Director's Letter
Dr. Sam Snyder
Interim Director, The Friday Institute
Over the past 11 months as Interim Director of the William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation, I have had a unique opportunity to work with wonderfully dedicated and talented individuals to produce another extraordinarily successful year. While my brief time as interim director will be a very small part of the Friday Institute story, the impact of our collective, continuing efforts will be felt for generations. I give my most sincere thanks to the fine colleagues with whom I have been privileged to work this year.
New Executive Director Dr. Glenn Kleiman assumed leadership of the Friday Institute on July 1. We are excited to have a nationally recognized scholar and innovator at the helm of this special place as the faculty and staff of the Friday Institute focus on research and outreach to advance education in the state of North Carolina and beyond.
Thanks to the sustained efforts of Institute personnel and to the generosity of donors and sponsors, events inside and outside the walls of this building served to further the mission of the institute. A few highlights include these events and projects, several of which are elaborated elsewhere in this Newsletter:
K-12 connectivity: The Friday Institute was chosen to lead a $6 million state-funded pilot project for the planning and groundwork for a network that, in further years, will provide high-speed network connectivity to all K-12 schools in North Carolina. The effort will support K-12 education by extending a statewide, high-speed network that was developed over the past 20 years to support public universities. Phil Emer, Friday Institute Director of Technology, is leading the statewide implementation team to develop pilot projects. A state-funded study found that less than 8 percent of K-12 schools in North Carolina have adequate high-speed Internet access to support new teaching and learning applications and content.
NC Virtual Public School: The Friday Institute is proud to provide technical support and temporary office space to help launch the North Carolina Virtual Public School. Supported by the state, the Virtual Public School provides high school courses that students are unable to take at their local schools. For example, a student may wish to take an Advanced Placement course the local school does not offer. Another student may be home bound or hospital bound due to illness or injury and wish to remain on schedule to graduate on time.
21st Century Skills Project Conference: In June 2006, state and national education officials and policy makers gathered at the Friday Institute for the North Carolina Center for 21st Century Skills Education Summit, hosted by the North Carolina Business Committee for Education (NCBCE). The day-long meeting and workshops showcased North Carolina's efforts to merge technology and education for the 21st century.
IBM Open Technologies Forum: Red Hat Executive Vice President for Corporate Affairs Tom Rabon gave the keynote address as this important event in September 2006. The K-12 summit was sponsored by the Friday Institute, the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), the Stupski Foundation, and IBM. This gathering of leaders in the open technologies movement encouraged dialogue to shape and set a course for the future of technology in schools. The summit included more than 60 participants from analyst firms, foundations, standards groups, publishers, higher education institutions, K-12 school systems, state agencies, open source communities, and information technology vendors. Over the course of two days, participants listened to industry leaders, held panel discussions, and met in groups to identify ways that higher education, open source communities, standards organizations, foundations, and vendors can help schools get access to technology.
President Bowles visits Institute: On Nov. 1, 2006, UNC System President Erskine Bowles toured the Friday Institute to learn how the College of Education is using the facility to prepare teachers and students for the 21st century. President Bowles, Chancellor James Oblinger, College of Education Dean Kathryn Moore and I met with future teachers, learned about outreach efforts and witnessed a demonstration of cutting-edge classroom technology. Speaking to the group of NC State education students, Bowles said, "You are our top priority. There is nothing more important to the future of our country than quality teachers."
American Education Week: The Friday Institute celebrated its first birthday in November 2006. The celebration included events for American Education Week, held each November, and the inaugural presentation of the Friday Medal. As part of American Education Week, noted Latina author Pat Mora spoke along with College of Education Dean Kay Moore. The pair discussed several issues related to education and children. The first Friday Medal was presented to Dr. Ken Branch, founding principal of Centennial Campus Middle School, for his outstanding achievements as a leader and educator. The medal will be given periodically to those who best exemplify the vision, mission, ideals, and goals of the Friday Institute.
Martorella Colloquium, Presentation and Reception: In March 2007, the annual Martorella Colloquium featured a panel discussion and keynote address from Dr. Jim Clark, professor emeritus with the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, focused on global understanding through digital technology. Dr. Clark and distinguished panelists talked about efforts to use technology to bring the world to North Carolina's citizens, especially teachers and students. The conversation examined how to achieve a balance that enables us all to be knowledgeable citizens of the world.
Policy & Action Series Symposium: The Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in the College of Education and the Friday Institute hosted this year's Policy & Action Series on April 26. The seminar, "Putting a Face to the Data: The Future of Student Assessment and School Accountability," included featured speakers Dr. William Sanders of the UNC system and SAS Institute and Dr. Gerald Bracey, a noted educational researcher and author. Panelists included nationally known educators Dr. Louis Fabrizio, Joel Giffin, and Sharon Kirk.
Innovation Leaders Academy: Superintendents, administrators and teachers from six northeastern North Carolina school districts (Halifax, Northampton, Franklin and Granville counties, Weldon City and Roanoke Rapids City) attended the first academy, held in conjunction with the Policy & Action Series. This group formed a professional development partnership with the Friday Institute and the Educational Leadership Department in the College of Education. Future collaborative meetings are planned for the upcoming academic year and beyond.
MEGA (Middle Educators Global Activities) Annual Showcase: Keynote speaker Tim Magner, Director of the Office of Educational Technology for the U.S. Department of Education, highlighted the May 2007 event. Sponsored by the College of Education and the Friday Institute, the theme focused on future ready schools, and included presentations and displays from technology vendors and partner schools throughout North Carolina.
With many of these projects continuing and with Dr. Glenn Kleiman in the Executive Director's chair, the Friday Institute and the College of Education at NC State aim to continue to advance education through innovation in teaching, learning, and leadership through the coming years.
