Brent Zeise here and I’d just like to introduce myself to you all.  To begin with I’d like to point out that, yes; I do have a funny looking last name.   It’s German and it gets mispronounced all the time. My family in Minnesota has come to pronounce it as Zye-zee,and I hear it pronounced as Zye-sah in Germany.  But, as a teacher, my kids have shortened that considerably to Mr. Z, which is just fine with me.

So, I guess I’d like to tell you all a little about myself.  Currently I am the Information Technology Coordinator at The International School in Genoa in Italy. This is my 2nd IT Coordinator position, previously having also worked at The American School of Yaoundé, in Cameroon, Africa.  Before that I worked in Kuwait as a Technology Teacher at the American School of Kuwait & the American Bilingual School.

I have a teaching degree is in Social Studies and have taught Geography, History, Comparative Government and Model United Nations off and on over the last few years, but I have garnered even more timely and relevant experience in the realm of Information Technology. I’ve been teaching computer usage, office applications, website creation, flash animation, graphic design, social media and Web 2.0 applications for the last 7 years to both students and fellow teachers. I also lead professional development opportunities on tech integration into classroom curriculum and overall computer skills. I’m currently in the midst of obtaining a Masters of Arts Degree in Educational Technology from Michigan State University which is keeping me very up-to-date on the latest advances in educational technology.

A little more about myself:  I’m single and quite content with my life.  I graduated from St. John’s University in Minnesota in 92 with a BA in History.  I was commissioned an Army Officer in May of 93 and served as a Mechanized Infantry Officer. I went back to school in the late 90’s to obtain a teaching degree, but when I was 95% finished I got sidetracked into the computer field.  As a result, from 1998 until 2003 I didn't go into teaching and instead went into the (then) booming IT industry.  I worked in corporate America for these 5 years as a computer support tech, a help desk manager, a project manager and finally for 3 years as the Network and Communications Director for a .COM company.

I gained a lot of experience during this time but also lived with a lot of stress, especially being on call, literally, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In the summer of 2003 our board of directors changed and the founders of our company, including myself, were bought out. It was at this point that I decided that I needed a change in my life.  No more would I work for a company or a business, where the individual was not only a number, but a bottom line on a company’s expense spreadsheet.  Type A personality bosses whose only means of communication was screaming at you would no longer be tolerated!

So I decided to finish my coursework and go back into Education. Specifically International Education.

Like I said, I needed a change in my life.

Since then I have actually been pretty happy.  Life is good.  Waking up in the morning is not a punishment, but an opportunity.   I was very, very lucky that I was able to find a job that I actually love to do. I really enjoy showing both students and my teaching colleagues the latest advances, the cool tricks and incredible Web 2.0 sites that allow them to integrate technology into their studies, their work and their lives. I most enjoy that “WOW!” moment when someone that I am working with discovers a particularly useful application for the first time. I have to say that my days are varied and interesting now.

 Personally my interests would include: traveling all over the world, reading, movies, messing around with computers and their applications, technology, getting outdoors, camping, tennis, golf and poker.  Lots of poker.

Email: bzeise@gmail.com

Mobile: +39 348-916-1915
Italy

Skype Name: brentdz