About

Family Time Computing, Inc (FTC) was formed in 1995 in Bloomington, Illinois. FTC is a privately held corporation with its corporate office in Bloomington, IL and a branch office in Gulf Shores, AL.

Starting as a marketing firm in the K-12 education market, FTC Representative Group handled the sales, marketing, and distribution of more than 15 educational software publishers throughout North America. After working with companies like Sierra Online, ImageSmith, and Phillips Media, the company decided to enter the publishing arena and in 1997, formed FTC Publishing.

FTC Publishing has been a staple in K-12 education for more than 17 years, having published more than 50 software and print resources for the K-12 classroom. Over the years, FTC has published multiple award-winning resources for HyperStudio, PowerPoint, and the Adobe Suite of products. Its premiere software publishing line includes the 2010 award-winning Interactive Game Series, which has been awarded Best Interactive Game Platform by the ComputED Gazette.

In 2007, FTC started moving much of its product development to a web-based platform, and as a result, formed WebFTC. WebFTC has developed several online systems for K-12 education, including the WriteIt! Live – awarded Best Multi-Subject Website for Secondary Education by the ComputED Gazette. Currently in development for launch in Summer 2012 is the Teacher Gaming Network (TGN) - designed as the largest online Interactive Online Gaming System (IOGS), which creates an exciting and educational fusion of interactive gaming, social networking, and curriculum content.

In an effort to recognize and adopt Web 2.0 systems and strategies, FTC formed FTC Hosting Services. At the 2009 National Education Computer Conference in Washington, DC, FTC Hosting Services launched its online student/teacher web hosting service, MyVRSpot. Often described as a combination of Facebook and YouTube, in a safe school environment, MyVRSpot has been quickly adopted as the premier multimedia hosting system for many school districts throughout the United States. Customized versions of MyVRSpot will soon be released in Canada, Asia, and the United Kingdom.

Management Team

Michael Kessler is the original founder, owner, and President of Family Time Computing, Inc. In addition to starting the FTC Representative Group in 1995, FTC Publishing in 1997, WebFTC in 2007 and FTC Hosting Services in 2008, he also co-founded Gaggle.Net in 1998 and served as its Vice President for more than 10 years, until selling his interest in the company in 2009.

Mr. Kessler has held, and currently holds, various positions in organizations focused on enhancing effective use of technology to increase student achievement. He spent two years on the board of the Center for Organizational Research and Development (CORD), which focuses on increasing participation of Hispanic and Native American students into cooperative education programs; three years (current) on the Technology in Education Advisory Board at National Louis University and two years on the board of the National Coalition of Employers for Technology in Education. In 2013, the FTC Foundation for Educational Excellence will be launched, a non-profit foundation established to provide scholarships to college-bound students, focusing their studies on Technology in Education.

As President and CEO of FTC, Mr. Kessler oversees each of the companies that make up the 
FTC Family of Companies. He also serves as the corporation's main contact for strategic partnerships both here in the United States and abroad.

Zach Lancaster holds a position on FTC's Board of Directors and serves as Vice President of Systems and Development. His position includes oversight of all product development, customized account services, and IT services. Mr. Lancaster has been at FTC for more than four years and was instrumental in the launch of both the WebFTC and FTC Hosting Services bands.

As a graduate of the University of Illinois, he has been able to effectively utilize his degrees in Communication and Business Management to continue the FTC tradition of creating award-winning products and services.

Greg Kessler holds the position of Director of Operations for FTC Publishing.  He has oversight to all day to day operations, including customer service, finance, and general operations.  Having come from retail sales and merchandizing, Greg has been with FTC since 2009, and has brought a diverse background with him to manage our Publishing division. 

Joe McDermott holds the position of Vice President of Sales.  Joe has been involved in providing technology solutions for K-12 education for close to 20 years.  After having spent four years as Regional Sales Manager for an IT solutions provider in the UK, and two years selling LMS services as Director of Sales in Southeast Asia, Joe has brought to FTC the sales experience needed to head up both existing service offerings, as well as overseeing all sales efforts for our new Teacher Gaming Network.  Joe is grounded in our home office in Bloomington, IL.