by Joy Esiemokhai
Robert F. Kennedy once said that progress is a nice word but change is its motivator. This is evident in the recent legislations passed in the state of Georgia that have imposed significant changes to the evaluation and certification requirements of Georgia teachers.
In order to help current and prospective educators adjust properly to the new laws, the University of West Georgia, in July 2014, organized a summit of educators to expound on and foster discussion on what they will entail. The program, titled “Engaged Collaboration: Summit for Partners in Education,” involved higher education and kindergarten through 12th grade instructors, as well as administrators in sessions to share ideas and implications of the new legislation on evaluation and certification.
Over 100 education professionals attended the registration-only event, which saw Dr. John Barge, the Georgia state school superintendent, deliver the keynote address. Other speakers at the event included Cindy Saxon, the associate superintendent at the Georgia department of education and Anne Marie Fenton, program director at the Georgia Professional Standards Commission, as well as Dr. Steven Bronack and Dr. Nickey Johnson of UWG TeachLivE.
Organizers hope to repeat the success of this year’s event with a conversation-focused event next summer.
