Articles in the Conferences and Events category

NSBA Conference offers two online discussion topics

NSBA will host two lively online discussions during the Annual Conference in Orlando.

The Tipping Point on School Vouchers: Has Time Run Out for the Privatization Movement? Although well funded and with a vocal, albeit small network of supporters, the school voucher movement has run into troubles of late. From another crushing defeat of vouchers by voters in Utah, to a slew of recent research debunking private schools’ purported superiority in raising student achievement, to cautionary words from longtime voucher advocates downplaying vouchers’ alleged competitive benefits for public education, it has been a rough stretch for proponents of spending taxpayer dollars on private school tuition. While voucher proposals remain on the table in some states and in Congress, have the best opportunities for enacting new programs passed?

Join NSBA Director of Federal Affairs Marcus Egan for an online discussion Sunday, March 30 at 1 p.m. ET to get the latest information on research, legislation and the political landscape impacting vouchers. You can submit a question in advance or log in to the discussion as it happens.

Straight Talk on Tobacco
Most people assume that all schools are completely tobacco free – it just seems to make too much sense not to be true! Unfortunately, the truth is more complicated than that, and according to the latest available (school health data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 58 percent of states, 55.4 percent of districts, and 63.6 percent of schools prohibit all tobacco use in all locations at all times. So, there is plenty of room for improvement in making all schools tobacco-free!

Join NSBA school health experts, Karen Lewis and Brenda Greene for an online discussion Monday, March 31, at 12:45 ET, to get the full scoop on tobacco free schools and to learn more about what school districts can do to make campuses tobacco free.You can submit a question in advance or log in and watch as the discussion unfolds.

Be sure to check it out! And be sure to visit the Annual Conference blog, which will detail all the events of the conference as they happen.

Andrew Paulson|March 20th, 2008|Categories: Conferences and Events, Educational Legislation, NSBA Opinions and Analysis, Wellness|

Florida, here we come!

BoardBuzz is getting ready to head off to Orlando for NSBA’s Annual Conference. It promises to be chock full of all kinds of great programming and activities.

For all the scoop on the conference, be sure to check out the Annual Conference Blog, which will be updated daily next week and through the end of the conference with all the latest on the happenings at the conference. Not to mention, our list of guest bloggers is growing and their experiences will be chronicled on the blog too. It’s definitely worth a read! Check it out!

Andrew Paulson|March 19th, 2008|Categories: Conferences and Events, NSBA Opinions and Analysis|

Lifelong learning

BoardBuzz was thinking this weekend, as we prepare for NSBA’s Annual Conference in Orlando, just how valuable attendance at the conference is. Sure, the General Session speakers, like Sandra Day O’Connor, Garrison Keillor, Sidney Poitier, and Jim Lehrer are enlightening and inspiring, but conference attendance is so much more than that.

The opportunity to meet other school board members and school district administrators, talk about challenges and opportunities, and share ideas is certainly another exciting perk. When else do you find so many school board members in one place? On top of that, the Exhibit Hall is chock full of ways for school districts to learn, grow, and even save money (and with financial times being tight these days, who doesn’t want to save a little?).

Attending sessions is probably one of the best ways to get the most out of your conference experience. And this year is no exception. You can use the online conference planner to browse through all of the sessions and even plan an itinerary for yourself prior to your arrival in Orlando.

And the learning doesn’t have to stop once you’ve returned to your district. In fact, it shouldn’t stop! Be sure to share your conference experience with fellow board members, school district staff, parents, and your community. They’ve invested in your attendance and deserve to know just how well your time was spent. For some more tips on how to share your conference experience back at home, click here.

Andrew Paulson|March 10th, 2008|Categories: Conferences and Events, NSBA Opinions and Analysis, School Boards|

The attendee of tomorrow?

BoardBuzz is a fan of Will Richardson and truly enjoys reading Weblogg-ed. His recent entry, The Ultimate Conference Attendee, grabbed our attention. He poses the question of what future conference organizer will get smart and allow attendees who only:

  • Have their own Ustream channels and broadcast live facial reactions of attendees as the session is in progress
  • Can Tweet out the best quotes, engage in lively back channel repartee, and live blog the session to their own sites at the same time
  • Create a VoiceThread story of the presentation within 10 minutes of finish by incorporating photos taken during the session and uploaded to Flickr, adding voice over narration to contextualize the event, and soliciting video comments from virtual attendees
  • Put together a wiki page for the session that collects dozens of various RSS feeds compiled from keyword and tag searches on the presenter’s name, the general topic, del.icio.us bookmarks, YouTube videos and more
  • Create a Google Map that identifies where all of the virtual attendees live and helps them upload photos of themselves watching the UStreamed, Tweeted, VoiceThreaded, wikied presentation in progress.
  • Conduct a live Skype call with other experts who challenge the ideas being presented and scream out provocative and borderline insulting questions
  • Have their own conference space in Second Life where live video and audio of presentation is being streamed and where they have organized a post session social featuring virtual local microbrews and coffees

BoardBuzz longs for the day when our conference attendees are so involved and connected. It’s already second nature to the youth we’re educating. Maybe someday the whole education community will catch on. Will this Web 2.0 phenomenon be too much? Maybe, but we look forward to the tidal wave of attendee-generated content. Leave a comment and tell us what you think the conference of the future will look like.

Have we mentioned we’re recruiting bloggers for our Annual Conference in Orlando?

Andrew Paulson|March 6th, 2008|Categories: Conferences and Events, Educational Technology, NSBA Opinions and Analysis|

Calling out the blogs

Are you an admirer of BoardBuzz? Have you got something to say? Do you wish you could join the ranks of BoardBuzz yourself? Now’s your chance! It’s that time of year again — BoardBuzz is in search of a few good bloggers for NSBA’s Annual Conference.

You, yes YOU, can join NSBA staff and others as a guest blogger and share your pearls of wisdom with conference attendees and the world by participating in the conference blog! And for participating you will receive the accolades of thousands, as well your very own black ribbon that says “Blogger” that you can attach to your name badge (but don’t blame us if you get mobbed by legions of admirers)! But wait, there’s more! If you ACT NOW you will also get to see your name in lights (okay, maybe not lights, but in tiny little print next to your blog entry). Add to the conference experience and contribute to the blog!

Sound exciting? Simply contact Christina Gordon at cgordon@nsba.org to sign up as a guest blogger at NSBA’s Annual Conference! And you too will become a V.I.B. (Very Important Blogger)!

Andrew Paulson|March 5th, 2008|Categories: Conferences and Events, NSBA Opinions and Analysis|

We love a good cause!

Lace up your sneakers and be sure to pack your sweats for the 8th Annual National School Boards Foundation 5K Run/Walk is set to take place at NSBA’s Annual Conference in Orlando. That’s right, this perennial favorite will be back for all the heart-pumping fun of past years.

For all you early risers and go-getters, the race will be held on March 30, at 7:30 a.m., with an awards ceremony at 9:30 a.m. The scenic route this year will take you through Bill Frederick Park at Turkey Lake. Shuttle buses will be available from the Orange County Convention Center.

You must register in advance, but registration is easy. Try it online through midnight, March 27, or at the NSBF 5K Booth in the west registration concourse of Convention Center at the conference. The fee for registration is $40, but children under 13 can participate for free! Sounds like a great idea to us!

For more information, click here. To register, click here.

Andrew Paulson|February 26th, 2008|Categories: Conferences and Events, NSBA Opinions and Analysis|

A little planning goes a long way

BoardBuzz knows that the new year just started, but NSBA’s Annual Conference will be here before you know it. And there’s no time like the present to start planning all the sessions and activities you’ll be taking in while in Orlando.

With Pre-Conference workshops beginning on Friday, March 28 and sessions going through April 1, the conference will be chock full of learning opportunities. And NSBA has the perfect tool for you to use in order to maximize your conference experience — the Online Conference Planner.

The Online Conference Planner, which is now live, allows you to browse and select sessions of interest and plan and print your itinerary in advance. What could be better than that? And be sure to keep checking the conference Web site to get the latest updates. You can even sign up for the e-newsletter to get the latest news delivered right to your inbox.

Andrew Paulson|January 4th, 2008|Categories: Conferences and Events, NSBA Opinions and Analysis|

Sidney Poitier joins already stellar conference line up

NSBA has just announced that Sidney Poitier will join the line up of speakers for NSBA’s 2008 Annual Conference in Orlando. The Oscar-winning actor will share his insights and experiences with attendees at the General Session on Sunday, March 30.

With a 50-year career in acting and directing, Poitier is one of America’s most respected and honored entertainers. His recent memoir, The Measure of a Man, was a national best-seller and an Oprah Winfrey Book Club selection. Poitier joins the strong schedule of 2008 General Session speakers that includes Sandra Day O’Connor, Jim Lehrer, and Garrison Keillor.

Andrew Paulson|November 12th, 2007|Categories: Conferences and Events, NSBA Opinions and Analysis|

NSBA 2008 Annual Conference lines up top speakers

NSBA has announced a terrific speaker lineup for the 2008 Annual Conference in Orlando. Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, news anchor and author Jim Lehrer, and radioman Garrison Keillor will headline the general sessions at this year’s conference.

O’Connor, the first woman to serve on the United States Supreme Court, was called one of the world’s most powerful women by Forbes magazine. Applying her wisdom on a case-by-case basis, she provided the decisive swing vote on many important issues of our time.

Lehrer is the host of Newshour with Jim Lehrer and the author of 16 novels, two memoirs, and three plays. He has been awarded numerous awards, including the 1999 National Humanities Medal presented by former President and First Lady Clinton. Also in 1999, he was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame.

Keillor began his radio career as a freshman at the University of Minnesota. He went to work for Minnesota Public Radio in 1969, and on July 6, 1976 he hosted the first broadcast of A Prairie Home Companion in St. Paul. More than 3 million listeners on more than 450 public radio stations hear the show each week.

In addition to these powerful speakers, the conference will also host Lee Woodruff during the popular Fellowship session. Woodruff and her husband Bob are the authors of In an Instant: A Family’s Journey of Love and Healing, the best-selling book about their family’s difficult journey during Bob’s critical injury in Iraq while anchoring for ABC News.

Check the conference site frequently for all the latest updates. You can also register for the e-newsletter and get updates e-mailed directly to your inbox.

Andrew Paulson|October 22nd, 2007|Categories: Conferences and Events, NSBA Opinions and Analysis|

Live! From Alexandria, it’s conference registration!

You know what they say about the early bird catching the worm? In this case, the early bird gets a fantastic discount to NSBA’s Annual Conference in Orlando.

Conference registration is now open, and for those eager beavers, now through December 28, you can take advantage of early bird registration. Even better is the news for National Affiliate districts, which can receive an additional 20 percent in discount. Not a National Affiliate? Click here to learn more about how to join.

There are four easy ways for you to register for the conference:

Online — NSBA’s secure server allows you to pay by credit card or purchase order.
By Phone — Call us at (800) 950-6722 and press option “1.” Be sure to have your payment information ready.
By Fax — Send the completed registration form to NSBA at (703) 519-6497 and address your fax “ATTN: Conference Registration.” Be sure to include your payment information.
By Mail — Send your completed registration form with a check, purchase order, or credit card information to: NSBA, P.O. Box 1807, Merrifield, VA 22116-8007.

Housing registration opens October 2. Already confirmed is former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, who will give a keynote address at the opening general session. So what are you waiting for?

Andrew Paulson|September 4th, 2007|Categories: Conferences and Events, NSBA Opinions and Analysis|
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