About Me

My name is Jeffery Heil and I am from, well, I'm not exactly sure. I was born in Las Vegas, NV and lived there until I was two years old. Then I moved to  Phoenix, AZ and lived there until first grade–then I moved back and forth from Seattle, WA (actually, Marysville, but no one outside of the NW knows the city) to Phoenix, AZ. I attended quite a few elementary schools in Phoenix and Marysville and then attended two high schools twice. I started high school in Marysville, moved to Phoenix, moved back to Marysville, then moved back to Phoenix to finish high school. I have attended almost every college in San Diego.  I received a BA in Philosophy from UCSD, my teaching credential from National University (awesome synchronized swimming team!), and my MA from SDSU in Liberal Arts & Sciences. I also dropped out of a doctoral program at Pepperdine University. . .I have always loved school and everything about it. As a result, I have experienced a lot of success in school.  It honestly took a few years into my teaching career to discover just how fortunate I was to have my learning style and intellectual strengths align with the current model of education.  This isn't true for everyone.  It's not that I didn't know there were some people who didn't like school, but I always assumed it must have been something in them that prevented school from being the wonderland it was for me.  I have since dramatically changed my view about the institution of education and realize that there is a lot that we can change in education to make schools more inviting for a larger number of people.  I have recently been obsessed with ways in which we can make school a place where everyone can be successful. . .I see technology as one tool that can help us accomplish this goal.

My experiences with technology are varied. I had little or no experience with computers until I began college, at the ripe-old age of 28. I remember that my parents used a $3000 interest-free loan from my dad's employer to purchase a Mac IIvx for me.I have been a Mac fanboy ever since (if only I had bought stock). Now, I am fairly proficient in many different programs from basic word processing to advanced video editing. I have been teaching educational technology for the last 8+ years and I love to show people how to integrate technology into their classrooms and their lives! I am currently (in my day job) a technology resource teacher for the San Diego County Office of Education's Juvenile Court and Community Schools (JCCS), where I assist teachers in their use of technology to support student learning. Although my platform of choice is Mac, my district is moving toward almost exclusively PCs, so I have been forced to go to the DarkSide during the day, but I guess it has made me more of a well-rounded computer geek. . .although the iPad is really looking like an awesome and fairly inexpensive way to revolutionize the use of technology in education!

The mission statement of the CSUSM College of Education (since changed to the School of Education) was a factor in my decision to apply to be a distinguished teacher in residence (DTiR). As a San Diego County Office of Education employee, working for the Juvenile Court and Community Schools, I have been very committed to ensure educational equity for all students. The academic achievement gap, and its predictability by color, isn't something that will go away with good intentions, but through hard work and dedication from everyone involved in the education of our students. I see CSUSM as an institution dedicated to producing educators who can affect positive change as we transform public education! Technology can also be a great medium for social change, which I hope to model for you this summer!