The Cherokee County School District has earned national recognition for its effective use of educational technology!

The District has been selected by the District Administration educational leadership organization as the Districts of Distinction award winner in the Educational Technology category.  The announcement and a feature on CCSD’s award-winning program is in the organization’s June magazine, now available online at https://bit.ly/CCSDdod20  CCSD and the winners for eight other categories will be recognized formally at the organization’s annual 2021 Future of Education Technology Conference in January in Florida.

CCSD won the honor for its Minecraft: Education Edition initiative, which began during the 2017-18 school year when the District was selected by Microsoft to pilot the school-version of the popular video game.  

“We know the program has been a game-changer for our classrooms, so it’s very rewarding to see it earn national recognition,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Brian V. Hightower said.  “Kudos to our incredibly dedicated technology staff, led by Chief Information Officer Bobby Blount, for continuing to keep CCSD at the forefront.  Bobby and his team stay ahead of trends, and thoughtfully implement those that will best benefit our students and help our teachers and staff.  Congratulations and thank you for all you do!” 

Through Minecraft: Education Edition, students master academic lessons while building in the virtual world of farms and castles that they already know and love.  Teachers had the opportunity to volunteer for the CCSD pilot, through which they received one-on-one training with Microsoft staff.  Word quickly spread among teachers about the quality of the program and training and the ease of use in the classroom, which helped grow the initiative districtwide. 

The District Administration article quotes CCSD leaders including CIO Blount: “We went to great lengths to make sure our stakeholders knew that Microsoft had turned up the volume on the product by offering a standards-based education resource.  Even though it isn’t playtime, we want learning to be fun.” 
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