Making sure high school students are well prepared for college entrance exams and course work as well as the application and scholarship process will be the focus of an education summit hosted by West Virginia University Wednesday, March 23, at the Embassy Suites in Charleston.
Setting the Standard for Excellence: A WVU Educational Summitis geared toward West Virginia high school guidance counselors, principals, teachers, other educators and state leaders in a day-long series of professional development workshops.
Topics include the importance of setting the groundwork for college success and opportunity; information on the new writing component of the SAT and optional writing component for the ACT ; ways to improve math and science skills; and an update on the requirements and deadlines for the states PROMISE Scholarship.
Its very important for those at the high school level who work with young peoplewhether they are teachers, counselors, principals or coachesto have the very latest information to help students succeed in college and in life,said WVU President David C. Hardesty.As a leader in higher education in West Virginia, WVU s administration, faculty and staff are committed to doing all we can to prepare the next generation of leaders. Bringing together these educators and mentors and providing them with the tools and information they need to help ensure student success will help accomplish that.
Increasing the states college going rate and improving student retention and graduation rates are also important messages for summit participants, he noted.
We also want to learn from educators what additional types of information WVU can provide to them and their college-bound students.
The day will get under way with a continental breakfast at 8:30 a.m., followed by a 9 a.m. presentation by Bruce Lindvall, Chief Educational Manager, Higher Educational Services, Midwestern Regional Office of the College Board, onThe New SAT and Writing: Preparing for College Success.Before joining the College Board in 2000, Dr. Lindvall spent 15 years as director of admissions at the University of Kansas and then as associate dean of the University of Kansas Edwards Campus, a graduate education center in the Kansas City area.
Laura Brady, director of WVU s Center for Writing Excellence, will speak at 10 a.m. onWriting, Testing and the Complexities of Student Learning.Brady recently received the CASE Professor of the Year award for West Virginia, and knows the importance of using writing in everyday life, whether its on an exam, writing a resume or working up a class assignment. She teaches undergraduate courses in composition and business writing, and graduate courses in rhetoric and pedagogy.
President Hardesty will give the keynote luncheon address, followed by a 1 p.m. session on the PROMISE Scholarship given by Executive Director Lisa DeFrank-Cole.
Dr. DeFrank-Cole previously worked for former Gov. Bob Wise as assistant for policy and research.
Director of WVU s Institute for Mathematics Learning, Robert Mayes, will follow with a 2 p.m. session,Standardized Math Assessments: So Whats a 23 Mean?
Dr. Mayes specializes in the use of technology and mathematical modeling in the teaching and learning of mathematics.
WVU Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Gerald Lang will serve as forum moderator.
The summit will conclude with a 4 p.m. wrap-up session and reception. A detailed itinerary can soon be found on the Web by visitingwww.wvu.eduand clicking on theEducation Summiticon.
Cost of the summit is being underwritten by WVU . Reservations are limited and will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. To register, educators should email WVU _Summit@mail.wvu.edu by Friday, March 11, and indicate name, school affiliation, phone, email and sessions they plan to attend. For further information, call Sue Davis at 304-293-3837.
WVU is truly excited to be hosting this first-of-its-kind event in West Virginia,Hardesty said.Our hope is that the educators who take part in this summit will walk away from it with greater knowledge on how to better prepare the leaders of tomorrow for a rewarding and successful college experience. And, if successful, we hope to offer other educational forums on various topics at other state locations.
Bruce Lindvall
Bruce Lindvall is Chief Educational Manager, Higher Education Services for the Midwestern Regional Office of the College Board. Before joining the College Board in 2000, Dr. Lindvall spent 15 years as director of admissions at the University of Kansas and then as associate dean of the University of Kansas Edwards Campus, a graduate education center in the Kansas City area. Lindvall also served Purdue University for 13 years as assistant director of admissions and as an assistant to the deans in the School of Veterinary Medicine. Lindvall earned his doctorate degree in higher education administration from Purdue University in 1985.
Laura Brady
Laura Brady has taught writing for 22 years. As director of WVU s Center for Writing Excellence, she oversees writing programs that serve some 8,000 undergraduate students a year. An associate professor, Dr. Brady joined the English faculty at WVU in 1991. She teaches undergraduate courses in composition and business writing and graduate courses in rhetoric and pedagogy. The Council for the Advancement and Support of Education recently named Brady its 2004 West Virginia Professor of the Year. She earned her doctorate degree from the University of Minnesota.
Lisa DeFrank-Cole
Lisa DeFrank-Cole serves as the executive director of the PROMISE Scholarship program. She previously aided former Gov. Bob Wise as assistant for policy and research. Prior to her employment in West Virginia, she worked at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pa. and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Dr. DeFrank-Cole earned a B.S. degree and a M.A. degree from West Virginia University. She received her doctorate degree in higher education from the University of Pittsburgh
Robert Mayes
Robert Mayes is director of the Institute for Mathematics Learning at WVU . He came to WVU in 1989 as an assistant professor of mathematics, but left four years later to develop a doctoral program in mathematics education at the University of Northern Colorado. While there, he also directed the Mathematics and Science Teaching Center.
In 2001, he returned to WVU to head the Institute for Mathematics Learning. Mayes specializes in the use of technology and mathematical modeling in the teaching and learning of mathematics. He earned his doctorate degree in mathematics education from Kansas State.