Thursday, October 25, 2007

3:00 P.M. – 5:30 P.M. REGISTRATION

5:15 P.M. – 8:30 P.M.

WELCOME AND OPENING REMARKS

Richard C. Iannuzzi, President New York State United Teachers

Dr. Richard Mills, Commissioner, New York State Education Department.

KEYNOTE ADDRESS / DINNER

Donna Brazile, Political strategist, activist and author and Director of the National Political Congress of Black Women.

Friday, October 26, 2007

8:30 A.M. - 9:00 A.M . BREAKFAST BUFFET

9:00 A.M. - 10:00 A.M.PLENARY SESSION

Raising achievement and closing gaps

Nationally known and often-quoted leader of the influential Education Trust sets the stage for change and speaks to the steps needed to close the gap in New York.

Kati Haycock, Director, The Education Trust

10:00 A.M. - 12:15 P.M . PLENARY SESSION: WHAT RAISES ACHIEVEMENT AND CLOSES GAPS (OR NOT) IN SCHOOLS

Moderated Panel Discussion

Moderator: Ed Dague – Former Channel 13 News Anchor

Panelist: Ronald Ferguson, Lecturer in Public Policy, Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy, Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Panelist: David F. Shaffer, President, Public Policy Institute New York State Business Council

Panelist: Johanna Duncan-Poitier, Senior Deputy Commissioner of Education.

Panelist: Manuel Rivera, Deputy Secretary for Education, Former Superintendent Rochester City Schools.

Panelist: Randi Weingarten, President United Federation of Teachers

12:15 P.M. - 1:45 P.M.LUNCHEON

PLACING EQUITY AT THE CENTER OF SCHOOL REFORM

Pedro Noguera, Ph.D., Professor, New York University Steinhardt School of Education.

2:00 P.M. - 3:30 P.M . PROGRAM SESSIONS:

Session 1: Early Childhood Education

This session will give an overview of the research on effective preschool

Presenter: Debra Ackerman, Ph.D., Assistant Research Professor, National Institute for Early Education Research.

Session 2: Equity and Equality-Education Finance

This session will outline an evidence-based approach to school finance, that includes both research evidence on individual programs that work and the cost elements of strategies schools and school districts have used to dramatically improve student performance. The goal is to link more closely the level of education funding, the most effective use of those resources and improvements in student achievement.

Presenter: Allan Odden, Professor of Educational Administration and co director of the Consortium for Policy Research in Education in the Wisconsin Center for Education Research.

Session 3: Looking to the Future: Preparing our Teacher and Leadership Corps

Presenter: Ahmes Askia, Director of Professional development and the Project Director for the Newark National Urban Alliance.

Session 4: Raising Achievement for English Language Learners

Presenter: Luis Reyes, Visiting Fellow at the Bronx Institute and Coordinator of the Coalition for Educational Excellence for English Language Learners in New York City.

Session 5: Teacher Quality, Recruitment and Retention

Presenters:

Hamilton Lankford, Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Albany

Tricia Coulter, Director, Teaching Quality and Leadership Institute Education Commissions of the States.

Session 6: The Union’s Role

Presenters:

Adam Urbanski, President of Rochester Teachers Association and a Vice President of the American Federation of Teachers.

Susan Goodwin, Director of the Rochester Teacher Center in Rochester, New York.

Session 7: Career and Technical Education

Presenter: Jim Stone, Associate Professor at the University of Minnesota and Director of the National Research Center for Career and Technical Education.

Session 8: The Role of Remediation in Closing the Achievement Gap

Since the adoption of an open admission’s policy in 1969, CUNY faculty have been addressing New York City’s achievement gap in their teaching and research. This panel will bring together CUNY faculty who will discuss their experience and research related to developmental and remedial education issues, testing, and access. The panelists will comment on policy alternatives to close the achievement gap.

Presenters:

Lenore Beaky, Professor at LaGuardia Community College

William Crain, Professor at City College of New York

Peter Deraney, Professor at New York City College of Technology

David Lavin, Professor at Lehman College and the CUNY Graduate School and University Center

Moderator: Anne Friedman, Professor at Borough of Manhattan Community College; panel moderator.

Session 9: Public School Facilities: Providing Environments that Sustain Learning

Presenters:

Molly A. Hunter, Director, National Access Network Teachers College, Columbia University.

Fred Koelbel, President of the NYS Association of Superintendents of Buildings and Grounds and Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds at West Islip Public Schools.

Paul D. Tonko, President and CEO, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)

Session 10: Parent and Family Engagement - Why it Matters and How to Encourage More of it

Presenter:

Maria DeWald, NYS PTA President

3:30 P.M. – 4:00 P.M. BREAK

4:00 P.M. - 5:30 P.M . PLENARY SESSION

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND: A DIMINISHED VISION OF CIVIL RIGHTS

James Crawford, President, Institute for Language and Education Policy.

6:00 P.M. - 7:00 P.M . RECEPTION

Saturday, October 27, 2007

8:00 A.M. - 9:00 A.M . BREAKFAST BUFFET

9:00 A.M. - 10:30 A.M. PLENARY SESSION

UNDERSTANDING WHAT SCHOOLS CAN (AND CANNOT) DO

Dr. Richard Rothstein, Research Associate Economic Policy Institute, Professor Teacher College Columbia University.

10:30 A.M. - 12:00 P.M. PLENARY SESSION: Making a Better Connection Between the School and Community: The Community’s Role in Raising Achievement

Moderated Panel Discussion

Moderator: Ed Dague, former News Channel 13 anchor.

Panelist: Norm Fruchter , Director, Community Involvement Program, Annenberg Institute for School Reform.

Panelist: Karen Scharff, Executive Director, Citizen Action

Panelist: Debbie Benson, Acting Executive Director, New York State Children and Family Services.

Panelist: Gene Rodriguez, Coordinator, Capital District Worker Center.

Panelist: Rev. Dr. Edward B. Smart, Pastor, Israel A.M.E. Church Chair, African American Coalition for Empowerment and Albany Fighting Back Committee

12:00 P.M. - 12:30 P.M. PLENARY SESSION: OPEN FORUM

Moderator: Ed Dague

12:30 P.M. LUNCHEON

SPECIAL PRESENTATION: