After having to pivot to virtual conferences for 2020 – 2023 the 2024 Student Technology Conference finally returned in person from June 24–28 at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Nestled among the redwoods and ocean views of California’s central coast we welcomed 40 attendees! We had students and professionals from across the country for a week of sharing, learning, and networking. From great presentations to social excursions, STC 2024 celebrated collaboration and community. STC 2024 marked the 30th anniversary of the conference with plenty of cake and great conversations.
Attendees
We had participants from over 20 institutions across North America.
Bridgewater State University
Cal State University Channel Islands
Colgate University
Elon University
Emory University
Furman University
Indiana University
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina State University
Saint Mary’s College
Santa Clara University
Stanford University
University of California Santa Cruz
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Texas
University of Pennsylvania
University of Puget Sound
Western University – London, Ontario
Yale Law School
Yale University
Presentations
We had great presentations from our ResNet Community
| AI for All: Equipping Faculty and Staff with AI Skills | Tracey Bridges – NC A&T |
| DIY 3D Printing and how it can benefit your students! | Benjamin Kasavan – Emory University |
| Elevate Your Experience with Enhanced Knowledge Base & Communication Tools | Michelle Woods – Elon University |
| Empowering Student Staff to Provide Seamless Service | Michelle Woods – Elon University |
| Empowerment Through Engagement – From a ResNet Student Lead | Sumra Khan – UCSC |
| Generative AI Prompts to Help Students Study | Tracey Bridges – North Carolina A&T |
| Leading a Print Management System Change | Benjamin Kasavan – Emory University |
| Level Up – Advancing your Career | Marian Holiday-White – North Carolina Central University |
| Leveraging Student Leadership | Sarah Luckart – Yale University |
| Meaningful Student Employment | Julie Prouty – Elon University |
| Media Center Checkout: Laptops, Lies and Late Fines | Julie Prouty – Elon University |
| Security Upskilling of IT Staff | Carlos Miranda and Chris Murphy – Cal. State University Channel Islands |
| TechSource: Self-Service Resources for Student Technology Needs | Beth McCullough – Stanford University |
| The Student Service Desk: A Different Approach | Imraan Khan – North Carolina State University |
Keynote Speaker
We were happy to have Rick Graziani as the Keynote Speaker for the 30th anniversary Student Technology Conference!
Rick Graziani has been teaching and working in the computer networking industry since the 1980s.
He is a full time CS/CIS professor at Cabrillo College and an adjunct CSE professor/lecturer at UC Santa Cruz.
Rick also works for Cisco Systems on their Curriculum Engineering team as part of the Cisco Networking Academy. He has written several books for Cisco Press, including Fundamentals of IPv6, and is a technical presenter for the Cisco Networking Academy Conferences.
Prior to teaching, he worked in the information technology field for SCO, Tandem Computers, Lockheed Martin and served in the U.S. Coast Guard. When he is not working, he is most likely surfing at one of his favorite Santa Cruz surf breaks.
Japleen Dang, Daisy Lopez, Dena Mcmillan, Rick Graziani, Sumra Khan, and Simran Gaheer
Senti-Merriman Award
The ResNet Steering Committee presented the 2024 Senti-Merriman award to Sumra Khan and Simran Gaheer. Here is what their nominator, Vanesa Gaspar, had to share about them.
Sumra is our current student lead technician. Sumra has worked with us for 2 years now but you would guess that it was double that based on her leadership and people skills. I am so happy that she has stayed with us. She was super instrumental in helping to lay the groundwork for what would become this year’s conference and she is very deserving of this award. Sumra is presenting “Empowerment Through Engagement – From a ResNet Student Lead” so you can see first hand how awesome she is.
Simran has been with ResNet for 2 years. She took up the conference organizing mantle from Sumra and I am eternally grateful for all her work in making this conference a reality for you all. Simran’s time at ResNet is coming to an end and I while I will miss her I am also grateful to her as she’s truly made me a better supervisor. This conference is her last week with our team as she has earned a spot in our competitive UCDC program where she will move to Washington DC and trade in her view of the redwoods for an internship at our nation’s capital.
Simran, Sumra and the rest of the ResNet team are the reason why I do what I do every day and I am thankful that we were able to recognize them for all their hard work and dedication. Please join me in a congratulating our hard working students.
Our Team
Center: Sarah Do
Bottom – left to right: Vanesa Gaspar (Host Committee), Julie Prouty, Marian D. Holiday-White, Benjamin Kasavan, Tracy Landrith, Roy Zumwalt (Program Committee), Sarah Luckart
This conference would not have been possible without the work of all of our amazing volunteers!
The Host Committee, boots on the ground team, was lead by Naomi Gunther – UCSC ResNet Manager and Host Committee Advisor. Vanesa Gaspar – UCSC ResNet Supervisor and Simran Gaheer – UCSC ResNet Student Technician were Host Committee Co-Chairs. Host Committee team included: Dena Mcmillan, Daisy Lopez, Japleen Dang, Simran Gaheer, Matt Macarewich, Wyatt Hawes, and Sophie Hernandez.
All logos for STC 2024 were designed and donated by Sarah Do – UCSC Desktop Support Technician. You can see more of Sarah’s work at https://www.sarahdoart.com/
The 2023 – 2024 Board of Directors included Julie Prouty, Marian D. Holiday-White, Benjamin Kasavan, Tracy Landrith, Sarah Luckart, and KD Grainger-Peixoto.
A final thank you to Roy Zumwalt and Kathy Hausmann for their participation in our program committee. Their sage council helped to finally make STC @ UCSC possible.
Browse more photos in our google album.