Penn State Brandywine hosted the University’s annual Tech Pros + Web Pros professional development conference on June 4-6.
MEDIA, Pa. — Penn State Brandywine hosted the University’s annual Tech Pros + Web Pros professional development conference on June 4-6. The conference, which included more than 200 University information technology (IT) and web professionals, allowed attendees to network and learn about new and upcoming trends in the technology and web fields.
Hosted by a different Commonwealth Campus each year, the conference takes place over three days and consists of informational breakout sessions, networking sessions with sponsors and colleagues, and two professional dinners.
Steering committee members were: Christina Billie, Penn State Brandywine; Loren Brewster, Penn State York; Kevin Churik, University Park; Danelle Del Corso, University Park; Izac Diaz, Penn State Lehigh Valley; Justin DiMatteo, Penn State Brandywine; Courtney Elliott, University Park; Karen Hackett, University Park; Benjamin Hammel, Penn State Lehigh Valley; Brian Hart, Penn State DuBois; Matt Harter, University Park; Courtney Hughes, University Park; Scott Irvin, University Park; Anthony Mattei, Penn State Brandywine; Mandy McCracken, University Park; Seth McGeorge, Dickinson Law; Jessica Mondi, Penn State DuBois; Robert Notari, Penn State Scranton; Jonathan O’Harrow, Penn State Altoona; Dough Prowant, Penn State Mont Alto; Simon Song, University Park; Bennett Ulmer, University Park; Kari Williamson, University Park; and Danette Yakymac, University Park.
Toni Chainey (left) won the John Hoh IT Community Catalyst Award and Chris Weaver (right) won the Digital Excellence Award at Tech Pros + Web Pros. Both are from Penn State Harrisburg.
David Gindhart and Glenna Emel of University Park (pictured) held a session called “Overwhelmed to Outstanding: The Working Genius Approach” on Wednesday, June 4.
Dr. Marilyn J. Wells, Regional Chancellor of Penn State Brandywine, gave opening remarks at Tech Pros + Web Pros on Thursday, June 5.
David Horton, vice president for information technology and chief information officer, gave opening remarks at Tech Pros + Web Pros on Thursday, June 5.
Two hundred IT and web professionals visited Brandywine to attend Tech Pros + Web Pros.
Samantha Bower of Penn State Berks hosted “Premiere Pros for Web Pros: Homepage Video Crash Course” on Thursday, June 5.
Lindsay Wood of Penn State Abington and David Gindhart of University Park hosted a session called “Seeing IT Differently: The Balanced Scorecard as a Lens for Change” on Thursday, June 5.
Jerry Krawczyk and Rich Cropp of University Park held a session called “Where Are You Going? Let Strategic Roadmaps Show You The Way” on Thursday, June 5.
Abbey Espigh of University Park hosted “Unlocking the Business Analyst Toolbox: Insights and Best Practices” on Thursday, June 5.
Kurtis Taylor from Dell hosted a keynote session on trends in higher education and AI on Thursday, June 5.
David Horton, Wes Sheets, Sara Thorndike and Thomas Rodgers spoke on a panel called “Bridges, Not Walls: Cultivating Relationships for Transformational Leadership” on Thursday, June 5.
Emily Sikora of University Libraries hosted a session called “Create Impactful Signage & Graphics with Adobe Express” on Friday, June 6.
Dell was a sponsor of Tech Pros + Web Pros.
Williamson, who is the director of Commonwealth Campuses IT at Penn State, took the lead with the Tech Pros + Web Pros planning. She expressed her passion for facilitating the conference and its development.
“Tech Pros + Web Pros is a yearly event that brings IT and web professionals from across the state together to share information, learn new skills and meet new people. Each year it is hosted at one of our beautiful Commonwealth Campuses,” Williamson said.
“Getting away from the day-to-day has helped create an atmosphere where staff can immerse themselves in the learning experience. Helping to lead and facilitate this conference is one of the highlights of my work and it's truly a labor of love.”
DiMatteo, director of IT at Brandywine, noted how much he enjoys getting together with peers each year at Tech Pros + Web Pros.
“Whenever we meet with our peers, there's an energy and enthusiasm that makes me feel like we can do anything together. This conference is like a firehose of that,” he said. “In addition, I felt immense pride with our campus staff who helped pull this off; you all made a distinct, positive impression on our counterparts, most of whom were visiting for the first time.”
Tech Pros + Web Pros has been taking place annually for the Penn State IT and web communities since 2010 and is now a much-anticipated event that has seen increasing attendance and interest. Tech Pros + Web Pros 2026 is slated to be held at Penn State Lehigh Valley.
