Norton is a Connector. He connects people to people, people to projects, and people to resources.
For over forty years Norton Gusky has demonstrated in his work the power of technology as a tool for empowering kids, educators, and communities. Norton believes that technology offers learners a tool for creative production, communications, and collaboration. Norton first began his exploration of technology in education as a teacher of the intellectually gifted in West Virginia. For over twenty years he worked as the Coordinator of Educational Technology for the Fox Chapel Area School District in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Later Norton has transitioned his role and worked for 15 years as an educational technology broker.
Norton believes in using technology to empower communities. He serves on the Board of Neighborhood Learning Alliance (NLA), a Pittsburgh non-profit agency, that works with underserved youth, K-12, providing out-of-school programming. Norton is also on the Board of Film Pittsburgh where he serves as Vice-Chair. Film Pittsburgh presents three Film Festivals in Pittsburgh – JFiLM, the Three Rivers Film Festival, and Pittsburgh Shorts – and manages Teen Screen, an in-person and virtual opportunity for secondary students to engage in cinematic conversations on key issues, such as the Holocaust, climate change, or identity.
Norton believes in empowering educators and community members. He chaired the planning committee for the Three Rivers Educational Technology Conference, a regional event in the Pittsburgh region for over twenty years and now serves in an advisory role for the conference. In addition, Norton has taught two graduate level courses at the Heinz College of Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) – Technology and Educational Restructuring (changed for 2012 to “Planning for Innovation”) and Integrating Technology into Curriculum, Assessment, and Instruction. From 2015 – 2025 Norton taught classes for the Osher program at Carnegie Mellon University. The Osher program provides lifelong learning opportunities for senior adults. Norton created a new course – Telling Your Personal Story – for Osher in the fall of 2025.
Norton has worked with school districts on strategic planning, planning for innovation, grant-writing, and professional development. From 2013 until 2020 Norton worked with a team at the South Fayette School District to produce a Summer Institute on STEAM Innovation. From 2023-2025 Norton helped the Quakertown School District with their Comprehensive Plan, assisted with a new focus on Computational Thinking led by Aileen Owens and the Digital Promise, and helped to document the work of Ed Hidalgo for Quakertown’s move towards connecting careers and learning.
Norton sees technology as a tool for innovation. From 2014-2020 Norton was the co-chair of the Consortium of Schools Networked (CoSN) Emerging Technology committee that publishes an annual series of reports on Emerging Trends in Educational Technology. Norton also has served starting in 2017 on the Advisory Board for the CoSN K-12 Driving Innovation Project. Starting in 2022 Norton began to work with his colleagues, Ed McKaveney, and Rich Platts, to develop workshops based on the Driving Innovation Project. Together they have delivered workshops at regional and national conferences incorporating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into their process.
Norton sees technology as a tool for collaboration and creativity. From 2015-2020 Norton worked with the Energy Innovation Center (EIC) and Parkway West Career and Technology Center to coordinate a series of Design Challenges. Each design challenge brought a team of high school students as consultants to work with the EIC and its partners on real world problems of sustainability. In 2023 Norton worked on a plan with the Consortium for Public Education and the EIC to develop a Sustainability Design Challenge for secondary students around the Pittsburgh region. In 2022 Norton began working with the Penn State Readiness Institute on the Hope Moonshot project for the Moonshot Museum.
During the pandemic years Norton returned to his love of photography and video. In July 2022 Norton traveled with Classrooms without Borders to create a documentary about the study tour – Discovering Italy: Crossroads of Culture, History, and Heritage. In June 2025 Norton traveled with a group of music educators to document a Nanda Journeys tour of Portugal. You can view samples of his work on his Gallery page.
Starting in 2026 Norton will begin a new phase of his life. NLG Consulting will end, but Norton will continue to work on projects that have been part of his professional life – The Three Rivers Educational Technology (TRETC), the Moonshot Museum, and other opportunities that empower kids, educators and communities. Norton will also begin a new series of endeavors tapping into his project management skills – such as producing cultural events.
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