- About -

Hello and welcome to gkroner.com, the personal web site of George Karl Kroner III. This site has changed its looks and purposes many times over the last few years, but I've finally settled on this design which meets both my personal and professional needs.

If you don't know who I am and made it here by accident or curiosity, I am a not-so-recent graduate of Penn State University having successfully completed a degree in Information Sciences and Technology. My final semester of college was spent studying abroad at the University of Wollongong in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. I'm the previous webmaster for the Penn State Student Red Cross Club. You might also know me from my work at the Penn State University Libraries. Most recently, however, I've been the solutions engineer for the Blackboard Developers Network.

I don't know what to call home since I've lived in many places throughout my life. I was born in Georgia and have lived in Alabama, West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania (in three places), North Carolina for a couple summers, Australia for almost half a year, and now Virginia. I've spent most of my time in Franklin, Pennsylvania and Youngstown, Ohio. I've been employed for a while now at Blackboard Inc., maker of the popular educational learning management system, in Washington D.C.

I'm an avid reader, enjoying mainly works of technical or historical value or political commentary. My favorite color is blue (as my girlfriend Stephanie would gladly let you know). I rarely get enough sleep. I always bite off more than I can chew (but in the words of one of my friends, I do proceed to "chew like hell"). I like to collect crafty interpretations of the acronym IST, my major from college. I'm a lifelong percussionist who used to pick up his banjo every once in a blue moon. Someday I'd like to learn to fiddle. I also consider everyone to be my friend until proven otherwise.

The glass is always half full. I rather enjoy challenging authority and the status quo in the hopes of making life better for everyone. I like to write, take pictures, hike, and bike. In fact, during the afternoon of any non-rainy day, you'll likely find me biking the 10 miles home from work on the Custis and W&OD bike trails.

Like my Dad, I like special dark chocolate. Unlike my Mom, I can't quite make it through an entire pot of coffee every day. :-)

I like woodworking and would like to be a carpenter someday. I also like to paint - both pictures and houses. I find myslf increasingly drawn to issues surrounding our environment.

In my bedroom, you'll find a world map showing the home locations of all the people I've worked with, a bass drum head signed by all the members of my high school marching band while I was its president, and a copy of the Declaration of Independence.

I am thankful for good friends. I value getting something done right over just getting it done. And yes, if you see a guy walking down the street wearing a Mexican sombrero, a Hawaiian lei, and the occasional grass skirt, that would be me.