NEWS
For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
Shawn Ramsey
Crossroads Public Relations
919-782-3262 (office)
919-621-0737 (mobile)
sramsey@crossroadspr.com
Announcing the establishment of the North Carolina Advanced Learning Technologies Association (NCALTA)
North Carolina Educators, scientists and business executives announce the establishment of a professional organization dedicated to the creation of advanced learning technologies for workforce development.
Serious Games Summit Washington. D.C. (October 31, 2006)
In a world where advanced knowledge is widespread and low-cost labor is readily available, U.S. advantages in the marketplace and in science and technology have begun to erode. A comprehensive and coordinated effort is urgently needed to bolster U.S. competitiveness and pre-eminence in these areas through the use of advanced learning technologies for workforce development.
North Carolina educators, scientists and business executives have joined together to provide thought leadership and collaboration in this area through the formation of a new 501(c)(6) organization known as the North Carolina Association for Advanced Learning Technologies (NCALTA). NCALTA will provide a vital network and bridge between educators, legislators and technology developers regarding the use and creation of Advanced Learning Technologies.
NCALTA aims to advance research and multidisciplinary collaboration on the innovative paradigms, architectures and implementations of learning systems for adaptive learning related to STEM education (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) mobile learning, life-long-learning, just-in-time and on-demand learning. NCALTA is committed to the development of new technologies to empower learners of all types and ages.
NCALTA topics of interest include but are not limited to:
- Adaptivity in Learning Systems
- Advanced Uses of Multimedia and Hypermedia
- Architecture of Context Aware Learning Technology Systems
- Artificial Intelligence Tools for Contextual Learning
- Augmented Reality
- Building Learning Communities
- Concretizing Technologies (e.g. Robotics) in Learning
- Educational Modeling Languages / Learning Design
- Evolution in Teacher Roles through Technology
- Information Retrieval and Visualization Methods for Learning
- Instructional Design Theories and Learning Science
- IDEAL Tech. Interactive Digital Environments for Advanced Learning
- Media for Learning in Multicultural Settings
- Pedagogical and Organizational Frameworks
- Simulation Learning
- Serious Game Development
- Technologies for advanced Teacher Training
- Virtual Reality
“North Carolina has a rare blend of leading learning institutions, game development studios, new media companies, and companies dedicated to creating learning programs. NCALTA will leverage these resources to establish North Carolina as the world’s foremost hub for creating Advanced Learning Technologies, a burgeoning source of high-paying jobs and transformational learning tools – Jerry Heneghan, President and Co-Founder of NCALTA.”
NCALTA will support attempts to integrate technology into education as well as provide resources and tools for carrying out professional growth and development among developers, educators and researchers. To learn more about the association and to join, visit our website at www.NCALTA.org or email “info1@NCALTA.org”
About The Serious Games Summit
The Serious Games Summit D.C. gives professionals from the public and private sectors, policymakers, contractors, military personnel, government administrators, educators and experts in the game development arena an opportunity to meet and learn from successful serious games applications, as well as forge links between the traditional videogame industry and program managers for homeland security, state and local governments, military agencies, and educational institutions.
The Serious Games Summit D.C. is produced by the CMP Game Group. A core provider of essential information to the professional game industry, the CMP Game Group offers market-defining content, and drives community through the Game Developers Conference, GDC London, the London Games Summit, the Serious Games Summit DC, GDC Mobile, Game Developer magazine, Gamasutra.com, the Independent Games Festival, the Game Developers Choice Awards, and GDCTV. A complete list of CMP Game Group events, including sponsorship opportunities, is available here. For more information, please visit www.seriousgamessummit.com.
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501(c)(6)
We invite you to join the North Carolina Advanced Learning Technologies Association (NCALTA), a 501(c)(6) organization. Our mission is to provide long-term economic and societal benefits to North Carolina through fostering the statewide growth of research, development and education in the creation of Advanced Learning Technologies for workforce development.
North Carolina has a rare blend of leading learning institutions, game development studios, new media companies, and companies dedicated to creating learning programs. NCALTA will leverage these resources to establish North Carolina as the world’s foremost hub for creating Advanced Learning Technologies, a burgeoning source of high-paying jobs and transformational learning tools.
One of the primary goals of NCALTA is to return tangible benefits to its members. The association will seek assistance in the form of state and federal funding, tax incentives, public awareness, and other means to foster the growth of the industry and provide direct benefits to the educational system and workforce in North Carolina.
Our short term objective is to create a web site that facilitates networking among technology developers, students, teachers, learners, and planners through a system supporting collaboration and resource sharing. Additionally, we will hold regular meetings to promote professional growth and development.
Our long term objective is the establishment of an IDEAL Tech Center (Interactive Digital Environments for Advanced Learning). The IDEAL Tech Center will accelerate economic development in North Carolina by serving as an incubator lab for projects sponsored by members of the business community. Businesses will benefit by having access to qualified software developers coming from formal programs at local universities and community colleges who augment their training at the IDEAL Tech Center. Trainees will be prepared for the high-paying, high-tech jobs this industry is generating as they advance their skills while working on real-world applications at the incubator lab within a professional, team-based production environment, using the state of the art tools and systems available at the IDEAL Tech Center.
The founding members of NCALTA are:
Jerry Heneghan, CEO, Virtual Heroes Inc.
Richard Kristof, CEO, American Research Institute, Inc.
Darion Rapoza PhD, President, Entertainment Science
Timothy Lenoir, PhD, Duke University
Witold Sieradzan, Wake Technical Community College
To learn more about the association and to join, visit our website at www.NCALTA.org or email “info@NCALTA.org”