Have you been looking for an easy way to get involved in workforce development and education here in Rhode Island without getting in over your head? We have a way for you to get involved and make a difference without making a huge commitment. The program is called “Sponsor a Teacher.” By providing scholarships of under $400.00 for local teachers to attend this year’s Rhode Island Sakai Conference, you are not only supporting workforce development and education in Rhode Island, but also investing in a cost effective tool that delivers state of the art technology to Rhode Island schools.

On March 31st and April 1st, the second Rhode Island Sakai Conference, will be held at the Providence Biltmore. Hosted by RINET, Rhode Island’s non-profit K-12 technology partnership, the conference will bring together students, school administrators, educators and technologists who are committed to using and enhancing safe and innovative online teaching tools that engage students and improve the quality of their education. Reaching tens of thousands of RI students, RI teachers use Sakai to prepare our children to work in today‘s online world.

RIEPS, Rhode Island’s implementation of Sakai, is the leading K-12 implementation of Sakai in the United States. Its integrated online tools include electronic portfolios, chat, forums, shared workspaces and calendars, blogs and wikis that provide students with a rich collaboration environment. RI school districts use RIEPS to support professional development, curriculum development, and provide hybrid courses. A recently awarded National Science Foundation grant to improve science education in RI will be facilitated through RIEPS. Finally, the recent announcement that URI has adopted Sakai for it’s learning management system speaks to the value of Sakai and sets the stage for a new K-20 collaboration.

In the current economic climate school districts will find it difficult to support teacher attendance at this valuable event whether they are sharing their work with others or attending to learn more. If you are interested in sponsoring a teacher, please contact us at events@ri.net or call Bryan Tonet at 401-667-5822. Other levels of sponsorship are available upon request. Visit the RINET web site to learn more about RIEPS and the 2009 Conference.

Sponsor a Teacher for the 2009 RI Sakai Conference

   Sponsor Level                 Benefits              Donation
Teacher Scholarship    Recognition in Program       $375