The Home Technology Specialists of America (HTSA) buying group is bringing three full days of education to CEDIA Expo 2021 as part of its “Tommapalooza” training event, including Industry Education Day, a full day of education on September 1 at the trade show open to all attendees with registration required. The single day of training is part of Tommapalooza by HTSA, a three-day education event with multiple class tracks on the most important technologies and topics – at the upcoming CEDIA Expo in Indianapolis running August 31 – September 3, 2021.
Named for Tom Doherty, a co-founder of CEDIA and 2001 Lifetime Achievement recipient, Tommapalooza will offer a range of training covering key categories such as lighting design, home theater, and wellness, to name a few. Doherty is the creator of this “learning festival” and the entire event is produced by HTSA’s education team. This event is part of a yearlong series of HTSA’s educational initiatives.
As the Director, New Technology Initiatives for HTSA, Doherty has continued to see a need for training initiatives around specialty market segments like lighting design and fixture sales and the newer areas of health and wellness. “Tommapalooza” curated learning festival is an ideal solution.
3 Full Days of Training at Tommapalooza
The first two days of Tommapalooza are for HTSA members only, taking place Monday, August 30 and Tuesday, August 31. The agenda has three separate tracks focused on multiple topics, but centrally on lighting design and creating a comprehensive lighting fixture/design business model.
The lighting design courses offered by HTSA at CEDIA Expo 2021 will be taught by prominent lighting designer and educator Peter Romaniello. Romaniello owns Conceptual Lighting, an award-winning lighting design company, and is a full professional member of the International Association of Lighting Designers. An experienced educator, Romaniello has taught many courses and seminars for a wide variety of professional associations including the IALD, American Lighting Association, AIA, ASID, CEDIA, IES and more.
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HTSA will be offering three tracks of content for its members that, in addition to multiple lighting courses, will also include: Keith Esterly’s Relationship Science course, Cleerline SSF Basic Certification course, Large Project Success with Richard Millson, and several vendor showcases.
Industry Education Day — Sept. 1
On Wednesday, September 1, Tommapalooza by HTSA shifts to produce Industry Education Day, a day of training open to any CEDIA Expo 2021 attendee. Industry Education Day is HTSA’s way of giving back to the overall custom integration community, helping all to access their latest training on lighting and Relationship Science.
“HTSA executive director Jon Robbins and I agreed that this training would benefit the entire industry,” says Doherty. “There is not a lot of other training sessions at CEDIA Expo 2021 that focus on lighting design, so we have five panels discussions talking about developing business models and the Peter Romaniello training.”
As developed for the member education days, HTSA will also offer a full schedule of three tracks of content running from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 1 with educators including Romaniello, Keith Esterly, and Doherty sharing their expert knowledge and answer attendee questions.
The lighting courses being offered include: The Business of Lighting Design, Lighting Design for Living Spaces, Lighting Design for Kitchens, and Lighting Design for Master Suites. These lighting courses are all being taught by Romaniello. Also, Esterly will offer a 90-minute course on his popular Relationship Science Concepts.
“We are very excited to host Tommapalooza 2021 at this year’s CEDIA EXPO,” says Jason McGraw, Emerald’s Group Vice President CEDIA Expo/KBIS. “We wanted to create a significant lighting educational opportunity at the upcoming CEDIA Expo in Indianapolis. By partnering with HTSA, we’re expanding the value of the show with HTSA’s remarkable lighting and business content for all CEDIA Expo attendees.”
“All year long, HTSA’s education team develops programs for HTSA members to drive their success in the technology business,” says Doherty. “CEDIA Expo is an event that occurs only once a year, and we are excited to be able to give something back to the greater industry. Let’s all learn together.”
Tommapalooza 2021 will host an Industry Education Day including lighting design training delivered by Peter Romaniello, IALD, as well as offering a keynote speaker to kick off the day _- “Changing Perceptions and Leveraging Advanced Technologies in Preparation for a More Autonomous Tomorrow.” The event will be held on Wednesday, September 1 at the Indiana Convention Center in Meeting Rooms 204, 205, 206, and 207 and are open to all industry attendees.
Topics include:
- HDR10 Ecosystem Workshop
- Elevating Your Home Theater into Screening Rooms
- Winning Over Architects
- Health and Wellness Sales Strategies
- Lighting and Integration: Where and How Do I Start?
- Successfully Selling Lighting
- Delivering Lighting Design to Your Clients – 3 Approaches
- Lighting Fixture Supply strategies with Custom Home Builders
Tommapalooza Keynoter Is 12 Years Old
One other exciting portion of Industry Education Day will be a keynote by 12-year-old Mike Wimmer. Wimmer is a child genius who recently graduated from both high school and college in the same week — as a 12-year-old. His work in artificial intelligence and machine learning has already gained the attention of the military and, to date, he has completed six contracts with the United States Special Operations Command, receiving numerous awards for his efforts.
His keynote, “Changing Perceptions and Leveraging Advanced Technologies in Preparation for a More Autonomous Tomorrow,” is sponsored by Crestron Electronics. The presentation will take place Tuesday, August 31 at 4:30 pm in the Sagamore Ballroom in the Indiana Convention Center.
Doherty explains how there is another element to Wimmer’s keynote for which integrators should take note… how to recruit young college-level talent.
“Our industry does not do a good job of pointing out career opportunities. In fact, there is not a lot of college talent recruited for the custom electronics industry. There also is not a strong mentorship program in the industry. There is a lot we can learn from youth, including innovation and creativity from another point of view.
Mike Wimmer is literally a 12-year-old genius. I like to think out of box sometimes, and I hope having him speak sends a message to the indsustry that we can learn from everybody. Technology changes are happening so fast, we need to get more young adults interested in our industry,” adds Doherty, who notes that Wimmer and his parents are staying for the entire CEDIA Expo 2021 so he can check out the technology.
“We are extremely proud to partner with Emerald to dramatically expand our educational program offerings at CEDIA Expo 2021,” said Jon Robbins, executive director of HTSA. “When two great organizations like Emerald and HTSA combine their resources to deliver great content, all show attendees, and the industry overall, benefit.”
Open to All Attendees; Registration Required
All CEDIA Expo attendees are welcome to take part in the “Tommapalooza 2021” Industry Education Day events. Registration is required. Click here to read more about the event and view the upcoming schedule for Tommapalooza 2021.
Click here to register for CEDIA Expo 2021!
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