SARA
LAWRENCE-LIGHTFOOT
Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot is a sociologist studying the culture of schools, the
patterns and structures of classroom life, the relationships between adult developmental
themes and teacher's work, and socialization within families, communities, and
schools. She will be speaking on topics from her most recent book, Respect:
An Exploration, where she reaches deep into human experience to find the essence
of this powerful quality-respect. She is currently an Emily Hargroves Fischer
Professor of Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
PEDRO
NOGUERA
Dr. Pedro Noguera is currently the Judith K. Dimon Professor of Communities and
Schools at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Dr. Noguera's research focuses
on the ways in which schools respond to social and economic forces within the
urban environment. He has engaged in collaborative research with several large,
urban school districts, and he has published and lectured on topics such as youth
violence, race relations within schools, the potential impact of school choice
and vouchers on urban public schools, and secondary issues resulting from desegregation
in public schools.
WILLIAM
AYERS
William Ayers is a school reform activist, Distinguished Professor of Education,
and Senior University Scholar at the University of Illinois at Chicago where he
teaches courses in interpretive research, urban school change, and youth and the
modern predicament. He is the founder and co-director of the Small Schools Workshop.
Ayers has written extensively about social justice, democracy, and education.
His interests focus on the political and cultural contexts of schooling as well
as meaning and ethical purposes of teaching.
DEBORAH
MEIER
Deborah Meier is the principal of Mission Hill Elementary School in Boston; she
also serves as Vice-Chair Emerita of the CES National Board. Meier has spent more
than three decades working in public education as a teacher, writer, and public
advocate. She was the founder and teacher-director of a network of highly successful
public elementary and secondary schools in East Harlem and the founder-principal
of Central Park East Secondary School. Meier is the author of The Power of
Their Ideas and Will Standards Save Public Education? Meier will be
joined by Jay Rosner, Executive Director of The Princeton Review Foundation.
JAMES
A. BANKS
James A. Banks is Russell F. Stark University Professor and Director of the Center
for Multicultural Education at the University of Washington, Seattle. He is a
past President of the American Educational Research Association and of the National
Council for the Social Studies. Professor Banks is a specialist in social studies
education and in multicultural education, and has written many articles and books
in these fields. His books include Educating Citizens in a Multicultural Society,
Teaching Strategies for the Social Studies, and The Handbook of Research
on Multicultural Education. Professor Banks will be speaking on topics of
citizenship education, diversity, and curriculum transformation.
TONY
WAGNER
Tony Wagner is the Co-Director of the Change Leadership Group (CLG) at the Harvard
Graduate School of Education. CLG prepares individuals to be effective "coaches"
for systemic change efforts in schools and districts. Tony will speak on topics
of the new village school and local accountability from his new book: Making
the Grade: Reinventing America's Schools. Wagner describes how to persuade
skeptical audiences of the need for schooling on a human scale and what changes
must be made to transform traditional schools.
AWELE
MAKEBA
Awele Makeba is an international storyteller, award winning recording artist (Trailblazers:
African American's in the California Gold Rush and Tell That Tale Again), playwright
(Rage Is Not A 1-Day Thing!), Reading/Language Arts Specialist, and a Master of
Arts in Elementary Education candidate at San Francisco State University. Awele
has researched primary and secondary sources and uncovered significant yet neglected
figures of American history who speak to us, across the span of many generations,
for the first time. Awele will perform "Rage Is Not a One-Day Thing!,"
a multi-disciplinary performance utilizing theatre, oral history, and music to
explore issues of identity, power, vision, voice, social justice and the roles
of teenagers and women who sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
HUDI
PODOLSKY
Hudi Podolsky is the Executive Director of the Coalition of Essential Schools.
She leads the CES National team in developing the organization’s vision and
strategic plan and providing support to the network of affiliated CES regional
centers and schools. Previous to this position, Hudi served as a CES National
Board member and had a long career at the Hewlett Packard Corporation (HP). In
addition to management roles in information technology and human resources, she
was a leader in HP's K-12 support efforts. As an adjunct professor at San Jose
State University, Hudi develops and teaches courses in management and leadership
for elementary school teachers and prospective high school principals. Her own
experience as a middle school teacher in the Santa Fe Public Schools has been
an important touchstone for her work.