Welcome to the JDO Foundation! I
am Judy O'Connell Coon. I would love to share with you the reason this foundation has
become a reality.
I was brought up in Casper, Wyoming. Casper is
"small town", but that didn't matter because if you were brought up as an O'Connell, it
was always said, (REPEATEDLY) that you could achieve anything, if you had a good
education. Casper has a wonderful educational system because of the backing of the oil
industry. Since Wyoming is a state with a very small population, we were very blessed
that education is a top priority.
I graduated from school in Casper, and then
attended the University of Wyoming, where I received my teaching degree.
The next 25 years of my life were spent teaching.
I was always aware that I was very lucky to be able to go each day to a job that I
enjoyed. Having always worked with children, I am constantly captivated by the pure joy
students express when learning. Keeping students engaged and demonstrating "real life
applications" for the learning process is an essential element of education.
Unfortunately, in November of 2006, after a long
illness, I lost my father to Alzheimer's. It was a very degrading time for someone that
I, (and many others) admired so much. He was a brilliant man, and always encouraged me
in every endeavor. Education was particularly important to him. At every juncture, he
was forever pointing out what a learning opportunity life was. He always encouraged
those who had "less", to see education as an empowerment. He began giving "scholarships"
anonymously to many who had no other means to continue their education. He did not
expect to be repaid for his kindness. He only expected them to use their education to
further their futures. This man, my father, was an incredible example to me. With the
loss of my father, I had the means to start the JDO Foundation. It is my privilege to
begin this foundation and to make it into something that will continue to be my legacy
and gift to future generations. My personal goal is to use what my father, Richard K.
O'Connell, taught me, both through his words and his actions, about the value of
education. I know he would be as proud of me as I was of him.
I initially founded the JDO Foundation in 2011 to
bring technology to students and schools in Colorado that would not otherwise be
afforded that opportunity. As I have been touched by the need for understanding and
compassion among future generations around the world, my vision for how the foundation
can best serve students and teachers has evolved in miraculous ways. It became clear to
me that through technology, students around the world can be guided to communicate and
collaborate on common educational curriculum. This technology can literally unlock the
doors of education and build friendships regardless of religion, culture, or geographic
location.
To that end, our mission is to strive to provide
an enriched educational experience for U.S. and International elementary classrooms by
providing state of the art technologies and professional training to the educators
managing these technologies. This is accomplished through our Global Partnership
Program. A program in which classrooms in the U.S. are partnered with classrooms around
the world for weekly communication and collaboration on co-curricular learning topics
agreed upon by partner teachers. JDO facilitates this collaboration to enable students
to be accomplished, well-informed digital citizens and global thought leaders.