The Dunham School hosted a Louisiana Google Teacher Training Bootcamp, Tuesday, November 5, in the Brown Holt Chapel Arts Center on the Dunham campus.

Approximately 80 teachers attended the professional development opportunity, representing 15 schools, public and private, from as far as Shreveport and Alexandria and as close as the greater Baton Rouge area.

During the Bootcamp, led by Dunham Director of Innovation & Technology Nikole Blanchard, who is a certified Google Trainer and Innovator, teachers learned how to use the Google Suite for Education in the classroom. Rotating through nine stations, teachers interacted with Dunham faculty members, who are also Certified Google Educators, while networking with other educators from all over the state.

Dunham has been recognized as a technology leader in the state and nationally as one of the 10 most innovative school in the country. The school currently has 18 Certified Google Educators.

“Our best take away from the event was the ability for our school to work with educators from around the state. Our teachers networked with teachers from other schools, making connections that will hopefully continue well past this training,” Blanchard said.

Dunham Kindergarten teacher Christi Pafford, also a Certified Google Educator enjoyed the experience.  “Overall, the majority of people seemed very happy. They enjoyed learning and playing around with different apps. I hope we can continue this in the future,” said Pafford, who plans to work on her Google 2 certification.  

“This event brought educators from around Louisiana together to focus on how to use Google Suite for Education, which will ultimately make a positive impact on learning outcomes. It is so important for teachers to learn how to use technology in meaningful ways in education.” Blanchard said.