See the beautiful crystal bowl in this photo? It is in honor of the 2007 EdNET Impact Award that I accepted earlier this week for Inspiration Software, but the award really belongs to you – the 25 million teachers and students who use our visual learning software to support teaching and learning. Unlike in the current Saturn commercials, where car owners get to keep the company's awards for a day or two, we can't send the crystal bowl around to spend a day in each of your classrooms. So I wanted to congratulate you, tell you a bit about the award and share a photo of it with you.

The award was presented at the 19th Annual Educational Networking Conference in Chicago. The conference, which I have attended many times, is a gathering of the leaders of the many companies who are committed to developing technology -- software, hardware and online content – for education. The companies attending are both competitors and partners. However, what is unique (in my opinion) to the education industry, is that we are all really committed to one shared goal – developing products that help you improve education. Many of the presenters at the conference are educators – ranging from superintendents and classroom teachers to university professors – who tell us what we are doing right, what we need to change and what is needed in the future to offer students the best possible education.

Shortly after the awards luncheon, I headed to the airport for my flight back to Portland and, as many of us tend to do while sitting in traffic, I spent some time thinking -- about the conference and the significance of the Impact Award. The citation that was read at the ceremony described Inspiration Software as unique in the industry, said that our products help students think logically and creatively and our lesson plan books, guides and resources inspire teachers to help students build thinking skills. However, the presenter also remarked on the 25 million students and teachers worldwide who use our visual learning software products.

While I am very proud of our company, I am also in awe of you. You and your students are the reason for our success! It is educators and students who use visual learning as part of teaching and learning that earned the EdNET Impact Award. You are using our software tools and resources to help your students build the critical-thinking skills that they need for success in school and in life. And as a result, each one of you is having THE most significant impact on education!