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Hello, my name is Darren Smith and welcome to your online class. One of the most valuable
things I learned in my Leading Edge Certification course was the importance of building community
as a group of online learners. Part of building community is getting to know one another,
so I created this video to introduce myself, to let you know about my professional background
and for you to learn a little bit about me.
After spending my childhood and teenage years growing up in Orange County, I graduated from
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a Bachelors of Architecture degree. Prior to joining the
field of public education, I worked as an architect for 7 years in California, New Mexico,
Japan and Australia where I was involved with both residential and commercial design.
As a lifelong learner, I returned to college at the University of California, San Diego
to earn a California teaching credential and later to National University where I acquired
a Masters degree in Educational Technology. As a classroom teacher for 14 years at Emerald
Middle School in the Cajon Valley Union School District, I taught all content subjects, developed
the district’s first Digital Art elective course, co-directed the Emerald eConnection
Technology Project and served as the AVID Site Coordinator.
Currently, I work as an AVID Regional Coordinator for the San Diego County Office of Education.
As part of the AVID Region 9 team, I support schools and districts in their efforts to
fulfill AVID’s mission of closing the achievement gap by preparing all students for college
readiness and success in a global society.
Beyond my county office work, I am blessed with an enriched family life. My wife of 12
years, Ruth, and I spend most of our time raising our two wonderful children, Lauren
(10) and Colin (8). We are fortunate that we grew up in southern California and have
both family and childhood friends that provide regular opportunities to “pack up the car”
and spend time together.
Having lived in the south bay for the past 12 years, I have taken an active part in my
local community by volunteering as a coach and supporting my children’s neighborhood
school. I try to take advantage of all that San Diego has to offer and on weekends our
family can be found at the beach in Coronado, hiking local mountains, bicycling the coast
and taking in local attractions.
I am looking forward to the upcoming weeks of learning together where we will engage
in collaborative, lively discussions and produce some amazing projects utilizing the latest
Web 2.0 tools. This course is housed in a Learning Management System called Haiku. So
for this first week, take some time and get to know the Haiku online learning environment.
Become familiar with the navigation column on the left and look for the Haiku Help module
to access video tutorials about Haiku. So, let's get started on this online learning
adventure!