Benefits of Chief Technology Officer certification:
The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) certification:
1. provides access to information and training that is specific to Michigan law and regulation; and
2. provides a basis for advancing professionalism of School Technology Managers in Michigan schools.
The CTO Program
MSBO certification courses provide a great deal of information in a short time. Most courses are “bulleted” information rather than in-depth training. They are intended to cover major points about their respective topics, offer an opportunity for questions and discussion, and provide resource information for future use.
Our recommended beginning course for Chief Technology Officer Certification is Technology in Education. Although anyone may benefit from this or other individual certification courses, the full program is generally intended for School Technology Managers in their first 1-5 years of employment. However, any person employed in school technology who meets the stated requirements may receive Chief Technology Officer Certification. There is no requirement for holding a particular position in a school district.
Requirements
This program and the courses listed have been created and reviewed by the Professional Development Committee of MSBO and MACUL. An applicant for certification must be a member of MSBO, have one year of hardware technology support, and hold at least one of the following:
- Bachelor’s Degree
- A current related industry certification (or coursework equivalent to a current certification) and five or more years of Chief Technology Officer experience
In some circumstances courses from other sources may be counted toward MSBO certification. Please be aware that some courses and/or requirements may change. MSBO and the committees that created this program continue to evaluate and make minor modifications as deemed appropriate.
MSBO’s Certification Program Benefits:
- Provides access to information needed to succeed in your job
- Offers practical overviews of key areas of law, regulations and practices
- Identifies resources for in-depth and additional information that may be utilized at a later time
- Assures a quality curriculum is developed and monitored by the MSBO Professional Development Committee
- Uses experienced practitioners to teach classes
- Offers seminars at regular intervals and reasonable prices
- Uses adult learning principles and provides a learning environment where colleagues can share experiences and information
Questions?
Contact Courtney Byam at 517.327.5937;
or Debbie Kopkau at 517.327.2587.
Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Course Descriptions
Enterprise Software Applications (formerly Administrative Software Applications) (3 hours): Software for school business operations. Specific areas covered include software for: financial operations, human resources and general business, transportation, food services and facility management.
Overview of School Finance for Technology (formerly Budgeting for Technology) (3 hours): There are many types of technology-related expenses your school district should budget for, and some helpful guidelines on “What Stuff Costs.” The basics of the budgeting process, an overview of school finance, borrowing, and the operation of a business office will be addressed. Some of the topic areas that will be addressed are, “Where and how do grants and donations fit into the process?” How does “depreciation,” “total cost of ownership” (TCO), and “return on investment” (ROI) play a role? What are the various purchasing plans and regulations? How to negotiate rates with technology vendors? What is E-Rate? Should a district purchase or lease equipment?
Effective Communications (3 hours): Learn techniques and strategies to send clear messages, create credibility, and develop strategic communications programs that are effective for your school district.
Organizational Applications (formerly Student Services Software Applications in Education) (3 hours): Learn what student data points are collected and how both internal and external customers use them. Topics to be covered include various data points required (e.g. attendance, pupil accounting, discipline, scheduling, immunization, special education, etc.) and internal and external data submission, reporting requirements, quality data, and data warehousing. Attributes required of a comprehensive student management information system – including a centralized and decentralized approach will also be reviewed.
Organizational Technology Audits (formerly part of Technology in Administration) (3 hours): Your school district is more dependent now on technology than ever. Chances are you have technology across all areas of your organization and chances are, you may not know everything about it you need to. Understanding all the technology pieces that run your organization and how critical each is to your school district’s function is important. Learn the components of a comprehensive audit including risk analysis, business impact analysis, sustainability, and determining the correct uptime for each system.
Performance Evaluations for Personnel (formerly part of Technology in Administration) (3 hours): Learn how and when to evaluate employees, what documentation should be placed in the employee’s file and what type of follow-up should be completed. Examine discipline, discharge, and the probationary employee terms.
Principles of Education (3 hours): Understand the educational process, culture of schools, major learning theories, teaching methodologies, school improvement, design of in-service programs, and the structure and function of the principalship.
Security/Disaster Recovery (3 hours): An overview of security best practices at the network, server and workstation levels will be discussed. The security practices covered can be applied to multiple types of network architectures including Windows, Linux and others. Also covers best practices on creating and implementing a disaster recovery plan.
Team Leadership (3 hours): Learn how to match your leadership style with the culture of the organization. Matching leadership style to the cultural landscape will allow you to increase your productivity, decrease communication problems and strengthen your conflict management skills.
Technology in Education (6 hours): A basic overview of technology in schools. It is recommended as one of the first classes in the program. It covers the following topics: Makeup of the technology team, managing technology in the classroom, training, working with consultants and vendors, business office technology, cost of ownership and outsourcing your technology services.
Technology in the Classroom (6 hours): School technology directors need to know the traditional technology management skills and be “tuned in” to the unique environment that is the modern classroom. Become familiar with technology and curriculum standards that are the driving force for the tools and support needed from tech staff in classrooms. Tools, ranging from virtual classrooms to mobile devices and online assessment, will be included Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Course Descriptions in this discussion, along with sharing of information about how to leverage resources to budget and support classroom needs.
Technology Policies (3 hours): Get an overview of the policies and procedures that should be in place, including Acceptable Use Policies (AUP), network policies, e-mails, filtering of network, listservs, laptops, copyright, licensing, and software selection policies. Understand asset management, Web publishing, and the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA.)
Time Management (replaces Working With Contractors) (3 hours): Become a more effective manager by budgeting your time, identifying and assigning priorities, and establishing and achieving daily goals.
Vision, Strategic Planning & Implementation (formerly Implementation & Planning) (6 hours): Learn the planning process for technology, including: creating a technology plan, integrating school improvement and district improvement plans, forecasting future needs, and implementing new systems. Technology planning, and tips and methods for evaluation of new and existing technology will be reviewed. The emerging use of distance learning technologies and other professional development opportunities for staff will be addressed. An overview of project management including the Michigan laws, bidding requirements, electrical and construction codes, plan review requirements, and practical implications of working with contractors on technology integration projects and processes will be shared.
Wrap-up/Ethics (2 hours): Celebrate completion of your certification program! Reflect on what you have learned and your role in the educational process and your school district. This class can be taken only if you are two classes or less from completing your certification (not counting the Wrap-Up/Ethics Session).
Elective (6 hours): Any certification class that is outside of your current certification track and not required for this track.