The pandemic has intensified the discussion of and the need to address issues brought about by the digital divide. In this session, we have a conversation with Dylan Porter, alumni of our graduate program in Educational Technology, about the work he is doing for a non-profit that focuses on the digital divide in K-12 education. Dylan discusses the work he is doing to support teachers, students, and parents. We discuss challenges and opportunities presented by K-12 schools moving to virtual teaching during the pandemic.

Bio. Dylan Porter is a former high school dropout turned college graduate. His early struggles with education are what led him into teaching, with the goal of helping students who may be experiencing similar troubles in school. Dylan graduated Summa Cum Laude with Honors from Northeastern Illinois University with a degree in Elementary Education. As a middle school teacher in Chicago Public Schools, Mr. Porter helped pioneer a student-centered 1:1 Chromebook program. This early work and interest in classroom technology led Dylan to the Educational Technology program at Cal State Fullerton, where he further enhanced his expertise with educational technology. After graduating from the program as an Edwin Carr Fellow in 2019, Dylan moved out of the classroom and began working with the California Emerging Technology Fund’s School2Home program which specializes in closing the digital divide with California.

You can find Dylan online at Twitter at @dylanporter206