3
We’ll celebrate our 50
th
with a great conference!
When the planning for our
2014 Annual Conference began,
we challenged ourselves to put
together a truly special event.
We wanted to celebrate IASA’s
50
th
anniversary in the most
fitting way possible – to offer our
members a lineup of speakers
worthy of a Golden Anniversary.
As this issue of
Leadership
Matters
details, I think we
succeeded. I encourage you to
read the feature stories in this
edition about:
Hall Davidson
, Senior
Director of Global
Learning Initiatives for
Discovery Education.
Davidson, who won an
Emmy Award as the math
version of Bill Nye the
Science Guy on an
educational TV show, will
focus on education in the
digital age, a curriculum
shift that he says is one of
the most important in the
history of public
education.
Jon Gordon
, author of
“The Energy Bus,” which
made the Wall Street
Journal’s best-seller list.
Gordon has served as
consultant to a pretty
diverse audience ranging
from the Campbell Soup
Company to the NFL’s
Atlanta Falcons. He will
talk about “The Power of
Positive Leadership” and
how to neutralize “energy
vampires.”
Suhail Farooqui
, President and CEO of K12
Insight. Born and raised in India, Farooqui is a
naturalized citizen who truly has a global view of
public education in the United States. He is
staunch defender of public schools who thinks the
vocal minority have had center stage for too long.
Rafe Esquith
, perhaps the most decorated
teacher in America. Esquith teaches fifth grade at
Hobart Elementary School in inner-city Los
Angeles and his students were featured in the
PBS documentary “The Hobart Shakespeareans.”
He also is the author of the New York Times’ best
-seller “Teach Like Your Hair’s on Fire.”
In addition to that power-packed lineup, we have
invited both gubernatorial candidates to appear. We
also have an outstanding set of breakout sessions,
special events such as the “Super” 5K run early
Thursday morning, October 9, and the opportunity to
network with colleagues from all over the state.
We also have developed a special professional
development strand for new superintendents. I’d like
to urge you to reach out to new superintendents in
your region and issue a
personal invitation for them to
join you at the Annual
Conference. The
superintendency is quite
challenging even for veteran
superintendents, but it can be
especially daunting for brand
new superintendents.
Vision 20/20 update
The Vision 20/20
committees, our Statewide
School Management Alliance
partners and other endorsing
organizations are still
tweaking some of the
language for the final
document, but we are inching
closer to completing one of
the most ambitious projects
ever undertaken by IASA.
I will be giving updates
and answering questions as I
travel around the state to
attend region meetings in the
next several weeks. The
release needs to be
strategically timed so that it
receives the attention it
deserves. Before the release occurs, IASA members
will be provided with a summary and talking points
because success will depend on a grassroots effort at
the local level.
In creating a vision and a road map for the future
of public education in Illinois, what we really are doing
is making a promise to the more than 2 million
children who depend on us to provide them the best
possible educational opportunities. We are going to
need everyone’s help in order to fulfill that promise.
Message from the
Executive Director
Dr. Brent Clark
Hall Davidson
Jon Gordon
Suhail Farooqui
Rafe Esquith
Headline Speakers
