Dale Cook award recipient feels 'sense of accomplishment' keeping Dalton Public Schools connected

Ryan Anderson, The Daily Citizen, Dalton, Ga.
·4 min read

Aug. 25—While Jorge Miranda's work is critical, it's mostly unseen, although he's now in the spotlight as the 2022 Dale Cook Support Educator of the Year for Dalton Public Schools.

Information technology (IT) is "not a field (in which) you get a lot of accolades or recognition, (so) this award came out of left field, and it's amazing," said Miranda, network administrator for Dalton Public Schools. "It was incredibly unexpected and humbling."

Created by the family of former Dalton educator Dale Cook and the Dalton Education Foundation in 2020 as a way to recognize support staff members who have made significant contributions to the educational opportunities of children in Dalton Public Schools, this award recognizes staff members who operate in behind-the-scenes roles that help the school system run smoothly, according to Dalton Public Schools. A support staff member is defined as a person in a non-certificated, non-classroom position at either the school or system level.

Miranda joined Dalton Public Schools in 2013 as a technician, moving up to lead technician the following year before ascending to network administrator in 2015. He knows how important technology is to education not only through his duties, but also through his wife, Fabiola, who taught at Blue Ridge School and is now at Hammond Creek Middle School for the 2022-23 school year.

"The network is a really integral part of the education ecosystem, and there's so much riding on internal and external connectivity," said Miranda, who moved to California with his family from El Salvador in 1989. "It gives me a sense of accomplishment to do such important work for our kids."

Dalton Public Schools "has been at the forefront" of incorporating technology into education, and "we've been able to do a very good job of building resiliency into our network," said Miranda, who moved to Northwest Georgia in 1993 from San Francisco. "Security is at the forefront, always, and we've leveraged applications in hardware to protect ourselves the best we possibly can."

Dalton Public Schools is now a fully one-to-one system, meaning all students from prekindergarten through grade 12 have access to their own tech devices, and because the school system was so advanced in technology prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, "it gave us a leg up" when all students and staff had to engage in school from home for months due to the pandemic, said Miranda, a 1997 graduate of Murray County High School. "It was not as big of a challenge for us as" for some other school systems.

"Jorge is so much more than just good at his job," said Stuart Davis, director of technology and telecommunications for Dalton Public Schools. "He cares. He cares not just about the Wi-Fi — and yes, he definitely cares about the Wi-Fi — but he also genuinely cares about everyone he interacts with."

"If he knows someone has a sick family member, he always asks, if he knows someone needs help moving something heavy, he always offers; nothing is too big or too small," according to Davis. "Jorge Miranda is exactly the kind of person we all deserve to have representing Dalton Public Schools as the Dale Cook Support Educator of the Year."

While "I do spend a lot of time in network closets and server rooms, there are lots of needs at schools (where) I support technicians, students and teachers," Miranda said. "I believe relationships are very important, and a compliment, a handshake or a smile can go very far, in my mind."

Debra Holbrook received the Dale Cook award in its first year, followed by Bliss Jones last year.

Nominees were judged based on their interactions with coworkers, their impact on the school system, their work ethic and their overall attitude, according to Dalton Public Schools. Honorees receive a commemorative plaque and a check for $500.

Born and raised in El Salvador, Miranda became intrigued by technology at a young age, when his father, who worked at IBM for 25 years, would bring some of his work home with him and let his son tinker, he said.

"That piqued my interest, and it's something I've always loved."

He enjoys "the analytics part," as well as "being in control of an environment that can be very hard to control, (but) the most rewarding is (the fact that) it's IT in education," he said. "It's IT for a good purpose, (as) you know you're supporting educators and students, (the latter of whom) are our future."

With his own children — Aliah, a senior at Northwest Whitfield High School; Cade, a junior at Northwest; and Riley, a second-grader at Westwood School — Miranda regularly emphasizes the value of finding a career they truly love, as he did.

"Going into IT is probably the best decision I ever made, (because) when you find a career you like that makes you happy it never feels like a job," he said. "You never feel dread getting up in the morning to show up for work, and I have that, 110%."