SUECON – History and Goals

At first, it was called “Southern Utah Education Conference,” but to better describe our vision, the name has been changed slightly to “Southern Utah Educators Conference.”

In 2010, the concept of SUECON was born. Charlie Roberts, technology director for Washington County School District, wanted to provide a conference for teachers that would be convenient and help teachers all over Southern Utah get excited about technology. Teachers and school librarians from all over the state of Utah would be invited to increase their understanding of changes in technology and how to best use it in the classroom. Charlie recruited Cody Plumhof to be the President and facilitator of operations and they assembled a team/commitee and a pool of talent from the area to get this vision in motion with a full year of intense planning.

Under the co-direction of Charlie Roberts and Cody Plumhof, the first conference was held in St. George on October 13-14, 2011. This was sponsored by the Washington County School District (WCSD), the Utah Coalition for Educational Technology (UCET), and the Utah Educational Library Media Association (UELMA). Besides local teachers, administrators, and librarians, the conference drew presenters and attendees from all over the state with over five hundred people in attendance. The conference was so well received that it was decided continue to be offered every year in Southern Utah instead of the initial thought of being every two years.

Under the leadership of Cody Plumhof, the second conference was held again at Desert Hills High School on October 26-27, 2011 with over 800 teachers registered and anxious to greet the many presenters and vendors. Again the sessions were well attended and a huge success was the result. In addition to our seasoned presenters, we look forward to having even more teachers helping teachers by sharing what is truly making a difference in the classroom.

The third conference will be held November 1-2, 2013 at the same venue with even greater numbers expected and more great ideas shared.