NBC News is planning to launch its first “Education Nation” summit starting on September 26th. The week-long summit will feature a number of important education leaders in response to the nation’s lagging educational performance and its ever-changing educational landscape.
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Harlem Children Zone’s CEO Geoffrey Canada and MIT President Susan Hockfield top the lineup of experts that will assemble to address these issues head-on. The summit will also host teachers, parents and students from across the country who are interested in weighing in on the topics that impact them more than anyone else.
The summit, which will take place at Rockefeller Plaza in New York City, will serve as a call to action from one of the largest media organizations in the world. According to the Education Nation website, “National statistics show that 68% of eighth graders cannot read at their grade level; American students rank 25th in math and 21st in science compared to 30 other industrialized countries; and most college students are ‘non-traditional’ -- spending more than four years in college or enrolling well after high school.”
For a nation boasting the world's largest economy and having traditionally been a hotbed of innovation, these are some staggering and telling statistics. NBC believes that education is key to maintaining America's success.
NBC News trusts that hosting this large summit and bringing “more than 300 big thinkers in government, politics, business and technology — as well as school administrators, teachers, parents and students from across the country” together will help advance stagnant dialogue on educational policy. Due to the strength and reach of the universal media company, NBC believes it has the unique ability to bring these issues to the forefront of the nation’s attention.
According to the press release, “The goal of ‘Education Nation’ is to provide clear information on how schools are performing, re-imagine what education in America can be, build on national momentum within the policy and reform communities, and inspire changes that enable our nation to prepare a skilled workforce to meet the demands of the future.”
To assist the two-day summit in advancing the education policy conversation, NBC will continue to provide comprehensive coverage of education for the entire week of September 26th across all its NBC News programs and platforms. This coverage will include educational success stories, stories showing the impact education has on our economy and country, and myths and truths about the educational system in place today.
NBC News is fulfilling its journalistic duty to cover the issues most pertinent to the nation and its viewers. NBC is working closely with its partners in order to turn Rockefeller Plaza into a learning plaza for this week-long event. The general public will be able to visit the plaza to explore and learn in interactive classrooms that utilize the most modern technologies and techniques used in award-winning classrooms across the country.
As “Education Nation” partner Bill Gates says, “...today's evidence-based reforms can make a huge difference for students. But it is critical that America's teachers and parents engage in these changes to bring higher and sustained achievement for all young people.” The only way this summit can be successful is if the general public gets involved in the conversation. Be sure to stay tuned for updates as NBC’s “Education Nation” week nears.
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