A Note from Middle States Region VP Bob Alig
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 VP Bob Alig |
Greetings from the Middle States Regional Office. In this challenging time in education, we are witnessing some exciting initiatives by our state and local leaders. Connection seems the perfect forum to share these stories from around our region with you. In this issue, our focus is Delaware.
On Oct. 27, Delaware educators, business leaders and elected officials convened for the Vision 2015 conference at the University of Delaware to talk about education reform for every student. Presentations were given by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Gov. Jack Markell, Delaware Secretary of Education Lillian M. Lowery and University of Delaware President Patrick Harker. In his remarks, Secretary Duncan noted that Delaware is positioned very competitively for Race to the Top funding, stating, “Delaware has a chance, I think, to lead the country. This is a state of manageable size. ... Delaware can help lead us where we need to go.” Yet he added that to make real progress for every student, we must commit to doing things differently.
Panels consisting of national and local experts discussed how Delaware can recruit and retain more highly effective teachers and meet the critical needs of chronically low-performing schools. William Guenther, president and founder of Mass Insight Education and Research Institute, shared his success with using AP® and STEM as a turnaround model of school reform in Massachusetts.
Delaware’s reform initiatives also include the new Common Core State Standards Initiative. Delaware is well positioned to support the new standards, as stated by Michael W. Stetter, director of the Curriculum Development Workgroup at the Delaware Department of Education. “Delaware is an active participant in the national Common Core Standards consortium effort organized by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers. We believe that Delaware and the other states will benefit from the goal of the consortium — fewer, clearer and higher standards for our students.”
Delaware and our other state partners are well positioned to secure federal funding to advance their critical work on behalf of students across the region. We look forward to working with you to support these efforts.
2010 Middle States Regional Forum
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| Sharon Hassan |
A message from Sharon Hassan, director of student financial aid at Goucher College in Baltimore and chair-elect of the Middle States Regional Council:
In my role as chair-elect of the Middle States Regional Council, I am responsible for working with our regional council members and College Board regional staff members to plan Middle States Regional Forum 2010. The regional council began planning the forum last spring, after reviewing your feedback from last year’s gathering. I then asked the council to forget the traditional structure of the regional forum and help me design a more dynamic program that better addresses the needs of educators across our region. For 2010, we will focus on a cross-sector of issues affecting education professionals, as well as tailor sessions for each area of specialty. The sessions will be interactive and interdisciplinary, providing participants with tools they can use when they return to their offices. In most cases, panels with facilitators have replaced single presenters to provide diverse viewpoints for more interesting, in-depth discussions. You spoke, and we listened! Middle States Regional Forum 2010 will provide relevant sessions and offer more deliberate and creative opportunities for participants to network with colleagues, as we transform the future using what we learn from one another. I look forward to seeing each of you in Philadelphia.
Register now for the 2010 Middle States Regional Forum — it’s a professional development and networking event that you can’t afford to miss! Be sure to register by Dec. 31, to take advantage of special conference and hotel rates. http://www.collegeboard.com/msforum
College Board, SUNY Host Education Policy Event
in Albany
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| SUNY Chancellor Nancy Zimpher |
The College Board and SUNY’s University at Albany cohosted a one-day education policy event Nov. 10 on the University of Albany campus. “What the New Era of Education Reform Means for Higher Education” addressed some of the most pressing issues facing higher education, with special emphasis on the insights into policy and best practices from higher education leaders, college administrators and the U.S. Department of Education.
Middle States Regional Vice President Bob Alig opened the meeting by highlighting the importance of connecting kids to college success through listening, sharing ideas and offering actionable solutions. Sandy Baum, College Board senior policy analyst and co-chair of the Rethinking Student Aid study group, spoke about “Rethinking Federal Financial Aid: Moving Closer to Meaningful Reform,” stressing the need to consider broader barriers to education than the financial ones. Baum asked, “How can we best apply funds in student aid that would also increase educational opportunities? We need to open our minds to the barriers students face and focus on how to make real change happen.” She discussed recent conversations with the administration and with educators, policymakers, parents and students across the country.
A dynamic and nationally recognized leader in higher education, SUNY Chancellor Nancy Zimpher reminded everyone of President Barack Obama’s mandate that “education comes first,” and stressed how important this is to the country’s future success. Every child needs to graduate, no exceptions, she said. She explained the role that SUNY plays in this equation with more than 30 community colleges and four-year university programs. Zimpher says she believes fundamentally that we don’t have a strong system of public education, but rather a series of silos knitted together by state and federal government to serve America’s youth. “We can’t continue to have this disconnect within the education system,” she said. “We must collaborate across the education pipeline and close its gaps and silos.” Critical next steps include plugging the pipeline, which “currently leaks both students and teachers”; closing gaps in the system; and collaborating across all sectors and agencies. Zimpher offered Cincinnati’s “Strive” and New York City’s “Harlem Children’s Zone” as strong examples of success.
Attendees heard from two panels that explored ways to help students complete college, which included identifying financial and educational resources and offering access to more programs. Other topics included how to prepare students to be 21st-century leaders; understanding the connection between underlying costs such as health care and student financial success; closing the achievement gaps for underprivileged and minority groups; keeping students motivated and engaged based on the needs of today’s students; and supporting policies that are relevant to today’s student demographic. Panelists included Zakiya Smith, policy adviser in the Office of the Undersecretary, U.S. Department of Education; Shirley Ort, College Board Trustee and associate provost and director of scholarships and student aid at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Dennis Hefner, president of SUNY–Fredonia; Art Coleman, managing partner and cofounder of EducationCounsel LLC; Wayne Locust, vice provost for enrollment management at SUNY–Albany; and the College Board’s Board of Trustees Chair Youlonda Copeland-Morgan, who also serves as associate vice president for enrollment management and director of scholarships and student aid at Syracuse University.
Smith said that the Obama administration is aware that we can’t fix the economy without training the people to do it. Reforming the financial aid system and focusing on college completion to restore the U.S. position as the number one country in the world in terms of college graduates are top priorities. They want to encourage people to think about college as a “public good,” which means that everyone has responsibility for college success.
Hefner made the point that while public universities offer a more affordable college option to students, federal financial aid programs such as the Pell Grant Program are invaluable in increasing college accessibility to a broader spectrum of students. Locust said that a comprehensive approach focusing on early preparation, persistence and college completion will be needed to repair the education pipeline. In his remarks, Coleman stated that the important distinctions between “access” and “diversity” should inform the development of institutional policies.
The SUNY event is a part of the College Board’s ongoing efforts to bring together educators and policymakers to discuss issues and share ideas that will transform education in the United States.
College Board Members Elect New Trustees from the Middle States Region
At the Annual Meeting of the Members of the College Board, which took place Oct. 23 at Forum 2009, seven Trustees were elected to the 31-member governing board of the association. In addition, two Trustees who were appointed by regional assemblies last winter were installed.
In the Middle States Region, Daniel Rodas, vice president for planning and vice president of human resources at Long Island University in Brookville, N.Y., was elected to a five-year term as Trustee and will serve from 2009 to 2014. Arlene C. Ackerman, chief executive officer and superintendent of the School District of Philadelphia, was elected to a four-year term as Trustee and will serve from 2009 to 2013. Patricia McWade, dean of student financial services at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., is the newly installed chair of the College Scholarship Service Assembly and will serve on the Board of Trustees from 2009 to 2011.
The College Board’s Trustees are responsible for assisting in legal and fiduciary decisions; approving the mission, strategic goals and objectives of the organization; establishing policies; and advising those responsible for the management of the organization. The Board of Trustees administers the not-for-profit association with guidance from three national assemblies and six regional assemblies. Member institutions appoint a delegate to each of the three national assemblies — the Academic Assembly, the College Scholarship Service Assembly, and the Guidance and Admission Assembly. Each national assembly provides the College Board with guidance on the issues and College Board activities related to the professional areas represented.
Events & Workshops
Click here to see events and workshops in the Middles States Region.
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Be part of the dialogue that is helping shape change nationwide in education — and join your colleagues for an engaging program that will offer powerful solutions that you can apply to your school, your educational community and your own students.
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