Mike Patterson is a K-12 education strategist for CDW·G, a leading provider of technology solutions and services to education, government and healthcare. A former educator and school technology specialist, Patterson works with CDW·G’s K-12 team and directly with schools and districts, communicating the benefits, challenges and impacts of technology in the classroom.
Patterson joined CDW·G in 2015. He provides school districts with guidance for identifying the best long-term technology solutions that will help them meet their goals. He is also involved with the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), Illinois Computing Educators (ICE) and the Illinois State University’s Business Education Advisory board, and presents at conferences around the country as an education expert.
Prior to joining CDW·G, he served as a business and technology education teacher and part-time dean of students at Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Flossmoor, Ill., from 2005 to 2015. During this time, he served as the co-coordinator of the Homewood-Flossmoor High School’s improvement committee and helped orchestrate the inclusion of Google Apps for Education and Microsoft applications into classrooms as the school’s technology committee department coordinator. Outside of the classroom, he assisted in leading and motivating developing teachers from 14 area schools as a president and advisor for the not-for-profit student organization, DECA.
Patterson holds a Bachelor of Arts in business administration and management information systems from Augustana College (Rock Island, Ill.), a Bachelor of Science in business teacher education from Illinois State University and a Master of Education in school improvement leadership from Olivet Nazarene (Bourbonnais, Ill.). Licensed as an Illinois Professional Educator, Patterson is also a Google for Education Certified Trainer as well as a Level 2 Educator and has certifications in Google Apps Deployment Quick Start (Apps100), Google for Education Basics and Google Web Academy: Online Professionals. Additionally, he is certified as a Microsoft Innovation Educator, Microsoft Innovative Educator Trainer and Microsoft Office Specialist. Patterson received the Illinois State University College of Business’ Early Career Achievement award, the Illinois Association for Career & Technical Education’s Outstanding New Career award and the Technical Education Teacher and Illinois Business Education Association’s Outstanding New Professional award.