Presidential Libraries

The George H.W. Bush Presidential Library
College Station, TX

 According to the National Archives Website:

"Presidential Libraries are archives and museums, bringing together the documents and artifacts of a President and his administration and presenting them to the public for study and discussion without regard for political considerations or affiliations. Presidential Libraries and Museums, like their holdings, belong to the American people."So why are there only 14 Presidential Libraries when we have 44 former presidents?    The formal Presidential Library Act was not passed until 1955, which established a system for presidents to donate their historical documents so they are available to the general public.

Have you ever been to a Presidential Library?  I never had.  In fact, I didn't even know what a Presidential Library was.  There are currently 14 Presidential Libraries. 

This "library" was an eye-opening experience for me.  I kept wondering, "Where are books?"  While there were some books, this Presidential Library was more about the artifacts that made up President Bush's presidency.   My biggest takeaway from this museum?  I never knew that he fought in a war.  I never knew that he almost died serving our country.  Regardless if you are Democrat or Republican, I think we can all agree that those in our military that work tirelessly to defend our country are heroes.  I learned a great deal about his life before, during and after his presidency.  I can only encourage everyone to visit any presidential library any change you get.  History may not be your thing, but history tends to repeat itself...and for that reason alone, please make a point to visit.  There is so much of our history that we all hope NEVER repeats....

ISTE 2017

 

 

So this was not my first ISTE.  I thought I knew what to expect.  Attending ISTE is like drinking technology from a firehose...there is JUST. SO. MUCH.  I went about 8 years ago and it was crazy then, but nothing compared to this year.  Even just understanding the different sessions and deciding what to attend took literally hours.  In the "old days" you could attend any BYOD workshop that was being offered.  That is no longer the case.  Now when you register you can only choose one session per day.  I was honestly not crazy about that....and if you are late for your session, they will give your seat away.  Anyone that knows me knows I can't stand to be late for anything.  My whole life I have been like a little old retired person who gets to everything some 30 minutes before, so I had no fear that I would be late.  But I highly underestimated finding the right spot within this massive venue.  No, I wasn't late, but I remember one session that the room number actually had a typo in the app and no one could tell me exactly where to go.  I found myself doing the running dash just making the sessions that was outside the venue...literally.

So there are so many ways you can learn at ISTE.  Here is a quick review:

Poster sessions
That's where you can walk up to presenters who talk about a particular program they run.

Listen & Learn  
Sit down & listen.  There is usually a Q & A at the end, but with tons of people attending, it's harder to get a question answered.

Participate & Share
These can include poster sessions, but also interactive lectures.

Explore & Create
These can be playgrounds, which give you a chance to interact with new technologies.

Explore & Create
These workshops let you examine & interact with new technologies.

Do you feel like I've just put the firehose on you?