News and Notes:  News Release
August 25, 2006

Topeka: Kick-off KLFA meeting attracts potential new members

High-quality public schools give every child from every family the chance to learn the skills they need to be successful in life.  With that fact in mind, almost 50 people from 28 educational organizations, several of whom are considering membership, attended the 06-07 school year kick-off meeting of the Kansas Learning First Alliance Aug. 25.   The meeting agenda was a full one, covering past projects and providing updates on current initiatives.  The focus, however, of the meeting was to review progress toward past goals and set new ones for the upcoming year, as is the practice each August.  Given the challenges and opportunities on the Kansas educational horizon, the goals are ambitious ones designed to help meeting KLFA’s mission of “making Kansas first in the nation in teaching and learning.”

Since its inception in 1999, KLFA, an affiliate of the Learning First Alliance, which is composed of 16 national education organizations, has used three working groups to achieve its mission.  The three groups are working toward improving student achievement; strengthening the professional development of educators; and engaging the public in school improvement and student achievement efforts. To focus their work, three general goals offer guidance.  They are:

• KLFA will broadly disseminate our work to influence practitioners.

• KLFA will increase its visibility among policy makers. 

• KLFA will strengthen and increase its organization capacity.

The three workgroups developed specific goals tied to one or more of the general goals.  Several of the Professional Development goals were connected to improving Tools for Quality Practice: A Resource Guide for Professional Learning.  Broadening the document to offer more support to its original focus of reading and math was planned.  Many topics will be considered, including System Organizations, Early Childhood and other disciplines such as science and social studies.  New organizations invited to attend the meeting were ones that could offer the expertise necessary to broaden the scope of the toolkit.

Besides continuing its contribution to Tools for Quality Practice: A Resource Guide for Professional Learning, the Student Achievement workgroup will work with the 21^st Century Skills initiative.  Their goals also call for several collaborative efforts with the other two workgroups.

Public Engagement goals will focus on the “reciprocal accountability” discussions held by over half of the members’ boards of directors last year and developing concrete recommendations drawn from the discussions for even more effective collaborative efforts among its membership.  The group will also work to helping administrators better connect with its community partners.

For more information on KLFA, visit its Web site at http://kansaslearningfirst.org/.  The next meeting will be Oct. 13 at the Kansas Association of School Boards’ office.  Dr. Sandee Crowther, Executive Director of the Kansas Staff Development Council, serves as the KLFA Chair.  Dr. Blake West, K-NEA President, serves as the Vice Chair.