| | APRIL - 20228Reshaping the Future of the Education Industry By Brian Gardner, The CIO, Northampton Community CollegeBrian Gardner is the CIO of Northampton Community College (NCC). With decades-worth experience in working with several leading educational institutions, he has earned a reputation in the industry as an exceptional strategist, IT leader, and problem solver. Gardner began his professional career at a student-run college help desk. Specializing in the higher education Information Technology (IT) side of the business, he soon broad need his span of experience from helpdesk assistance to faculty support, and finally extended his footprint into classroom technology.In 2013, Gardner joined the Columbia Business School as an Executive Director of Technology Services and Support, where he caught a distinct view on Educational Technology (EdTech), administrative technology, and the collective work processes in educational institutions. Learning from these experiences, Gardner now serves as a strategic leader in planning, developing, implementing, and maintaining technology and information systems that support Northampton Community College's academic and administrative goals. He is also responsible for leading innovative cross-campus technology campaigns, developing and managing a five-year technology budget, and managing the IT staff.In the light of your experience, what are some of the recent trends in the EdTech space? Over the past decade, EdTech has had a significant shift from being a "value add" to an integral part of the academic experience. More importantly, it is now deemed an inevitable aspect of the education industry equipped to make an impact on their operations at scale. One excellent example of EdTech's application is the use of VR technologies in automotive classes and chemistry labs. At Northampton Community College, we were able to conduct a class, where students from London, New York, and Hong Kong were co-taught seamlessly by leveraging these latest technologies. Brian GardnerIN MY OPINION
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