Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA) recently announced the state’s three finalists for the ‘Technology Administrator of the Year Award’ category and Dayton ISD’s Mrs. Suzanne Chachere is one of those three administrators.
TCEA is a global, nonprofit, member-based organization supporting the use of technology in education. It was founded in 1980 and has grown to over 28,000 members. The TCEA mission is to advance teaching and learning through the use of technology. The TCEA Educator Awards ceremony will be held at the Hilton Austin hotel at 5:30 pm on Tuesday, February 4th.
“Mrs. Chachere is very deserving of this honor. I have worked with her for many years and have watched her grow from a successful classroom teacher into a highly creative Executive Director of Technology for the district. Suzanne is an advocate for the use of technology and provides our students and staff with technology support through various initiatives and professional development,” Superintendent Dr. Jessica Johnson proudly reported.
After learning of her selection, Chachere was shocked to be nominated and then picked as one of three top finalists.
“Receiving recognition for doing a job that you love is certainly icing on the cake! Being recognized at the state level by peers in the world of instructional technology is definitely the cherry on top! I am truly honored to be in the company of the wonderful educators who will be recognized at this year’s TCEA award ceremony,” Chachere said.
Chachere is a veteran educator with 35 years of experience – 34 out of the 35 years have been spent in Dayton ISD. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Teaching from Sam Houston State University and received her Masters of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Texas A&M University.
Chachere is credited with many creative programs and district initiatives including Digital Staff Badges, flexible technology Professional Development, and implementing Digital Learning Day for the entire district. Through her department they have taught many strategies to reinforce the classroom concepts including Kahoot, Quizlet, and Pear Deck just to name a few.
“This year, the ‘Digital Badges’ have been a huge success among the Dayton ISD staff members as they can go at their own pace, get recognition, and select what badges they are interested in working on. Mrs. Chachere’s main goal is to grow each teacher’s technology skills so in turn, they will be very comfortable with devices and programs. Through her short-term and long-term comprehensive plans, the ultimate outcome is to prepare all of our students in a technology rich world,” pointed out Superintendent Johnson.
When asked about the progress of Dayton ISD’s technology advancement over the years, Chachere replied, “I am very proud of the tremendous strides we’ve made in instructional technology in Dayton ISD over the years, but that success is absolutely due to the wonderful educators and support staff that we have on our campuses. I think our technology department folks are the cream of the crop and I could not be more proud of the impact our team has had on instruction at all grade levels throughout our district.”
According to Johnson, Dayton ISD is hoping that Mrs. Suzanne Chachere will be given the top honor at the February state conference. According to TCEA, those named as a finalist in each category will receive free TCEA 2020 conference registration (regularly $339) and a $500 cash award. The top winner in each category will receive $1000.
“No matter who is named Technology Administrator of the Year, we believe that Dayton ISD is truly the winner due to having Mrs. Chachere as part of our staff. Suzanne is certainly one of our leaders who year after year, provides a clear vision when it comes to technology integration. We are extremely proud of her for being named one of the three state’s finalist,” stated Johnson.