Our first-ever Rural Education Summit, held in summer 2019 on the KSU campus, was such a success that we’d prepared an outstanding lineup for the second one! Unfortunately, COVID-19 derailed those plans.
It took us a couple years, but recently we held our second one virtually, bringing together approximately 120 individuals to share their successes and concerns regarding rural education. They came from as far away as Alaska, Indiana, Illinois, and Tennessee, as well as throughout the state of Kansas. Among the distinguished guests were six members of the Kansas State Board of Education.
It was a time of valuable presentations and rich conversations.
Among the guest speakers were Kansas Commissioner of Education Randy Watson, College of Education Dean Debbie Mercer, and COE assistant professor Tuan Nguyen, who presented his research on rural education.
The half-day event was followed by a meeting of the COE’s Rural Professional Development Schools network.
But the discussions are only beginning. The REC plans to provide links to resources and videos shared at the Summit, with plans under way to facilitate more discussions among rural educators.
Here are some of the virtual happenings of the Summit:
