The Texas Public Education Reform Foundation and Caucus will hold their 2008 State Education Summit in Austin on April 18th.

Summit keynote speakers include:

The Honorable James H. Billington – Librarian of Congress (11:30 a.m. – through lunch.)

The Honorable John Cornyn – United States Senator – Texas (2:30 p.m.)

Panel discussions include:

“Education Policy Forum: Keeping Texas Schools Ahead of the Curve” (9:15 a.m.)

Don McAdams, president, Center for Reform of School Systems; Rod Paige, former U.S. Secretary of Education; Larry R. Faulkner, president, Houston Endowment, Inc.

“Preparing All Students for College and the Workforce” (10:15 a.m.)

Mike Feinberg, co-founder, KIPP; John Fitzpatrick, executive director, Texas High School Project; Richard M. Rhodes, president, El Paso Community College; Harvin Moore, President of the Board of Education, Houston Independent School District.

“A Seamless P-16 System of Education” (1:15 p.m.)

Raymund A. Paredes, Commissioner of Higher Education, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board; Robert Scott, Commissioner of Education, Texas Education Agency; Manuel J. Justiz, Dean of the College of Education, The University of Texas at Austin; Melody A. Johnson, superintendent, Fort Worth Independent School District.

“New Directions in Education, the Workforce and Economic Development” (3:00 p.m.)

Susan Bonesteel, director, State Services - Just for the Kids; Bill Hammond, president, Texas Association of Business; Doug Ridge, director, Employer Initiatives, Texas Workforce Commission, Phil Schlechty, CEO, the Schlechty Center for Leadership in School Reform.

To register or find more information on this event, please click here.