2026 INCTO Clinic

Relentless Leadership
Hamish Brewer is an award-winning leader and school turnaround expert who has turned around multiple schools, both at the elementary and secondary levels, working with some of the most at-risk students in America. Hamish will share his secrets to his success in this inspiring, high-octane presentation. Let's laser focus in on key areas for growth in your leadership journey, practices and processes that align to successful school and student outcomes. You will walk away with practical solutions and ideas to key education challenges around organizational improvement, closing the achievement gap, stakeholder engagement and culture and that will help you like Hamish has done to create an award-winning organization. Own your leadership and own your legacy!

With federal pandemic relief funds no longer available to support technology programs, many school districts are confronting hard budget decisions about the future of their 1:1 device initiatives. As 1:1 programs matured rapidly during the pandemic, the expiration of this targeted funding has left leaders searching for sustainable paths forward. Districts are now exploring creative approaches to extend device lifecycles, secure alternative revenue streams, and integrate technology more effectively into day-to-day learning ? all while balancing tight budgets and growing expectations for digital access.

In this session, Secured Tech experts will share actionable insights and proven strategies for building sustainable 1:1 technology programs that support instruction, equity, and operational efficiency long into the future. Attendees will learn how districts are:
Extending device lifecycles and reducing costly replacements through smart repair and refresh planning. Reimagining funding models and workflows to support technology as an ongoing operational priority rather than a one-time purchase. Leveraging partnerships, process improvements, and proactive planning to align technology goals with district budgets and academic outcomes.

Whether your district is just beginning to rethink 1:1 sustainability or is already piloting new strategies, this session will provide practical guidance, real-world examples, and opportunities for peer conversation that empower you to keep technology working for students and educators without relying on temporary funding.

Upgrading a school phone system is often more complex than expected, involving far more than choosing between vendors or replacing handsets. This session is a retrospective of a real K-12 phone system upgrade, focused on the hidden decisions and dependencies many tech directors don?t realize they need to consider.
Topics include evaluating cloud-based versus on-premises systems, understanding upfront and recurring costs, navigating licensing models and feature sets, determining who actually needs a phone, and planning for safety requirements such as E-911. The session will also explore operational considerations like paging systems and how to minimize phone outages caused by internet or WAN disruptions.
The project was approached with guidance from a manufacturer-agnostic partner whose role was to help identify these often-overlooked factors and ask the right questions?not to promote a specific solution. Multiple manufacturers and vendors were evaluated before a final decision was made.
Rather than focusing on products or sales, this session shares the practical lessons learned and professional perspective gained from the process, helping K-12 tech directors better plan, communicate, and confidently approach their own phone system upgrades.

A concise look at the top emerging cyber threats highlighted in the Arctic Wolf 2026 Threat report and the key security actions organizations should take to strengthen defenses, reduce risk, and stay resilient in an increasingly aggressive threat landscape.

From our Keynote Speaker Carl Hooker -
Your teams are already using AI tools, but which ones actually deliver value? And more importantly, where does human thinking still outperform the machine?

In this high-energy, interactive session, district leaders will put today’s most popular AI tools to the test in a live “Promptetition.” Chatbots, image generators, and more will compete across real-world challenges tied to teaching, learning, and leadership.  You’ll uncover where AI accelerates impact, where it falls short, and how to make smarter decisions about tool selection, implementation, and instructional alignment.

Because in the end, it’s not about humans vs. AI -- it's about how we can lead and learn alongside it. 

AI is accelerating faster than policy. Students are getting better at bypassing filters. Concerns about screen time are rising. Cyber threats aren’t slowing down.

And most districts are trying to solve all of it by adding…another tool.

This session challenges that approach.

We’ll explore how tool sprawl is creating blind spots, slowing response times, and driving up costs—and we’ll show what a consolidated strategy looks like instead. Learn how leading districts are managing AI, enforcing policy, protecting students, and strengthening cybersecurity through a unified platform that actually works together.

If your team feels stretched thin, this is a conversation about increasing impact by managing less.

In the modern educational landscape, technology is no longer a peripheral utility; it is the backbone of instruction, operations, and district security. Yet, many districts still relegate their top technology leader to a supporting role rather than a strategic one.

Join us for a dynamic panel featuring three Superintendent-CTO pairs who have successfully integrated technology leadership into the executive cabinet. This session moves beyond "tech talk" to explore how a direct reporting relationship fosters a culture of innovation, streamlines decision-making, and protects the district from emerging digital risks.