An Education and Workforce Summit to Prepare Young People for the Future

Montgomery County Councilmember Nancy Navarro will host the “Ready for Tomorrow: Education and Workforce Summit” at the White Oak Community Recreation Center on Oct. 18 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

This year’s theme features “Closing the academic achievement gap” and “Preparing young people for the jobs of the future.”

“Closing the achievement gap is often discussed in moralistic terms–they say it is the “civil rights issue of our time. While promoting social equality is an important goal, the reality is that this country will not succeed unless our students today have the education they need for the jobs of tomorrow. Since the majority of students now entering kindergarten and first grade are of color, eliminating the academic achievement gap and scaling up successful workforce development programs is more important than ever,” Navarro said.

At the event, three discussion sessions will take place:

–   “Today and Tomorrow: National and Local Trends in Education and the Labor Force”  at 9:50 a.m. featuring Richard Frye of the Pew Research Center; Bruce Crispell, the director of long-range planning for Montgomery County Public Schools; and Casey Anderson, chair of the Montgomery County Planning Board. T

– “Education Pioneers: Supporting Excellence in Teaching and Learning for All” featuring Joshua Starr, superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools; DeRionne Pollard, president of Montgomery College; and Stewart Edelstein, associate vice chancellor for academic affairs at the Universities at Shady Grove. The conversation starts at 10:35 a.m.

– “Think Globally, Act Locally: Private and Public Sector Perspectives” featuring Antonio Tijerino, president of the Hispanic Heritage Foundation; Joy Carr of United Therapeutics Corporation; and a representative from the White House’s My Brother’s Keeper Initiative. Starting at 11:25 a.m.

The summit is sponsored by Montgomery County, Percontee, Inc., Pepco, the Montgomery County Business Roundtable for Education, the office of County Councilmember Cherri Branson, Montgomery County Public Schools and the Montgomery County Education Association.

The White Oak Community Recreation Center is at 1700 April Lane in Silver Spring, and the event is free.

About Aline Barros

Aline Barros is a multimedia reporter and community engagement specialist with Montgomery Community Media. She can be reached at Abarros@mymcmedia.org and on Twitter at @AlineBarros2.

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