When you gather over 200 professors, principals and others involved with North Texas' schools in one room, the topics of conversation will be buzzing about education – proved Monday afternoon at the Westin Galleria in Dallas.

NT's College of Education hosted its third annual "Education: The Key to Success for North Texans" luncheon. The luncheon's master of ceremonies was Clarice Tinsley, Fox 4 news anchor, and the keynote speaker was Tom Luce, assistant secretary for the Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development at the U.S. Department of Education.

"The most important thing is how we spend our money on education," Luce said, during an interview before the luncheon. "We face a real need to completely transform how we teach our students."

Luce is known for reforming public schools when chief of staff of the Texas Select Committee of Public Education in 1984. He also co-founded Just for the Kids and National Center for Educational Accountability, organizations that aim at raising academic standards.

Luce emphasized the importance of producing teachers who can proficiently teach math and science. He said students with these skills are better problem solvers, which is critical when competing in today's global economy.

During his keynote speech, Luce showed his comdedic side.

"Lee has always been a great fan of mine, but nobody has always known why, but I'll tell you why- I made Lee Jackson look like he had charisma," he said, after the NT chancellor introduced him.

After a few more jokes, he regained his serious side. He listed examples of schools with students who improved academically, as a direct result of his programs.

"There is a lot of good happening in public education in the country," Luce said. "We can no longer say to ourselves that we can't do it."

Luce discussed "No Child Left Behind," a goal to educate every student in the United States at the same level by 2013 or 2014.

"If we continue to do what we're doing today, we will not complete that goal - we have to transform what we're doing to reach that goal," Luce said.

Luce read "sobering" statistics on the number of people getting jobs based on their education.

"There's no jobs left for people with strong backs," he said. "They're long gone. We're either going to have to innovate and move up the ladder or fall flat."

Before Luce's keynote address, Provost Howard Johnson, Chancellor Lee Jackson and Jean Keller, dean of the College of Education, gave short speeches about the significance of education.

"Our dream is that this becomes an annual event to support teachers who become dream-makers," Keller said.

Six NT student teachers, finishing their last semester in the College of Education, were honored at the luncheon for their outstanding performance in the classroom.

One of the six was Savera Kashmiri, Denton senior and a student teacher in Keller.

"I like what [Luce] said about raising the bar; and how the world doesn't stop and you can't get off," Kashmiri said. "You have to keep persevering as a teacher, even when kids are struggling."

Article Tools