About Sarah Venkatesh

Sarah Venkatesh casual portrait at Austin Botanical Gardens

Sarah is an experienced instructional designer and creative committed to designing relevant and engaging learning experiences through human-computer interaction and multimedia. Her program initiatives have meaningfully integrated tools with processes that empower learning communities.

Sarah’s unconventional path to the classroom has made her a uniquely high-performing asset to learning institutions. Outfitted with production skills from her work with New York media outlets in the late ‘90s, Sarah has been recognized for her ability to visualize complex information and construct logical narratives that are clear and impactful.

Sarah was on the frontlines of online journalism, serving on the team that adapted Newsweek from print to web. She was responsible for enhancing interactivity with the magazine’s first audio-enabled photo galleries. Sarah earned a master’s degree in Media Studies and has continued to closely follow trends in interface functionality that foster communication and collaboration. Sarah ran the video filmmaking program at Trevor Day School in NYC from 2002-2010, where she produced film festivals of original student works and coached multi-camera video crews for live productions. Sarah created publications and video content that served the growth of the school. Identified as a tech visionary, she was awarded a fellowship to inspire tech competence and innovative teaching methods among faculty.

Sarah relocated to Texas in 2010 to implement an integrated technology program for another growing K-8 independent school, Trinity Episcopal of Austin. There, she founded two highly successful signature programs, D-Lab and Robotics, and produced a series of community-wide DesignFests. Sarah amplified the school’s capstone course, Innov8, to engage dozens of Austin entrepreneurs and design thinkers and she stimulated the school’s advancement campaigns with award-winning animated video content. Sarah has earned awards for teaching excellence from Trinity, National Geographic, and FIRST Lego League.

After acting as Video Director for an innovative New York City dance company, Sarah has continued to help artists and engineers share their work with the world as time permits. Her full-length adaptations of two theater musicals for the screen in compliance with Covid restrictions were widely acclaimed. Sarah serves on the Board of Directors of a FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) robotics team, mentoring high school students with media outreach and corporate fundraising. She is passionate about using the power of technology to connect people with ideas.

Pixelwater was conceived before the turn of the century and continues to be a place for Sarah to collect ideas and reflect on processes that engage learners and artists.

Education

2001 – The New School, New York, NY. Master of Arts in Media Studies.
1996Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT. Bachelor of Arts. Religion major.
University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana, West Africa. Junior year abroad.
1992Brookline High School, Brookline, MA.

Experience

Trinity Episcopal School
Austin, TX
2010 – 2024

Learning Experience Design:
Designed and facilitated academic programming with a focus on information/visual literacy, STEM, and innovation.

  • DesignFest K-8 multi-part annual design thinking challenge.
  • Innov8 8th grade entrepreneurial capstone course.
  • D-Lab maker space + extra-curricular classes.
  • Robotics program offering a competitive option through FIRST Lego League

Technology Integration and Multimedia Production:
Partnered with school leadership to align technology resources with institutional goals, enhancing the Trinity experience through differentiated instruction, deeper learning across disciplines, and stakeholder engagement.

  • Ensured successful implementation of a school-wide 1:1 device program
  • Increased productivity with strategic integration of GSuite, Learning Management Systems, and select educational technology applications. 
  • Enhanced the school’s public image and internal portal user experience through web publishing, curating the school’s media archive, and producing creative video content for Marketing & Communications, Development, and the Performing Arts

Trevor Day School
New York, NY
2002 – 2010

Video Arts Teacher & Producer

  • Video Arts teacher for grades 6-12. Annual public screening of 35+ movies with additional showcases for senior films. Other courses have included Art of Animation, Dance on Camera, and TV News & Advertising.
  • Faculty advisor to TrevorVision, a video journalism club that produces news-format webisodes.
  • Event videography and DVD production. Coordinate 6-student video crews with 1 director, 2 live-mix engineers, and 3 camera operators.
  • Produced numerous videos for Development and Admissions offices and enhanced annual live auction with visual projections.
  • Awarded faculty grants to adapt Video Arts and Media Literacy curricula to the web.

Audio-Visual Coordinator

  • Purchased, installed, and tracked classroom and large space AV systems. Created library loaning system and online tutorials for video and podcast production. Managed budget and purchasing. 
  • Member of Technical Executive Committee. Wrote mission and objectives for Tech Fellows program to promote the educational use of technology in classrooms.
  • Facilitated meetings on the “Classroom of the Future.”
  • Technology Fellow ’05-’06 and Master Learning & Technology Fellow ’07-‘10.

d.b.a Pixelwater
New York, NY
1999-2002

Media Production Freelance

  • Video editing and digital compositing for trade shows and large-scale projection.
  • Motion menu design and authoring of industrial and cinematic DVDs. 
  • After Effects compositing for animated series and TV commercials. 
  • Photography, editing, title animation, and digital compositing for narrative shorts and dance stage productions.

Accolades, Presentations, Articles:

Accolades:
Coaches Award, FIRST Lego League (2021 & 2024)
Excellence in Teaching Award, Trinity (2019)
Teacher of the Week, National Geographic (2016)

Presentations:
Integrate Computer Programming and Support Learning Across the Curriculum, TCEA (2015)
Full STEAM Ahead: Building a Community of Designers and Problem Solvers, SAES, (2015)
Project 8: Design & Innovation Through Global Issues, SAES (2015)

Published Articles:
The New “High-Tech,” T Magazine (2006)
Meaningful Change, T Magazine (2008)
Discovering Time: Nurturing Hybrid Minds by Rooting Technology in The Natural World, Trinity Magazine (2013)
Re-imagining School: Connecting Ideas to Build the World We Want to Live In, Trinity Magazine (2015)