AEFP 38th Annual Conference

The 2013 AEFP Annual Conference will take place in New Orleans on March 14-16.  This will be AEFP’s 38^th year!  The theme of the conference is – Education Renewal and Reform…in the Face of Resource Constraints.  Both domestic policy and global economic competition are challenging our education system to be more productive, at the same time as state and local agencies are facing continuing economic challenges.  Key sessions examining these issues are being planned as well as sessions focused on education renewal and reform in New Orleans, our host city.

The conference will also continue to present, discuss and evaluate the latest research on a wide spectrum of education topics, from pre-K to postsecondary, and to encourage vigorous debates about current reforms and policy directions. 

We look forward to seeing you and sharing ideas (and likely some good food) in New Orleans.

First General Session, Thursday March 14, 2013, 1:00-2:30pm

John Deasy, Superintendent, Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD)

"Managing Productivity Reform Under Challenging Budget Constraints: The Case of LAUSD"

Hired less than two years ago with a mandate to boost achievement in the 660,000- district, Deasy has an organization with a $6 billion budget and 65,000 employees. Fiscal issues loom as the district's greatest challenge. The district has lost $2.7 billion in state funding and laid off 12,000 employees over the past five years. For the upcoming school year, 4,300 employees lost their jobs, and the rest agreed to 10 furlough days, including five fewer school days, to close a $390 million shortfall.

The son of two Massachusetts teachers, Deasy became a science teacher. He ascended the career ladder serving as superintendent in Coventry, Rhode Island, Santa Monica‐Malibu, California and Prince George’s County, Maryland before taking a job with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation where he worked on policy issues, including teacher evaluations.

Second General Session, Friday March 15, 2013, 12-1:30pm

Alice Rivlin, Alice Rivlin is a leading expert on fiscal and monetary policy. She recently served on the State Budget Crisis Task Force (Ravitch/ Volker) and the President’s Debt Commission (Simpson/ Bowles). She was founding director of CBO, Clinton’s OMB Director and Federal Reserve Board Vice Chair.

"How Will Education Fare in the Battle for Resources?"

Third General Session, Saturday March 16, 2013, 8-9:30am

"Perspectives on New Orleans School Reform from Some Who Helped Create It"

Moderator: Douglas N. Harris, Tulane University

Participants:

Leslie Jacobs, Founder, Educate Now! Jacobs is an education reform advocate, business executive and philanthropist. For the last 25 years, she has been a passionate voice for education reform, serving initially as an elected member of the Orleans Parish School Board and then as a member of the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE). Educate Now is a non-profit dedicated to continuing the broad, post-Katrina reforms of New Orleans public schools she helped institute and execute as a member of the BESE.

Matthew Candler, Executive Director, 4.0 Schools. Candler has been a principal; vice-president of KIPP, a network of charter schools that's received national attention for impressive test scores (and local attention for taking over several New Orleans schools); and most recently CEO of New Schools for New Orleans, a nonprofit dedicated to improving the city's public school system. 4.0 schools is a think tank funded by the Walton Foundation.

Andre Perry, Associate. Director for Educational Initiatives, Loyola University. Prior to assuming his current position at Loyola, Dr. Perry served as the CEO of the Capital One-University of New Orleans Charter Network, which was comprised of four charter schools in New Orleans. In 2010, Perry served on Mayor-Elect Mitch Landrieu’s Transition Team as the co-chair of the Education Taskforce. Perry’s scholarship focuses on education reform and the impact of education policy on community wellness.