9:30 AM
to 11:00 AM
Role of the Board President
39 Attendees
Location
Palace: Salon VIII
Diane Morris, Field Service Representative, New Jersey School Boards Association; Mark H. Zitomer, ESQ, School Board Attorney, Schenck, Price, Smith & King, LLP; Terri Lewis, Field Service Reprresentative, NJSBA
Being the Board President can be a challenging position. A board president must balance the needs of all to be heard with the need to use the board's time efficiently and effectively. Whether the issue is personnel, a divided board, or public participation, the board president's leadership can help guide the board through these difficult situations. Using scenarios brought by both the presenters and those in attendance, the attendees will be given legal and practical information to navigate through the challenges they face. The roles and responsibilities of the Board President before, during and after the board meeting along with the Board President's relationship with fellow board members and the administration will all be part of this discussion.
Limited Capacity Max 30 attendees
11:30 AM
to 1:00 PM
New Jersey Charter Schools, Surveying the Landscape
7 Attendees
Location
Palace: Salon VIII
Morton Marks, School Business Administrator/Technology Director and founder of the NJ Charter Schools Business and Technology Association; Mitchel P. Mund, President, Fortitude Insurance; Mendham Kamaal Bennett, President, New Jersey Education Consortium (NJEC), Keyport
There are many misunderstandings circulating about New Jersey charter schools. This program will clearly detail the funding issues for charters vs. boards of education and will spotlight potential points of collaboration between the two. There will also be discussion of new developments for charters in insurance (Educators Benefits Alliance) and purchasing and sports collectives (N.J. Education Consortium).
Limited Capacity Max 40 attendees
3:00 PM
to 4:30 PM
Costing Out the Labor Agreement
24 Attendees
Location
Palace: Salon VIII
Type Action Lab, Labor Relations
Speakers to be determined
Now more than ever, boards are faced with limited financial resources and, in some cases, unrealistic demands by unions. In order to develop your bargaining parameters and to counter the union's demands, the board must have a firm handle on its starting point in terms of all dollars, and how these dollars are distributed. This action lab will provide the necessary tools to calculate the cost of the existing salary guide, increments, employee health benefits, as well as how potential salary increases and proposed salary guides will affect district finances. The program illustrates how a "total compensation" approach can help districts maintain control over the total cost of any negotiated settlement. Please bring a calculator with you.
Limited Capacity Max 30 attendees
9:30 AM
to 11:00 AM
AVID Tutorology Study Sessions: Collaboarting to Raise Student Achievement
7 Attendees
Location
Palace: Salon VIII
Type Action Lab, Curriculum
Joseph Jones, Superintendent, Woodbury City School District; Donna Cohen, AVID Teacher Coach; Maria Lario-Schuman, Teacher
Understand how students can initiate AVID tutorology sessions in their districts in order to enable them to ask and answer higher-level thinking questions, use them for group discussions and to master challenging material or engage in a Socratic Seminar. Use reading, writing, and inquiry to take interactive notes that engage students and enhance achievement. Board members will write higher-level questions and engage in a tutorology session. After using questioning strategies to understand a text, board members will form a Socratic Seminar to collaborate in discussing the controversial aspects of the reading to deepen their understandings. To enhance their learning they will take interactive notes (Cornell).
Limited Capacity Max 30 attendees
11:30 AM
to 1:00 PM
NJ EXCEL: A Model for Leadership Succession
3 Attendees
Location
Palace: Salon VIII
Scott Rocco, Interim Superintendent, Hillsborough Township Public Schools, instructor in the NJ EXCEL Program
The quality of school leadership and teaching are two of the most critical factors to ensure equal opportunity and learning for all students---and they are inextricably linked. NJ EXCEL (Expedited Certification for Educational Leadership) is a state-approved non-traditional program leading to certification for supervisor, principal, school administrator, and director of school counseling services in lieu of traditional graduate studies in educational administration. This presentation will address the context, process and content of NJ EXCEL. Jeff Graber, Ed.D., Associate Director of School Leadership Programs, Foundation for Educational Administration
Limited Capacity Max 40 attendees
3:00 PM
to 4:30 PM
Problems as Opportunities: Understanding 21st Century Learning
13 Attendees
Location
Palace: Salon VIII
Type Action Lab, Curriculum
Richard Freedman, Principal, River Dell School District; Dr. Nancy Sulla, President of IDE Corp
When it comes to developing 21st century skills in our students, it's not about changing the content of our courses, but reimagining our instructional approach. The Partnership for 21st Century Skills challenges us to help our students develop their critical thinking, time management, creativity, flexibility, and technological literacy. In the real world, it is often a problem that requires new learning and innovation. Problems require us to look at the knowledge and information we have and apply these skills. How can we capture this thinking pattern in our classroom? How can we help our students apply content knowledge and information to real world situations? In this session, we will revisit the concept of problem-based learning as the core of a 21st century classroom. Participants will examine how an authentic problem is the best model for engaging this generation of students as active participants in the learning process. In this session, participant will experience a classroom simulation in which they grapple with content in order to solve an authentic problem. During the simulation, participants will manage their own time, make decisions regarding learning experiences, and collaborate with others to work towards a solution to the proposed problem. Participants will also have the opportunity to explore classroom materials that teachers are currently using to implement this instructional approach into their classrooms.
Limited Capacity Max 30 attendees
