November 29, 2007 -- Elizabeth McNamara has been working in schools and colleges all of her life. That experience coupled with her technology expertise made her the ideal choice for the Director of Information Technology position at the North Colonie Central School District.

"I've done everything that has to do with technology at least once—from wearing a hard hat and inspecting electrical wires to visiting elementary classrooms explaining how students can better utilize technology," McNamara said. "I saw this position as an opportunity to weave all of these experiences together."

Although she entered the workforce as a social studies teacher in the Mohonasen Central School District, McNamara's career took a turn as she pursued her doctorate in education, which required a tremendous amount of research and statistical analysis.

Once she completed her doctorate, McNamara accepted positions with Schenectady County Community College and Excelsior College focusing on institutional research and data analysis. Later, positions with the New York State Education Department and research groups began to fold the research and curriculum aspect into her role.

“I didn’t intend to go down that path,” McNamara said.

Nonetheless she has gone down it ever since.

For the past nine years, McNamara served as the director of educational programs at CoreBTS, Inc. At the Clifton Park based company, she worked on projects that brought technology into classrooms, as well as provided research and consulting assistance.

In mid-September, McNamara joined the district's technology staff, which includes Sarah Garrand, Marian Schafer, Gary Cimorelli, Jerry Hennessey, Mike Roach, Cheryl Daigle, Julie Scriven, Tom Mein and Kathy Holden, many of whom have served the district for more than ten years.

"I found a great technology staff here," said McNamara. "They are doing an excellent job. Systems are up and running and we have a good, dependable system."

Since McNamara started at North Colonie, she has been meeting with the building principals, supervisors and directors to identify the specific needs of each building and department as a means to enhance technology across the district.

While listening to their concerns, McNamara noticed a common theme—ensuring that the right resources are available for all students and staff at all times, whether it be accessibility to computers, resources to support teaching, providing new computers, better whiteboards or projectors.

Armed with knowledge about the technology needs across the district, McNamara and her team will now begin figuring out how all of these needs fit together and what must be done to position North Colonie for current and future needs.