Keene State College Welcomes New Hampshire Educators
Keene State College recently partnered with the New Hampshire Department of Education to welcome nearly 500 educators from every corner of the state to a three-day conference on the KSC campus. The theme of this year’s conference was “The Changing World of Teaching and Learning.” Representing Stewartstown in the north, to Manchester in the south, educators had an opportunity to hear from internationally recognized experts including several members of the Keene State community.
Conference presenters shared the latest thinking on common core strategies to transform the classroom, incorporate competency-based teaching and learning, and use data to advance educational outcomes. Participants in the conference also had ample time to network and share their best practices with each other.
Keynote speakers included Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond, Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education at Stanford University, Dr. David Conley, Professor and Director of the Center for Educational Policy Research, Educational Methodology, Policy and Leadership at the University of Oregon’s College of Education, and Dr. Scott Marion, Associate Director of the National Center for Improvement in Educational Assessment.
Members of the Keene State community featured prominently at the conference. Dr. Melinda Treadwell, KSC Provost, provided the opening welcome and overview of each day, and offered a session on “Smarter Balanced-Assessing College and Career Readiness-We Are All in This Together!” Dr. Steve Bigaj, Associate Dean and Professor in the Education, Special Education, and Early Childhood Department, and Dr. Deborah Black, a member of the faculty in the School Counseling Graduate Program, offered a session on “Action Research for Professional Development.” Dr. Nancy Lory co-presented a program on school/college partnerships describing KSC’s programming in the Marlborough, New Hampshire schools that brings aspiring student teachers and their faculty into the classroom. The program generated considerable media attention for KSC and its innovative approach to student teaching. A reception and technology showcase on the second day featured a presentation by Lisa David and Alyssa Marinaccio from the KSC Office of Disability Services.
A number of sessions focused on the use of technology in the classroom and conference presenters provided training and numerous demonstrations for participants.
“Hosting the Statewide Educator’s Conference was a tremendous opportunity to showcase the exceptional work that is being done in New Hampshire schools,” stated Dr. Melinda Treadwell, KSC’s provost. “I am so pleased that the KSC community provided a venue for sharing innovative practice in education and new applications for incorporating technology in the classroom.”
