What Educators and IT Leaders Can Expect at EDUCAUSE 2013

The brightest minds in higher education IT will converge on the Anaheim Convention Center for EDUCAUSE 2013, beginning October 15.

With more than 600 speakers and more than 250 exhibitors, thousands of attendees will find themselves surrounded by the most innovative leaders in education technology. The four-day event spans 18 subject matters and six IT organizational domains, including teaching and learning.

All higher education IT professionals in attendance will have prime opportunities to network and participate in discussion groups to improve and establish relationships in the IT community.

Learning Sessions

Sessions will focus on online content accessibility, hybrid public–private cloud services, IT policy, and women in IT leadership roles, to name a few. A session detailing the 4Cs (communication, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking) will implement the growing bring-your-own-device (BYOD) trend.

A few companies are expected to use EDUCAUSE 2013 to announce recent developments. On Thursday, LoudCloud CEO Manoj Kutty will announce the platform’s advancements during a panel session. Representatives from Code42 will also discuss their new CrashPlan enterprise endpoint backup service during the conference.

General Session Speakers

With prominent mentions in U.S. News & World Report, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Thinkers50 and everything in between, this year’s general-session speakers plan to tap their knowledge and experience in the information technology realm to engage audiences:

• Sir Ken Robinson (@SirKenRobinson) – Robinson is an international adviser on education, business, government, nonprofits and the arts. His 2006 TED talk Do Schools Kill Creativity? is the most-viewed talk in TED history.
• Jane McGonigal (@avantgame) – McGonigal is a game designer, an author and the founder of Gameful, which she calls “a secret headquarters for world-changing game developers.” McGonigal has created games in more than 30 countries while working with big names like Nike, Disney and McDonalds.
• Paul LeBlanc (@snhuprez) – LeBlanc is an educationalist, an author and the president of Southern New Hampshire University. Under his leadership, SNHU has become the largest provider of online higher education in New England.

EDUCAUSE Exhibit Hall

Ninety-five percent of EDUCAUSE 2012 attendees found the exhibit hall valuable in making IT purchasing decisions. Hoping to repeat that success, this year’s exhibitors include software company Adobe, telecommunications giants AT&T and Sprint, as well as the higher education institutions of San Jose State University and California State University. Numerous other professional services, publications and technology firms will also have spots in the sold out space.

An exhibit-hall reception will take place on Wednesday afternoon, providing attendees with an exclusive networking opportunity.

Attending EDUCUASE 2013 Virtually

EDUCAUSE 2013 will feature a virtual conference, with webcasts, simulated centers, live streams and exclusive online sessions for those unable to physically attend the conference. The Early-Bird Registration Deadline for the virtual conference is October 8. Select sessions are available for streaming but will not be recorded for later use.

Follow the event hashtag #EDU2013 and @EdTech_HigherEd for more updates and information on EDUCAUSE 2013.