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About

Nov 15 2006

Keith Medlin

I have been developing websites since 1996 when I first got on the internet.  One of my favorite sites was one I used to run in college for aspiring “Beat” poets.  That site taught me one thing: People want a place to share their experiences, thoughts, and aspirations.  I immediately felt like the internet had the potential to not only help people connect to the things that they were interested in, but also as a tool for people to improve themselves educationally.

I’ve been involved to that end in some way since 1999 when I began working in online learning at the Michigan Virtual University.  After graduating with a degree in teaching I pursued my masters in Instructional Design. I taught for a year and then went back to work with the Michigan Virtual University in their new initiative the Michigan Virtual High School.

Michigan Virtual High School was a really special project because I was able to get in on the ground floor both professionally and in the industry.  Everything was so new that online learning for K-12 was a lot like the Old West in terms of the anything goes try anything attitude of the people working in it at the time.  I vividly remember MVHS hiring a consultant to do a market analysis for us and that produced a ~500 page document of probably 250 different online learning companies.  In 2004 I revisited that report and only a handful remained!

In February 2004 I moved to Raleigh NC and began working with the Wake County Public School System.  This job has been amazing because the district is truly exciting. We have over 128,000 students and 148 schools which makes us the 22nd or 23rd largest district in the nation.  The challenges that face me in my job now are unique and have no clear cut answers so some of that “old west” has stayed in my career.

I look forward to bringing the lessons about design and online instruction to my current job.  More than that, I look forward to forwarding my knowledge of using technology in education.