A Conference in a Million

When I took my current position at Vermont Academy, one of the unintended consequences was inheriting a role of involvement with a conference called edAccess. edAccess (originally called just Access) stands for Administrative and Campus Computing Environments at Small Schools. The conference is unlike any I have ever attended elsewhere and one I would heartily recommend to any small college or secondary school, esepcially those considering Tablet PCs. (Full disclosure: my involvement is as a member of the steering committee the only perks of which are a really fabulous dinner the night before the conference and the really fabulous discussion that takes place at those dinners.)

edAccess is not focused on Tablet PCs, but they have been a topic of discussion there for the last two years. Discussion is really what edAccess is all about and the topics covered are always incredibly varied. It is not a place where participation is limited to warming a seat and hearing the "experts" pontificate. It is a place where it is recognized that those of us who are in the trenches are the experts and we share our knowledge with each other in a mutually beneficial give-and-take. Most of the conference consists of small forum discussions around topics of common interest. I can't even tell you what those will be this year, as the topics are selected by the attendees at the conference. I would love to see a number of folks who are involved in Tablet PC programs or interested in them at the conference so that we could share our experiences and help each other to make these programs the best they can be.

The conference this year is June 22-24 at the beautiful campus of Groton School in Groton, MA. More information is available at the web site, http://www.edaccess.org. It is a highlight of my year and I trust would be one for any of you who can make it, too. I hope to see you there.