Haycock addresses Champions for Education in northern Kentucky

Kentucky education patterns mirror those nationally, which is to say that results are mixed and there is still much work to do.

That's the message prominent education expert Kati Haycock planned to share in her keynote speech at the Northern Kentucky Education Summit today.

Titled "Champions for Education: Focus Locally, Compete Globally," the event at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center is the first-ever regional summit on education issues, and a centerpiece of this year's four-day Northern Kentucky Education Week events.

Haycock is president of the Washington, D.C.-based Education Trust, a nonprofit organization that was established in 1992 and focused initially on the achievement gap among America's students by income and race.

In much the same way Kentucky education reform has expanded significantly in that time, so too has the Education Trust, with Haycock becoming a nationally prominent children's advocate in the field of education.

Prior to joining the Education Trust, Haycock served as executive vice president of the Children's Defense Fund, the nation's largest child advocacy organization.

"What the national data tells us, there are indications that, by and large, we're making more progress in elementary than in secondary (grades)," Haycock said Tuesday in an interview from her Washington office. "And with minority kids, we're not doing as well as we can. ... The data on Northern Kentucky reminded me of what we're seeing nationally."

That's no surprise to local educators. While the region's elementary schoolchildren continue to show improvement in standardized CATS and No Child Left Behind testing, students in middle schools and high schools still lag behind.

"Part of the problem is, Kentucky, like almost every single state, ... went from standards to tests, and we didn't stop at curriculum in between," Haycock said. "Kentucky has begun to step up to that." ...

This from the Cincinnati Post.

Haycock to speak in Northern Kentucky

Online registration is under way for a communitywide education summit billed as a first-of-its-kind in Northern Kentucky.

Organizers of "Champions for Education: Focus Locally, Compete Globally" announced recently that the summit would be Nov. 14 at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Covington.

The first ever Northern Kentucky Education Summit, Champions for Education: Focus Locally, Compete Globally will feature key note speaker Dr. Kati Haycock. As Director of the Education Trust, Haycock champions possible solutions to the issues facing children - particularly poor and minority children.

The event will run from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Space is limited to 900 attendees. The cost is $40. Special rates for students are available.

Regional and national experts will lead workshops and deliver keynote addresses on the challenges in today's education climate.

Improving academic performance is one of the main goals of both Kentucky and Vision 2015, a group of Northern Kentucky civic leaders whose goal is to shape the region's future and see education as a key component.

Participants can register here by Nov. 7.