Verde Valley AZ (August 23, 2017) – The 2017 Verde Valley Forum, to be held on September 8 and 9 brings together in one, focused two-day conference an impressive group of experts with a wide scope of experiences and knowledge to discuss the forum’s agenda: “Strengthening PreK-12 Education in the Verde Valley Region.” The event will take place at the Beaver Creek School in Rimrock, Arizona and will feature a full day of keynote speakers, a panel of distinguished education leaders, including all the superintendents from school districts in the Verde Valley, and informed citizen participant discussion.
Steve King, Superintended of Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District said, “We are looking forward to input from Verde Valley citizens and hearing their perspectives alongside those of experts so that citizen voices can be used in strategic planning for Pre K through 12 education the Verde Valley.”
The initial keynote speaker on Friday, September 8 is Dr. Lattie Coor, Chairman and CEO of the Center for the Future of Arizona (CFA). CFA which was established in 2002 and embraces citizen participation in pursuing and achieve the goals of the people who live here. The key to success for CFA is encouraging effective collaborations between citizenry. Dr. Coor, President-Emeritus, Professor and Ernest W. McFarland Chair in Leadership and Public Policy in the School of Public Affairs at Arizona State University.
Saturday morning, September 9th a panel of education leaders will convene and discuss the current state of Pre-K – 12 education in the Verde Valley region. The panel includes all the superintendents of the school districts in the Verde Valley. Present on the panel will be:
Dennis Goodwin, Superintendent, Camp Verde Unified School District
Dr. Penny Hargrove, Superintendent, Mingus Union High School District
Steve King, Superintendent, Cottonwood Oak Creek School District
David Lykins, Superintendent, Sedona-Oak Creek School District
Karin Ward, Superintendent and Chief Financial Officer, Beaver Creek School District
Bob Weir, Superintendent, Valley Academy of Career and Technical Education
Greg Kirkham, Retired Principal, St. Joseph’s Catholic School
The panel will be moderated by Dr. Mark Joraanstad, Executive Director, Arizona School Administrators Association who is known for his strong communication skills in directing collaboration efforts.
During the lunch break, Dick Foreman, President and CEO, Arizona Business & Education Coalition will speak to attendees on a critical subject of interest: “Public Education: Yes we can afford the education our children deserve.”
In the afternoon, discussion will move to methods of improving the amount of funding for PreK-12 schools in Arizona. The entire day will meet its desired conclusion by creating action plans to implement priority goals and responsible parties for moving forward.
The Verde Valley Forum for Public Affairs (VVFPA) is a non-profit, non-political organization of volunteers dedicated to addressing current and long-range issues facing the Verde Valley communities, and facilitating informed consensus through the forum process. It is modeled after the Arizona Town Hall, which engages citizens and leaders in Arizona to find consensus on solving challenging issues of the day for the state.
Participation in the Forum is by invitation only, but VVFPA encourages Verde Valley residents to apply to attend and participate. Participants are expected to commit to attending all of the Forum sessions. An important goal of the Forum is to involve a diverse group of individuals who represent all of the communities and unincorporated areas in the Verde Valley region. The application is online at VVForum.org. Additional information requests should be directed to Steve King at 928-634-2288 or email at sking@cocsd.k12.az.us.
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2 Comments
I cannot believe that none of our school board members seem not to be attending?? Are they invited?
Hi Jean,
I was invited (Sedona school board member), but unfortunately have had a family vacation planned for those dates for nearly 7 months and am unable to attend. I sent along my regrets and do wish I could have changed my plans. I cannot speak for the remaining board members.
Thank you,
Heather Hermen