brick-and-mortar classroom.”

Kathleen Kennedy | kmanzo@epe.org

“After more than 12 years of covering curriculum and standards, and looking at how the U.S. education system and its reform efforts match up with other nations’, it has been an exciting few months as I have made the switch to covering educational technology,” says Kathleen Kennedy Manzo, the senior editor for Digital Directions. “Working on the cover story for this issue of the magazine has made me appreciate the growing role that technology skills play in students’ abilities to compete with their international peers for the jobs of the future.”