David Scherping, chief technology officer for Polk County Schools, has successfully graduated from the 2010 Certified Education Chief Technology Officers (CeCTO) Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hills School of Government. &bsp;

The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and MCNC partnered with the UNC School of Government to offer this groundbreaking professional development opportunity.

The CeCTO program is the first education specific program for chief technology officers (CTOs) and chief information officers (CIOs) in the nation and began in February of 2010. The program is designed for K-12 CTOs and CIOs whose responsibilities require a broad understanding of management, leadership, and enterprise topics. &bsp;

The course is approximately 240 hours in length. Course instruction covers enterprise issues, strategic technology planning, communication, project management, emerging trends, risk assessment and management, acquisition management, change management, leadership, security, legal issues and financial trends.

David Scherping is one of the 34 K-12 CIOs who successfully completed the course in its inaugural year. The CeCTO program is a new offering in the nationally acclaimed Certified Government Chief Information Officers series, which was pioneered by the UNC School of Governments Center for Public Technology.&bsp; The CGCIO program, started in 2005, was the first of its kind in the nation and has successfully graduated more than 400 public sector IT professionals across the country.