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Just as state technology leaders must find ways to interact with others within the education system in order to maximize the potential for educational technology in improving student learning, so must they promote educational technology among outside stakeholders. Educational technology does not exist in a vacuum. State technology leaders are forced to deal with the political realities of a situation where a finite amount of resources are used to meet many competing need within their states. Thus, a key challenge for state leaders identified by the Technology Leadership Skills for the 21st Century Work Group is keeping educational technology high on the education agenda within each state. As part of this task, the subgroup identified two major components as crucial and difficult aspects of this role:

• The need for state directors to actively promote the importance of educational technology among stakeholders outside the system of education.
• The need for state directors to garner support for educational technology from these individuals and groups.

This subgroup believes that The Declaration of Learning Independence that delineates the compelling reasons for educational technology is especially important to have on hand when trying to "sell" educational technology to these external actors. In using this statement for this purpose, the group determined that they must focus on educational technology as an effective means to achieving the overall, more common goal of providing the best possible education for all students. State directors can use this statement to explain the importance of educational technology when trying to garner support among these other education stakeholders.

• Host a student panel about educational technology, having a legislator be the moderator.
• Hold a student video about how students use educational technology in their schools and daily lives. Give copies of the winning videos to policy makers.
• Have legislative panels at educational technology conferences.
• Publicly recognize a legislator or businessperson who has played a significant role in advancing educational technology.
• Identify key policy leaders and their agendas and develop a unique strategy to communicate to their platform.
  • Example: Economic development is on the forefront of most agendas, and a focus of the community; therefore, tie technology skills to workforce development.
• Invite government leaders to public events that promote educational technology such as technology open houses, ribbon cutting ceremonies, and student computer fairs.
• Issue government updates on the status of technology (in the classroom, funding, grants, achievements, and progress).
• Give out awards to government leaders for their work in educational technology. Make it a photo opportunity for them. Schedule these awards at the time of conferences or key decision-making times (i.e. just before funding decisions).
• Take a field trip to government leaders' offices to survey how the offices use technology.
  • Ask students to compile a list of "5 ways technology helps government."
  • Let students create more ways that each government leader could use technology.
  • Make the visits a media event.
• Look for a government leader who is looking to "Leave a Legacy" and make him/her your advocate. You can give him/her "their" cause-educational technology.
• Leverage resources by building partnerships with business, organizations and community members to tell your story and to serve as advocates for educational technology.
• Bring your legislators/press to schools to see educational technology at work within classrooms.

• Choose terms that are neutral and non-technical-avoid jargon. Choose words that make sense to policy makers.
• Explain the importance of educational technology in terms of the impact it has on students with special needs.
• Use vivid, time-appropriate, and inconspicuous examples of the global importance of educational technology:
  • Example: Explain to legislators that military fighter pilots, currently at war, are doing well because they were exposed to computers at an early age.
• Paint a picture of the effects of technology on improved student learning with vivid words to capture policy makers' imaginations. Use examples and stories of successes from the specific policy makers' districts.
• Avoid justifying technology. Instead, focus on improved quality education in the 21st century. Explain educational technology as a "means" to getting to their goal of overall improved student learning.
• Put the cost of funding into context and perspective. Often times, the funding amount is minor.
  • Example: Maine's laptop initiative was less than 1% of the state budget.