I’ve heard from many NASTD members who attended the Annual Conference and Technology Showcase in Coeur d’Alene and the universal sentiment seems to be that those who attended were very glad that they did! There was certainly a lot of lively interaction on a great variety of topics. Those few days that I had the pleasure of spending with all of you passed far too quickly!
The Annual Conference and Technology Showcase is a product of many contributors, and this year’s event certainly benefitted from that approach. I’m very appreciative for the enthusiastic support that everyone provided to me and to Mark, Pam, and Paul in making the event a great success. We’re all grateful to Cheryl Dearborn of Idaho for the support that she provided in hosting us and to Idaho CIO Teresa Luna for welcoming us all to Coeur d’Alene.
Many of the conversations that begin at our conferences continue well beyond the timeframe of the event. The FCC’s Jonathan Chambers, the NTIA’s Anne Neville, Brian Hobson of FirstNet, our presenters and panelists throughout the event, those at the Technology Showcase, the Roundtable participants, and those taking part in conversations beyond the formal program invited us to stay in touch. Be sure to take advantage of these generous offers. We all benefitted from the participants’ willingness to share time, information and perspectives at the event and continuing those interactions will help us all to make the most out of our participation.
Thank you for your generosity supporting NASTD’s charitable outreach efforts for Big City Mountaineers and the great work that they do in helping disadvantaged youth. Opportunities to support them are still available through the Big City Mountaineers link under "Latest News" on the NASTD web page through the month of September.
I would like to again thank our sponsors and the great commitment and support that they have provided to NASTD:
Diamond Sponsors: AT&T, CDW-G, CenturyLink
Gold Sponsor: ShoreTel
Silver Sponsors: Alcatel-Lucent, Hughes, inContact, McAfee, Microsoft, Motorola Solutions, Riverbed Technology, Symantec
Bronze Sponsors: ADTRAN, AirWatch by VMWare, Alexander Open Systems, Avaya, AVI-SPL, Carousel Industries, Cox Business, EarthLink Business, EMC, HP, Integris Applied, ISAM, Level 3 Communications, Navisite, Spirit Communications
Media Sponsors: Governing, Government Technology, Public CIO, Government Executive
We have been very fortunate to have had Darin Rand of Oregon as our President this past year, and as he moves on to his role as Immediate Past President on the Executive Board, I look forward to having his experience and insight available to us over the next year. Congratulations and thank you to Dan Oehmke of Minnesota who has completed his term as Immediate Past President and his four year commitment to NASTD as a member of the Board. That represents a very significant contribution to NASTD and Dan will undoubtedly be seeking advice from us all as to how he might spend his newfound “spare” time. Thank you to Jack Harris (MI), Dean Johnson (AL), Brad Steele (MA), Jack Doane (AL), and Kim Netling (AK) for their service to NASTD as Regional Presidents and Board members. We appreciate the service of Jim Knopka (AT&T) serving this past year as Chair of the Corporate Affiliate Committee and the advice and perspectives that he brought with that role.
The great contributions of all our members shape and strengthen the organization, benefitting all of us. In our conversations we often invoke the names of many who have built up and supported NASTD over the years, including some who are now enjoying their well-deserved retirements. How fortunate we were in Coeur d’Alene to not only have the opportunity to talk about Carl Hotvedt, Derald Kirkland, and Gary Coleman (among others), but to be honored by actually having Carl, Derald, and Gary present to participate in the discussions!