Last weekend I had an outstanding time at the Ritz Carlton in Laguna. I was fortunate to be a keynote speaker for the Urban Executive Leadership Forum sponsored by the National Center for Education Research & Technology (NCERT) and corporate partner Renaissance Learning, Inc. The education summit was designed for executives of large urban districts in Arizona, California, Minnasota, Nevada, Texas, and Wisconsin.
The purpose of this event was to provide peer-to-peer networking opportunities with some of the key educational leaders across the country to discuss some of the most difficult challenges facing education. The four key areas discussed were:
- Urban Issues and Innovations
- Common Core State Standards
- Implementation Research Teacher Effectiveness, and
- National Education Policy, NCLB, ESEA, and beyond
For me, having an opportunity to tell my story from Homeless 2 Harvard was a great way to speak on behalf of thousands of urban youth who are gifted for greatness but need to be surrounded by mentors and adults who love them, encourage them, and bring out the best in them. This was the first time I used www.prezi.com for my powerpoint presentation and I received raved reviews about my message. Every school leader in America needs to hear what I have to say. Hearts were turned in a major way!
One of the best parts of the weekend was having my family join me and experiencing the quality customer service of the Ritz Carlton Staff...I have come far from my days of being homeless and I still feel that my best days are still ahead of me!