Since joining LACOE in 2021, he’s brought tech teams from the county’s schools together to create templates that can then be tailored to meet each district’s needs. This past summer, for example, the agency worked with district staff and students to create step-by-step instructions for the use of artificial intelligence in schools.
That collaborative spirit extends to LACOE’s quarterly “tech talks,” where IT staff from the county’s many districts are invited to network and share ideas. Gonzalez added that these events often draw national experts as well.
“Sometimes it’s difficult for the FBI or the DOJ or the different resources that are statewide to go to all 80 districts,” Gonzalez said. “So bringing them all to one place, they get to meet and interact with these support systems and folks that can back them up when they do have an issue.”
Such consolidation has worked with vendors as well. By handling procurement agreements and creating “piggyback-able” contracts, Gonzalez said LACOE has been able to save districts money and time.
“I always tell the vendors, you can either give us really good pricing, or you can bid 80 different times at 80 different districts,” he said.
Most recently, Gonzalez and his team went to bat for LACOE schools affected by the January wildfires, working with the Greater Los Angeles Education Foundation and vendor partners to secure Chromebooks and Wi-Fi hot spots for students.
“We’re helping get technology to these districts that lost all this equipment,” he said. “At least while they’re temporarily placed in different schools, they’ll have access to hardware and devices.”
Moving forward, Gonzalez said he’s working to create a security operations center at LACOE and expand the agency’s ability to provide backup data hosting for districts.
This story originally appeared in the Spring 2025 issue of Government Technology magazine. Click here to view the full digital edition online.
