Amid strapped state and local budgets and a weak national economy, some states and districts have responded to their budget woes by shortening the school week, laying off teachers, and withholding resources from innovative education reforms. Often, these decisions have been made with little regard to their impact on student achievement. Instead, the scarcity of resources should provide an opportunity to prioritize and make investments in strategies and reforms that are likely to yield positive academic outcomes in the long-term.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act offers an unprecedented opportunity to encourage bold, innovative education reforms that will bolster and strengthen America’s economic future. Strategic investments include initiatives that will support high quality instruction in the classroom and the hiring and retaining of effective teachers; school improvement strategies, such as expanded learning time, to help turn around struggling schools; and promising new models, such as early college high schools, to redesign American high schools and better prepare students for college and the workforce.
Join the Center for American Progress in an event to take stock of the current opportunities in education reform and discuss how strategic allocations of resources can lead to long-term education and economic growth. Speakers will discuss viable ways to use stimulus funds for reform, strategies to improve our schools, and how we can make sure highly effective teachers are in the places we need them most. In addition, several new reports related to expanded learning time and performance-based compensation for teachers will be released.
8:30 a.m. Registration
Light refreshments
9:00 a.m. Opening Plenary Session
Introduction of U.S. Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan
John Podesta, President and CEO, Center for American Progress
Opening Keynote
Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education
An overview of the day
Cynthia Brown, Vice President for Education Policy, Center for American Progress
9:45 a.m. Morning Plenary Session
Effective and Efficient Use of Resources and Opportunities for ARRA
Moderated by Raegen Miller, Associate Director for Education Research, Center for American Progress
Andrés A. Alonso, Chief Executive Officer, Baltimore City Public Schools
Peter C. Gorman, Superintendent, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Karen Hawley Miles, Executive Director, Education Resource Strategies
11:15 a.m. Morning Panel Discussions (Concurrent Sessions)
Panel I: School Improvement Strategies: Investing in Expanded Learning Time
Moderated by Cynthia Brown, Vice President for Education Policy, Center for American Progress
Cathy Cavanaugh, Associate Professor of Education Technology, University of Florida
Jennifer Davis, Co-Founder, Massachusetts 2020, and President, National Center on Time & Learning
José Salgado, Principal, The Umana Middle School Academy, East Boston, Massachusetts
Claire White, Program Director, Word Generation
Panel II: School Improvement Strategies: Strategic Investments in High Poverty Schools
Moderated by Melissa Lazarín, Associate Director of Education Policy, Center for American Progress
Joseph Johnson, Executive Director, National Center for Urban School Transformation
Bethany Little, Chief Education Counsel, Senate Committee on Health, Labor, Education, and Pensions
Adria Steinberg, Vice President, Jobs for the Future
12:45 p.m. Networking Lunch
1:30 p.m. Afternoon Plenary Session
Attracting and Retaining Effective Teachers in High Poverty Schools
Moderated by Robin Chait, Associate Director for Teacher Quality, Center for American Progress
Russlynn Ali, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education
Segun Eubanks, Director of Teacher Quality, National Education Association
Wesley Williams, Director of the Office of Educator Equity, Ohio Department of Education
Victoria Van Cleef, Vice President of Staffing Initiatives, New Teacher Project
3:00 p.m. Closing Remarks and Adjournment