Top Educators to Gather for Leadership Conference

New Haven, Conn., March 8, 2011 — More than 600 educators and leaders in education reform will convene at the fifth annual Yale School of Management Education Leadership Conference on Friday, March 25, at the New Haven Omni Hotel. The theme for this year’s event is "From Policy to Practice."

The conference is hosted by the Yale School of Management Education Club.

An opening night reception on March 24 will feature an address by Delaware governor Jack Markell, who led Delaware’s efforts to win $100 million in Race to the Top funding. The reception is open to those not attending the general conference; registration is $10.

Colorado state senator Mike Johnston will deliver the morning keynote address. Johnston served as a top education advisor to President Obama and co-founded New Leaders for News Schools, a national nonprofit that recruits and trains urban principals. A Teach for America alumnus, Johnston is a former high school teacher and principal. Forbes recently named him one of the "World’s Seven Most Powerful Educators" in recognition of his Great Teachers Law, which links teacher tenure to effectiveness.

A lunchtime keynote panel will focus on the national implications of education reform efforts in New Haven, including a ground-breaking contract with the local teachers’ union and the launch of the New Haven Promise scholarship program. Panelists include Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers; Andres Alonso, CEO of the Baltimore City Public Schools; and Reginald Mayo, superintendent of New Haven Public Schools. Alex Johnston, president of ConnCAN, will moderate the discussion.

A full day of panel discussions will address topics including graduate schools of education and how to improve the pipeline for teacher talent; reforming governance and whether school oversight is best served through traditional school boards, mayoral control, or an alternative model; how school districts can prioritize resources as state budgets tighten; cost-effective ways to bring healthy food and wellness programs into schools; and the future of teacher contracts.

In an interactive session titled "The Digital Classroom," participants will use newly emerging digital tools to explore the use of real-time data in the classroom, and then brainstorm ways that the technology can be used to help teachers facilitate differentiated instruction.

Finalists in the inaugural Yale School of Management Education Business Plan Competition will present their ideas for nonprofit and for-profit ventures that would have a positive impact on the K-12 education system. The winner will be awarded $10,000 in prize money donated by Wireless Generation and NewSchools Venture Fund. The winner of the second annual Yale-Lynn Hall Teacher Action Research Prize will also be announced.

For the full program, list of panelists, and registration, please visit the Yale SOM Education Conference website.

The conference is sponsored by Travelers, Charter Oak Challenge Foundation, the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN), the Parthenon Group, NewSchools Venture Fund, Wireless Generation, Uncommon Schools, and Harlem Village Academies.