Beekman recognized for his leading voice in the evolution of ed-tech interoperability and unwavering spirit of collaboration and leadership to help K-12 districts transition to digital
Lake Mary, Florida – 26 May 2016 – 1EdTech Consortium (1EdTech/1EdTech), the world leader in EdTech interoperability and innovation is pleased to announce that Tim Beekman, President & Co-Founder of SAFARI Montage, is the first recipient of the 1EdTech William H. (Bill) Graves Leadership Award. The award is given to Mr. Beekman to recognize his many contributions and tremendous impact on growing the K-12 leadership within the 1EdTech member community.
The award is named after one of the 1EdTech founders and former Board Chair, Dr. William H. (Bill) Graves. Dr. Graves and his work had a profound impact, not just on 1EdTech, but also on many successful organizations that he founded and touched. His leadership “style” featured some very unique attributes, including, working across academia and industry for the common good; encouraging institutional executive leadership in technology strategy; and keeping in view the big picture goal of improving educational outcomes.
The award recognizes extraordinary leadership in the spirit of Dr. Graves’ work. Recipients receive a $10,000 award to direct towards a charity of their choice.
Tim Beekman became involved in the 1EdTech community in 2011 when SAFARI Montage joined 1EdTech as a Contributing Member and has been a member of the 1EdTech Board of Directors since then. Under Tim’s leadership, SAFARI Montage has been one of the top participating suppliers in the technical work of the 1EdTech community, including leadership to create the widely used Thin Common Cartridge, a breakthrough specification to address K-12 publisher and district needs for granular access to learning resources. Mr. Beekman has actively advocated that the unique value of 1EdTech is the ability of districts to take ownership and leadership in the evolution of K-12 interoperability to meet their unique needs.
“When Tim began interacting with the 1EdTech community we had three district members, said Dr. Rob Abel, CEO of 1EdTech. “Today we have over 30 district members, many of whom engaged with 1EdTech due to Tim’s leadership.”
“I am honored to accept this award named after a true pioneer in the fields of technology and academia. I am proud to be a part of 1EdTech, a community of innovative leaders in education and learning technology, and I strongly believe in the value of 1EdTech interoperability standards and their potential to revolutionize K-12 digital learning. I look forward to continuing to collaborate on and advocate for 1EdTech’s interoperability and adoption initiatives,” said Tim Beekman.
Abel concludes, “It is clear that Tim’s contribution has gone above and beyond – and it would be difficult to imagine 1EdTech being where it is today in U.S. K-12 without the leadership of Tim Beekman.”
About 1EdTech Consortium (1EdTech)
1EdTech is a nonprofit organization that advances technology that can affordably scale and improve educational participation and attainment. 1EdTech members are leading suppliers, institutions and government organizations that are enabling the future of education by collaborating on interoperability and adoption initiatives. 1EdTech sponsors the Learning Impact Leadership Institute, a global program focused on recognizing the impact of innovative technology on educational access, affordability, and quality while developing the people and ideas that are going to help shape the future of educational technology.
PR Contact:
Sandra DeCastro
Vice President, Community Programs
sdecastro@imsglobal.org
