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Join Maureen Downey, AJC education columnist, for an in-person conversation with U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. She digs into recent Supreme Court decisions affecting education and what the secretary says to Georgia parents whose kindergartners are practicing active shooter drills. Plus, she addresses the big question: Does public education need reform or revolution — should we throw out the model and start over?
Preceding the conversation with the secretary, AJC education reporter Martha Dalton moderates a discussion with local education leaders, including Walter Kimbrough of Morehouse College, Tracey Nance, a former Georgia Teacher of the Year, and Matthew Boedy, current President of the Georgia American Association of University Professors. Dalton asks how Georgia colleges will respond to recent Supreme Court decisions on affirmative action and college loan debt relief, among other topics.
Miguel A. Cardona was sworn in as the 12th U.S. Secretary of Education on March 2, 2021. Over the last two years, Secretary Cardona led the nation's efforts to safely and successfully reopen schools for in-person learning, going from only 46 percent of school buildings open when President Biden took office to nearly 100 percent open just nine months later, while distributing historic federal education funding for P-12 schools and colleges; working to increase higher education access, affordability, and student success; and leading unprecedented federal efforts to transform the country's student loan system.
In the year ahead, the Department will be focused on achieving academic excellence and accelerating learning for all students; delivering a comprehensive and rigorous education for every student; eliminating the educator shortage for every school; investing in every student's mental health and well-being; providing every student with a pathway to multilingualism; and ensuring every student has pathways to college and a career.
President, Georgia American Association of University Professors and Associate Professor at The University of North Georgia
Matthew Boedy is the current President of the Georgia AAUP. The mission of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) is to advance academic freedom and shared governance, define fundamental professional values and standards for higher education, and ensure higher education’s contribution to the common good.
They also assist faculty in public and private schools, work with the University System of Georgia on policy and educate lawmakers on issues affecting higher education. Matthew is also an associate professor at The University of North Georgia where he teaches rhetoric and composition.
Morehouse College, the nation’s only college dedicated to educating and developing men of color, announced the appointment of Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough as interim executive director of the College’s recently launched Black Men’s Research Institute (BMRI). A distinguished educator and higher education administrator, Kimbrough previously served as the 12th president of Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Ark., and most recently as the seventh president of Dillard University in New Orleans, La. He has also held leadership roles in student affairs at Emory University, Georgia State University, Old Dominion University, and Albany State University. An Atlanta native, Kimbrough received his Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of Georgia, a Master of Science in college student personnel services from Miami University, and a Ph.D. in higher education from Georgia State University.
Former Georgia Teacher of the Year and Voices for Honest Education Senior Fellow, National Network of State Teachers of the Year & National Center for Youth Law
During her two-year term as State Teacher of the Year, Tracey Nance traveled the state increasing awareness of both educational equity and the magnitude of teachers’ impact. Tracey continues to work towards effecting change for students and teachers through her advocacy and work with non-profit organizations such as Page Turners Make Great Learners and Motherhood Beyond Bars, and is currently a Voices for Honest Education Fellow with the National Network of State Teachers of the Year (NNSTOY). In this role, Tracey serves as an advocate for what she is most passionate about - increasing children’s life chances. Over the next year, Tracey will write and connect with educators, communities, and policymakers to help ensure inclusion and teaching truth are central to student learning.
Beginning as an assistant professor of English at GGC, Dr. Bowser quickly rose the ranks to faculty president in 2015 before becoming assistant dean of the College of Liberal Arts. With a proven track record of supporting faculty and staff in their work with diverse student populations, Dr. Bowser was named associate provost for strategic initiatives in 2018. In her current position, she focuses on closing equity gaps, leading retention initiatives and overseeing curricular and co-curricular interventions centered around students’ sense of belonging and professional purpose.
Maureen Downey is a longtime reporter for the AJC where she has written editorials and opinion pieces about local, state and federal education policy for more than 20 years. She’s also taught college classes in mass communications and journalism. However, she’s learned more about schools from having four children in them. Her own education includes an undergraduate degree from the University of Delaware and a master’s degree from Columbia University. She has worked for newspapers in New Jersey and Florida and has covered many school boards. She has won many editorial writing awards, including a National Headliner award. She was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for her AJC editorials on the Genarlow Wilson case. In June, the Education Writers Association named her Opinion Writer of the Year.
Martha Dalton is a journalist for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writing about education and the Atlanta Public Schools system. Martha was previously a senior education reporter at WABE, Atlanta’s NPR affiliate, where she was a reporter, producer and host. Outside of the education beat, she has also covered immigration, politics and transportation.
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