7:00 AM -- 4:00 PM
Registration Desk (session #300)

7:00 AM -- 4:00 PM
Cyber Cafe (session #310)

7:30 AM -- 8:15 AM
Buffet Breakfast (session #315)

8:15 AM -- 8:30 AM
Read for the Record (session #320)
Again this year, the Pearson Foundation is the founding sponsor of Jumpstart’s Read for the Record Campaign, an international campaign to bring young people together with valued grownups in their lives to read the same book, on the same day, in communities all over the world. On October 7th, Pearson aims to make Read for the Record bigger than ever by sharing this year’s book “The Snow Day” online via their new We Give Books literacy initiative. In the process, record-breakers will also help donate classic children’s books to young people in classrooms across the United States.

PARTICIPANTS
	Mark Nieker, President, The Pearson Foundation, New York

8:30 AM -- 9:15 AM
Beyond Business as Usual–Key State Actions to Boost College and Career Readiness (session #321)
Current methods of helping high school students attain college readiness have resulted in unacceptable remediation rates in two- and four-year postsecondary institutions nationwide, and often have been completely disassociated from the skills and knowledge students need to be career-ready. David Conley will explore the components of a more comprehensive definition of college and career readiness, and state policies to better assist all students in achieving their post-high school goals.

PARTICIPANTS
	David T. Conley, CEO, Educational Policy Improvement Center, Oregon

9:15 AM -- 10:00 AM
Can the Right Measures Increase Innovation and Success? (session #322)
Successful organizations rely extensively on data analysis, yet few K-12 districts have the metrics they need to do the same. How can collecting data on the right things contribute to an environment where innovation can thrive?

PARTICIPANTS
	Frederick Hess, Director of Education Policy Studies, American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, District of Columbia

10:00 AM -- 10:15 AM
Break (session #323)

10:15 AM -- 11:15 AM
More with David Conley (session #325)
Ask Dr. Conley your questions about what college and career readiness should look like in state policy.

PARTICIPANTS
	David T. Conley, CEO, Educational Policy Improvement Center, Oregon

10:15 AM -- 11:15 AM
Common Core Standards: What Role Will You Play? (session #326)
This session will be an interactive, hands-on opportunity for session participants to discuss the new Common Core State Standards and the impact they will have on states, students, teachers and classroom instruction. Michael Kirst will facilitate and moderate lively discussions and draw out what’s next for these new standards.

PARTICIPANTS
	Michael Kirst, Emeritus Professor for Education and Business Administration, Stanford University, California
	Malbert Smith, President, MetaMetrics, Inc., North Carolina

10:15 AM -- 11:15 AM
School Finance 101 (session #327)
These are the times that try men’s souls (and pocketbooks). Talk with school finance experts about how states fund schools and how your state might address this fiscal crisis.

PARTICIPANTS
	Ronald Cowell, President, The Education Policy and Leadership Center, Pennsylvania
	Michael Griffith, Senior Policy Analyst, Education Commission of the States, Colorado
	Lawrence Picus, Professor, University of Southern California, California

10:15 AM -- 11:15 AM
The Role of Community and For-Profit Colleges in Increasing College Attainment (session #328)
It is becoming increasingly clear that in order for the U.S. to achieve President Obama’s goal of having the highest college attainment rate in the world by 2020, community colleges and for-profit institutions will need to play a critical role. Community colleges and for-profit institutions appear to be uniquely positioned to serve the non-traditional populations that must see improved college attainment rates to reach President Obama’s goal and improve our collective economic future. This session will focus on how community colleges and for-profit institutions are taking the challenge of increased college attainment seriously by developing innovative delivery models, groundbreaking policies and voluntary accountability systems to demonstrate their commitment to higher college attainment.

PARTICIPANTS
	Linda Baer, Senior Program Officer, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Washington
	Jack Massimino, Chairman, Corinthian Colleges, Inc., California

10:15 AM -- 11:15 AM
A State-District Partnership Approach for School Improvement: The Kansas Learning Network (session #329)
With a regularly shifting political tide and constant change in leadership at all levels, states, districts and schools need a clear research-based process for developing and implementing policies and practices that will yield predictable student achievement gains. The Kansas Learning Network fills that need by building and nurturing collaborative systems that support integrated and coherent change over time, at the state, district and school levels.

PARTICIPANTS
	Diane DeBacker, Interim Commissioner of Education, Kansas Department of Education, Kansas
	Darren Dennis, Director of Learning Services, Garden City Public Schools, Kansas
	Joan Evans, Senior Consultant, Cross and Joftus, LLC, California

11:20 AM -- 12:20 PM
Improving Teacher Preparation and Teacher Effectiveness (session #330)
This Teacher Quality Plenary Panel will focus on new thinking and action related to teacher preparation efforts, how data is allowing for deeper evaluation of preparation programs and critical issues for policymakers to consider for improving the teacher pipeline. National teacher preparation experts will discuss and debate best practices.

PARTICIPANTS
	Tony Bennett, Superintendent of Public Instruction, Indiana Department of Education, Indiana
	Holly Franks Boffy, 2010 Louisiana State Teacher of the Year, Paul Breaux Middle School, Louisiana
	Jonathan Plucker, Director and Professor, Center for Evaluation and Education Policy, Indiana University, Indiana
	Paul Reville, Secretary of Education, Executive Office of Education, Massachusetts
	Philip Schmidt, Associate Provost, Western Governors University, Utah

12:20 PM -- 12:30 PM
Break (session #331)

12:30 PM -- 1:45 PM
Preparing Teachers & School Leaders: Meeting the Challenges of the 21st Century (session #335)
While the recruitment and preparation of teachers and school principals have raised major challenges in the United States and often have been deeply contentious issues, there is strong agreement that solving the dilemma is a necessary centerpiece of effective reform. This talk will discuss the challenges we face, what we know about what works, and new directions that are emerging, recommending critical steps for the future. New York Assemblywoman Barbara Clark will present the 2010 ECS James Bryant Conant Award to Linda Darling-Hammond.

PARTICIPANTS
	Barbara Clark, Assemblywoman, New York Assembly; ECS Vice Chair; Member, ECS Executive and Steering Committees; Board Member, NCLC; New York
	Linda Darling-Hammond, Charles E. Ducommon Professor of Education, Stanford University, California

1:45 PM -- 3:15 PM
Getting to Yes: A Discussion Between Congressional Leaders and State Governors (session #336)
We share the same goals. State and Congressional leaders want youth and adults to be better prepared. They seek an economy that is globally competitive; higher graduation rates (high school and college); reductions in the need for remediation; clear pathways to enter the skilled workforce and earn a living wage; more citizens who contribute to the quality of life in each community and who set a high bar for the next generation of leaders to reach. But too often – in exchange for federal dollars – states are doing things that simply don’t make sense to them. What are the most critical pieces of Perkins, ESEA or the Workforce Investment Act that contribute to these unintended results? How can we shape policy at the federal level in a way that gives states flexibility and the tools for success?

PARTICIPANTS
	Phil Bredesen, Governor, State of Tennessee, Tennessee
	Frederick Hess, Director of Education Policy Studies, American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, District of Columbia
	Bob Wise, Former Governor, West Virginia, President, Alliance for Excellent Education, District of Columbia

3:15 PM
ECS National Forum Adjourns (session #340)

3:15 PM -- 5:00 PM
Starting Strong by Building Effective PreK to Grade 3 Systems (session #345)
This special session — supported by Pre-K Now, a campaign of the Pew Center on the States — will address how states and districts can build college and workforce readiness by enacting policies that strengthen teaching and learning in preschool and the early grades. Session highlights include:

• Keynote address from Jerry Weast (featured in the new book, Leading for Equity: The Pursuit of Excellence in the Montgomery County Public Schools, by Stacey M. Childress, Denis P. Doyle and David A. Thomas)
• Pre-K policy experts from the Pew Center on the States share best practices
• Facilitated group discussion: Making PK-3 a Reality in My State.

PARTICIPANTS
	David S. Beard, Senior Associate, The Pew Charitable Trusts, District of Columbia
	Allison de la Torre, The PEW Charitable Trusts, District of Columbia
	Kristie Kauerz, Program Director, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Massachusetts
	Jerry Weast, Superintendent of Montgomery County Schools, Maryland