Mattson receives ISTE Making It Happen Award

Kristen Mattson
Kristen Mattson, Adjunct Lecturer

Adjunct Lecturer Kristen Mattson has received the 2024 International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Making It Happen Award. The award honors "educators and leaders who demonstrate outstanding commitment, leadership, courage, and persistence in improving digital learning opportunities for students."

ISTE is a nonprofit focused on accelerating innovation in education. Mattson was recognized during the 2024 ISTELive Conference, which was held from June 23-26 in Denver, Colorado.

"It is an honor to receive this award from such a respected and forward-thinking organization. ISTE advocates for the causes I am most passionate about: equitable access to information, the effective pedagogical use of technology in the classroom, and digital citizenship and media literacy education for all. It is truly a privilege to work alongside educators from across the globe in these vital efforts," she said.

At the iSchool, Mattson teaches courses on digital citizenship and media literacy for youth. She has authored Ethics in a Digital World: Guiding Students Through Society's Biggest Questions (International Society for Technology in Education, 2021) and Digital Citizenship in Action: Empowering Students to Engage in Online Communities (ISTE, 2024 and 2017). Mattson earned her EdD in curriculum and instruction leadership, MS in instructional design and technology, and BS in elementary and middle school teaching from Northern Illinois University.

Updated on
Backto the news archive

Related News

Tibebu joins the School

The iSchool is pleased to announce that Haileleol Tibebu joined the faculty as a teaching assistant professor on January 1, 2025. His research and teaching interests include responsible AI, AI policy and governance, algorithmic fairness, and the intersection of technology and society.

Haileleol Tibebu

Spectrum Scholar Spotlight: Leslie Lopez

Twelve iSchool master's students were named 2024–2025 Spectrum Scholars by the American Library Association (ALA) Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services. This “Spectrum Scholar Spotlight” series highlights the School’s scholars. MSLIS student Leslie Lopez graduated from the University of North Texas with a BA in psychology.

Leslie Lopez headshot

Nominations invited for 2024 Downs Intellectual Freedom Award

The School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign seeks nominations for the 2024 Robert B. Downs Intellectual Freedom Award. The deadline for nominations is March 15, 2025. The award is cosponsored by Sage Publishing.

Rhinesmith joins the faculty

The iSchool is pleased to announce that Colin Rhinesmith joined the faculty as a visiting associate professor on January 1, 2025. His position will become permanent following approval by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees. He previously served as founder and director of the Digital Equity Research Center at the Metropolitan New York Library Council.

Colin Rhinesmith

SafeRBot to assist community, police in crime reporting

Across the nation, 911 dispatch centers are facing a worker shortage. Unfortunately, this understaffing, plus the nature of the job itself, leads to dispatchers who are often overworked and stressed. Meanwhile, when community members need to report a crime, their options are to contact 911 for an emergency or, in a non-emergency situation, call a non-emergency number or fill out an online form. A new chatbot, SafeRBot, designed and developed by Associate Professor Yun Huang, Informatics PhD student Yiren Liu, and BSIS student Tony An seeks to improve the reporting process for non-emergency situations for both community members and dispatch centers.

Yun Huang