Posts Tagged ‘events’

Gain a Sense of Connection at the State Leaders Institute

SLI 2015
Chapter leaders listen intently at the 2015 State Leaders Institute

In 2015, I participated for the first time in AACTE’s State Leaders Institute (SLI). In thinking about what I gained from participation, the phrase that comes to mind again and again is a sense of connection.

Psychological research suggests that those who feel consciously connected with others—or with their environment, or with anything that is larger than themselves—tend to be more physically and mentally healthy than others. Perhaps it’s too lofty to suggest that your participation in SLI will improve your overall well-being, but I can testify to several practical benefits!

Preparing Teachers to Serve Military-Connected Students: Progress and Promise

I had the honor of attending a half-day conference at the White House last month celebrating the Operation Educate the Educators program, a joint initiative of AACTE and the Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC) to better prepare school personnel to meet the needs of military-connected children.

The April 13 event marked not only the Month of the Military Child but also the 5-year anniversary of Joining Forces, a critical initiative launched by First Lady Michelle Obama and Second Lady Dr. Jill Biden to support military families’ health, education, and employment. Operation Educate the Educators is a key player in the education component, comprising an impressive array of programming at more than 100 AACTE member institutions and others across the country. Biden also spoke on a related panel earlier in the week at the American Educational Research Association conference.

Grant to Support State Leaders Institute Sessions

Please join AACTE for a free policy discussion and reception June 6! RSVP here.

Each summer, AACTE’s State Leaders Institute (SLI) brings together leaders of the Association’s state chapters to discuss important trends in state policies and to advocate for the profession. This year, the institute will be held June 5-6 as part of AACTE’s 2016 Washington Week, themed “Diverse Perspectives, Deep Partnerships, One Profession,” at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, VA.

Thanks to a grant from the Learning First Alliance’s Get It Right campaign, the 2016 SLI will offer interactive sessions highlighting how state policy for college- and career-ready standards will be affected by the recently passed Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and the implications for educator preparation. Participants will gain a deeper understanding about the uniqueness of individual states, find ways in which they are similar, and discover how those similarities can help frame a common message.

Arts Education Partnerships Seeks Session Proposals

The Arts Education Partnership seeks concurrent session proposals for its 2016 National Forum, to be held October 5-7 in Denver, Colorado. Proposals are due by Friday, June 17, at 5:00 p.m. PDT.

The Arts Education Partnership is a center within the Education Commission of the States, a national state policy organization that partners with education policy leaders, including AACTE. For the 2016 National Forum, partners and leaders from around the nation are invited to share their exemplary work supporting the role and contribution of the arts to prepare all students for the “next America.”

Book Your Hotel by May 16 for AACTE’s Washington Week

AACTE’s Washington Week this June will be based at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, VA, located minutes away from downtown Washington, DC. Take advantage of AACTE’s special hotel rate and get complimentary high-speed Internet in guest rooms and meeting spaces when you make your hotel reservation within the AACTE room block by May 16.

The hotel offers guests complimentary shuttle service to and from the Reagan National Airport, just one mile away. Enjoy the Crystal Gateway Marriott hotel amenities, including three on-site dining options and convenient lobby access to the Metro.

The hotel will host most of the events of AACTE’s Washington Week June 5-8, ranging from advocacy opportunities to policy briefings, networking receptions, and more under the theme “Diverse Perspectives, Deep Partnerships, One Profession.”

‘Forward-Looking Focus’ Inspires New Leaders at AACTE Academy

For new or prospective deans and department chairs, there’s no better place to get up to speed than AACTE’s Leadership Academy, June 26-30 in Portland, Oregon.

Have you ever puzzled over the relationship between a dean and a department chair? Struggled to organize an effective meeting or to get your message across to higher administration? Wondered how to approach persistent dilemmas or deal with difficult people? These are just some of the topics that past attendees say provided valuable lessons during the Leadership Academy.

“It was very beneficial to listen to others’ experiences and solutions to our similar challenges,” one participant wrote. “These ideas will help me be more efficient and celebrate faculty more.”

Advance Your Career at AACTE’s Leadership Academy

Are you a new dean or department chair—or simply looking to advance your career as an academic administrator? Get ahead at AACTE’s Leadership Academy this June in Portland, Oregon!

AACTE’s Leadership Academy is held each summer as a professional development training for new deans, department chairs, and other academic administrators. The academy covers the essentials of leadership, from managing finite resources to effective development and public relations, while helping attendees cultivate a supportive network of peers.

Resources Available on Using AACTE Policy Tracker

Last week, I hosted a webinar demonstrating the AACTE State Policy Tracker, an online tool that provides an interactive and user-friendly way for member institutions and state chapters to be more informed on state legislation and regulations related to educator preparation.

The webinar’s video recording and presentation slides are now available here.

If you have any questions or would like to learn more about the online policy tracker, contact me at agoldstein@aacte.org or (202) 478-4504.

Global Learning Colloquia Coming to Denver

AACTE is proud to support two daylong colloquia at the annual conference of NAFSA: Association of International Educators in Denver, Colorado, May 31 and June 3.

On Tuesday, May 31, the Global Learning Colloquium on Teacher Education will focus on the theme “High-Impact Global Learning Experiences and Curricular Design.” The program runs 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. and will address how to prepare preservice teachers to work with diverse populations, understand how their practice affects both local and global communities, and be culturally responsive in pedagogy and curriculum choices. Participants will hear from global education organizations as well as from teacher educators from California State University, Kent State University (OH), Southern Connecticut State University, the University of Connecticut, the University of Missouri, and the University of Nevada-Reno.

Please Join Me in June at AACTE’s Day on the Hill

I am so fortunate to have an opportunity to share my experiences in advocacy leadership at AACTE as chair of the Committee on Government Relations and Advocacy. It is my goal as chair to facilitate educator preparation advocacy at the state and national levels. The upcoming AACTE Day on the Hill, to be held June 7-8 as part of AACTE’s 2016 Washington Week, is an excellent opportunity for us all to develop and practice our advocacy skills together.

This 2-day event includes time to learn an effective advocacy strategy and then apply the strategy in scheduled visits with elected officials from our home states. Before the culminating congressional visits, participants will engage in a day of professional development focused on the knowledge and skills needed in advocacy efforts. We will hear from AACTE experts on what’s happening in Washington related to teacher preparation and discuss key issues that need the profession’s voice on the Hill.

Panelists, Participants Sought for U.S.–China Education Conference

Are you an expert who can speak on teacher quality issues? Are you interested in discussing education research, policy, and innovation for the knowledge-based economy with colleagues from China and the United States?

The College of Education and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Northern Colorado (UNC) seeks prospective teacher-quality panelists and general participants for an international conference in Beijing this June. There is no registration charge, but space is limited.

Five Tips for Writing a Successful AACTE Annual Meeting Proposal

Last year, AACTE received 400 session proposals for the 2016 Annual Meeting in Las Vegas. Given the limited number of spaces available for presentations, we were able to accept only 53% of the proposals.

Looking to present at AACTE’s 2017 Annual Meeting in Tampa? Want to make your proposal stand out from other proposals received? Here are five tips to help your proposal rise to the top:

Registration Now Open for AACTE Washington Week, June 5-8

Registration is now open for AACTE’s Washington Week, a set of advocacy-focused events held annually in the nation’s capital. Under the theme “Diverse Perspectives, Deep Partnerships, One Profession,” this year’s Washington Week will be held June 5-8 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, VA, and on Capitol Hill. Please join us to deliberate on provocative issues in the profession, experience interactive sessions with industry leaders, and showcase your work with legislators.

Call for Proposals: JUSTEC 2016

The 28th annual seminar of the Japan-U.S. Teacher Education Consortium (JUSTEC) will be held November 4-7, 2016, at Japan’s Ehime University. Conference organizers invite proposals for paper and poster presentations by May 15 under the theme “Collaborative Teacher Education With Local Communities.”

This year’s theme is conceptualized this way:

When we look at trends in formal education, the centralized administrative approach prevails more and more in both the United States and Japan. Such an approach has been pointed out by a number of reports to often produce detachment of teachers’ practices from local conditions and needs. On the other hand, when we look into region-oriented alternative approaches, we can still discover a considerable number of successful cases with alternative methods. JUSTEC 2016 sets a conference theme, “Collaborative Teacher Education with Local Communities,” to explore regionally developed teacher education practices, created with local schools and related parties.

Reflections of Holocaust Curriculum at Howard University

Just a few days remain to apply for the 2016 Holocaust Institute for Teacher Educators (HITE), a week-long, all-expenses-paid professional development opportunity in June at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. Applications close Friday, March 4!

AACTE member faculty are invited to apply through our online application. For more information, read this article or contact me at zvanhouten@aacte.org.