Frank Pileiro’s career in educational technology began in the classroom.
“I started as a classroom teacher helping with technology integration and eventually managed our district’s website and email server,” says Pileiro, who is retiring from his former position as technology and Data Supervisor for the Board of Education. from Linwood in New Jersey.
After becoming increasingly immersed in the technological side of teaching, Pileiro returned to school and received his Master’s Degree in Instructional technology from Stockton University. Ultimately, he rose through the ranks and became a recognized leader in educational technology. Pileiro was recently honored with the Innovative edtech Leader Award, one of the tech & Learning awards innovative leadership awards, during a regional summit live in New Jersey.
Pileiro discusses how the roles of edtech leaders have evolved over time, how districts could better recruit new edtech leadership talent, and recent trends in technology that don’t involve the letters “a” and “i” in close proximity. .
<h2 id="the-evolving-role-of-edtech-directors-xa0″>The evolving role of educational technology directors
Being an educational technology director today is a very different position than in the past, and there have been tremendous changes, especially in recent years. “There is a lot more technology and online programming in the classroom,” Pileiro says. “More roles need to be played than in the past. “You are not just a technology person, but you need to have knowledge of cybersecurity, data privacy, technology integration, as well as the social skills of empathy and patience.”
But that is not all that is needed to successfully face an increasingly complex situation. “You also need to create a set of resources and a network of people you can rely on for help,” Pileiro says. “It’s a very dynamic role.”
<h2 id="recruiting-advice-for-edtech-leadership-xa0″>Hiring Tips for Educational technology Leadership
If a district is looking to fill a position similar to yours, Pileiro recommends attracting talent from the education sector before looking to industry.
“The first place I would look would be other school districts,” he says. “Many have great young talents, as well as talents starting their careers. I strongly believe it would be beneficial to have someone with experience working in a school district.”
<h2 id="trends-beyond-ai-xa0″>Trends beyond ai
For the past year, education headlines have been dominated by two letters: ai. Obviously, as important as the rise of generative ai has been, it is not the only new development in educational technology.
“I see that the move to the cloud is very big, both in the classroom and in the company,” he says.
Another trend is data driving not only decisions but also helping to identify network and cybersecurity issues. “Data literacy is extremely important,” he adds.
<h2 id="ongoing-challenges-in-edtech-xa0″>Current challenges in edtech
Throughout his career in educational technology leadership, Pileiro’s biggest challenges have been trying to balance competing priorities and managing a variety of roles and responsibilities. “To overcome these obstacles I tried to be as organized as possible, set controls and expectations, as well as continually update my knowledge to be as current as possible,” he says.
Those working in the field today face a similar set of competing priorities, as well as new complications.
“An ever-present challenge is examining and selecting the right solutions for your district. Whether it is infrastructure or educational technology, it is important to find the right solution,” says Pileiro. “As leaders in school technology, we must continually learn and make wise decisions because we have a responsibility to spend our stakeholders’ money wisely.”
