Tyler Shelden

Tyler Shelden is the curriculum and STEAM coordinator at the American School of Asuncion in Paraguay where he focuses his work on integrated STEAM education, transdisciplinary units, K-8 maker experiences, professional development, curriculum alignment, and directing the school’s office of teaching and learning. He has presented at conferences, co-edited published curriculum, and maintains an educational website. He has worked internationally for a decade and a half in Asia, Africa, and South America in local districts, embassy schools, and private schools in a variety of roles, predominantly focusing on math instruction, STEM integration, and school leadership. “Our world needs builders, coders, and makers like you. A challenge accepted today is a future achieved tomorrow.” Tyler enjoys hiking, games and traveling.

Matt Dolmont

Matt Dolmont is the Technology and Innovation Coordinator for Asociación Escuelas Lincoln in Argentina. His role involves supporting interdisciplinary units as a learning coach, integrating technology into units of inquiry, and teaching computer science and design courses for middle and high school students. He has organized and presented at professional conferences for teachers, students, and local communities in Canada, Egypt, Qatar, Cambodia and Argentina. Matt's appetite for learning and sharing keeps him involved in as many STEAM projects as he can manage, dabbling in everything from programming and robotics to digital design, 3D modelling, game development and video production. It's important to take time to disconnect, so alongside those passions you can find him hiking to the top of something tall, enjoying the wind and the sea, or co-creating fantastic stories with friends in tabletop roleplaying games.

Ed Harkins

Ed has been a Middle School technology teacher for more than 25 years in the International School Nido de Aguilas, where he began his teaching career in 1987. Nido’s computer labs were recently remodeled into Maker Labs, which opened up many new curricular possibilities. This year Ed is teaching Design Technology, Robotics and Coding, but he hopes to soon incorporate a class called Physical Computing, which would require students to use skills from all the aforementioned electives in the completion of their projects. Ed lives in Santiago with his wife. They have two children, a daughter who lives in Santiago, and a son who calls San Francisco his home. Ed enjoys watching Daniel Shiffman’s Coding Train, running and drinking coffee.

Gary Johnston

Gary is a 20 year educator who has worked in International Schools in Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea and now Peru. While in Asia, he was a frequent presenter at regional conferences such as the Vietnam Tech Conference, 21st Century Learning, Learning 2.0 and the Google Apps events.

Now in South America, Gary serves as an innovation coach and design teacher at Colegio Franklin Delano Roosevelt International School. He also serves as a coach for school site mentors in the South American AMISA conference and regional liaison for the 'World Virtual Schools Project' supported by the US state department.

Father of a 6th grade daughter married to a wonderful wife who is also a teacher at the school.

Hansa Narang

I'm a software engineer-turned-design teacher and tech integrator at the International School Of Curitiba in Brazil. I teach animation and game design using Scratch programming to middle schoolers and website design and computer programming to high schoolers. I have also taught robotics, design thinking, rapid prototyping, woodworking, and Maker-ed in the past.

Technology is still a male-dominated field, and I aspire to change that by creating a gender-neutral classroom where everyone feels welcome to learn, make mistakes and ask questions.

I live in one of Brazil's most beautiful cities, known for its giant rodents called capybaras and stunning, whimsical trees named Araucarias. In my free time, I like to paint and go on long walks with my husband, who also works at the school.

Sergio Pasco

I am Sergio Pasco, I have worked professionally as an administrator and Marketing specialist in different service companies. My experience as a teacher is inherited from my parents, who are teachers.

I use technology daily to solve problems. I consider myself very curious and creative. I handle image and video editing design programs, extensive knowledge in the use of hand tools and different creation materials. I like challenges and working as a team to solve them.

Rui Zanchetta

Rui Zanchetta is the Co.Lab coordinator for the Secondary Division at Avenues São Paulo and uses Co.Lab technology and design thinking to leverage learning across the Secondary Division. Rui is the founder of Casa de Makers, a learning environment for young people that encourages hands-on experimentation and cross-pollination between science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM). Rui has implemented maker spaces in São Paulo's leading schools, such as Colégio Santa Cruz, Maple Bear School and Colégio Notre Dame. He also provided professional learning to faculty in project-based learning, prototyping, Scratch, Arduino, and robotics. His idea of fun is creating gadgets with his family. "I believe it is important that my children understand technology as something that facilitates day-to-day living and problem-solving. I encourage my daughter to tinker with the 3D printer so she can make her own doll houses”. Rui is a black belt in jiu-jitsu and still trains from time to time. He also enjoys slacklining at the park.

Valeria Trias

Valeria Trias is the Design Teacher for Middle School and High School for Asociación Escuelas Lincoln in Argentina. She is an enthusiastic professional and educator with experience in Design, Technology, and Visual Arts. Eager to work with different cultures to exchange learning and passions, Valeria is a design thinking advocator in all of the projects she develops. As a photographer currently based in Buenos Aires, her role in education involves the technology integration and promotion of PBL units across school divisions, being Product Design, Publications, and Filmmaking her main areas of development at the moment.

Driven by the idea of motivating women to participate in STEAM projects, her classes focus on equal opportunities fostering teamwork and a problem-solving mindset to seek creativity and collaboration.

Cat lover and Swiftie, you can find her chasing sunsets and hiking.

Kerry Lederman

Kerry Lederman is a high school science and STEAM teacher at the American School of Asuncion. Originally from Virginia, Kerry has spent the last eight years teaching in Honduras, Ecuador and now Paraguay. Although her initial background is in biological sciences, Kerry has shifted her focus to Chemistry and the integration of science, math and technology into traditional science curricula. This year Kerry has taken on STEAM and Computer Science Elective courses where she has been able to share her love of coding, but mostly she has enjoyed being able to learn cool tools from her students and colleagues! After all.. "The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know." -- Michel Legrand.

On the weekends she can be found biking to the botanical garden and using her iNaturalist app to check out all of the biodiversity Paraguay has to offer!

Nicolas Belluscio

Nicolás M. Belluscio, also known as Mr. Nico has been working in Asosiación Escuelas Lincoln for the past 11 years as an Assistant in what used to be just the Middle School Computer Lab to this mix with the Makerspace, which makes this space even more interesting and engaging for whoever wants to learn. He is studying to become a Tech Teacher but he also studied: Graphic Design, Drama, Comedy, Announcing, Cooking, Food Criticism, Profesional Sommelier, and every program and process that appears on his way and through the years. So he really loves and appreciates the learning process and wants to inspire that in all the learners.

He likes to wake up really early to train: Kickboxing, HIT, Yoga, and Stretching. Then he Meditates and Reads (right now: The Myth of Sisyphus), and has a good breakfast before he goes to that wonderful place that is his job. And right now he is really anxious, happy, and excited about being part of LatinThinks and all the wonders that come with new friends, new programs, and new frontiers!

Jackson Vega

Dedicated and passionate in Technology with a 22 years history at the American School of Lima, 14 years involved in Tech support, Implementation of the networks and infrastructure and 8 years managing the Technology Department composed of 8 members.

Involved in Agile Methodologies and Innovation that contemplates:

• Culture and Digital Transformation

• Design Thinking

• Lean Start-up

• Storytelling

• Inception

• Scrum

• Kanban

• Change management

Dad of 2 boys, married with a 5th grade teacher, both of them are also part of the American School community.