BLACK ENTERPRISE Holds Symposium on How Schools, Businesses Can Use Technology to Close the Achievement Gap

COLUMBUS, Ohio, May 13, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Black Enterprise, with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is pleased to present "Today's Business Crisis: Educating Tomorrow's Workforce," on Wednesday, May 15, at The Greater Columbus Convention Center. The Symposium is part of a series aimed at initiating conversations between top leaders in business, politics, philanthropy, government and education related to the critical challenges facing the American K-12 and postsecondary educational system. The Columbus event will focus on how schools can partner with businesses to create innovative learning models and improve the academic performance of K-12 and postsecondary students through the use of new technology. Session participants will fully evaluate a myriad of challenges and present solutions that can be applied on a local level as well as serve as sustainable national models.

"In almost every educational setting, student ability varies greatly," says Omar Wasow, who helped launch BlackPlanet.com and co-founded Brooklyn Excelsior Charter School, and will serve as a symposium moderator. "Shifting from our one-size-fits-all model of education to a more personalized approach will be one of the most important ways technology transforms education."

Moderators

Omar Wasow, Co-Founder, BlackPlanet.com/Co-Founder, Brooklyn Excelsior Charter School
Henry Hipps, Senior Program Officer, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Panel: Bringing Innovation to Education       

Dr. Bernard Harris, President & CEO, The Harris Foundation
David Banks, President & CEO, Eagle Academy Foundation
Jessie Woolley-Wilson, President, CEO & Chairman, DreamBox Learning

Panel: Creating New Learning Models Through Technology  

Mike Green, Co-Founder, America21 Project
Will Lucas, Founder/CEO, Classana
Mandela Schumacher-Hodge, Co-founder/COO, Tioki
Jarvis Sulcer Ph.D., Executive Director, Level Playing Field Institute

Additional Program Participants

Mayor Michael B. Coleman, City of Columbus
Joe Scantlebury, Senior Program Officer for Policy Advocacy, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Earl "Butch" Graves, President & CEO, BLACK ENTERPRISE
Derek Dingle, SVP/Editor-in-Chief, BLACK ENTERPRISE

"It is imperative that business leaders' partner with the academic community ensuring our schools produce graduates with the skills needed for American industry to remain competitive in today's global economy," says Earl "Butch" Graves, Jr., President and CEO, BLACK ENTERPRISE. "Black Enterprise has consistently sounded the call to address this crisis as the system even more egregiously fails to educate and prepare our children for the future. In order for our nation to have a strong workforce; we must have strong schools. We are proud to have the support of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to focus on this critical issue and find solutions to ultimately resolve this crisis. We cannot be successful, however, without the participation of business leaders fully committed to education reform."

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is committed to ensuring all students in America graduate from high school prepared for college and have an opportunity to earn a postsecondary degree with labor-market value.

BLACK ENTERPRISE is the premier business, investing, and wealth-building resource for African Americans. Since 1970, BE has provided essential business information and advice to professionals, corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and decision makers. Every month, BLACK ENTERPRISE magazine provides 4.1 million readers with information on entrepreneurship, careers, and financial management. A multimedia company, BE also produces television programming, business and lifestyle events, Web content, and digital media. BLACK ENTERPRISE is the definitive source of information for and about African American business markets and leaders, and the authority on black business news and trends. 

SOURCE Black Enterprise