Communities In Schools to Highlight Dropout Prevention Solutions at Its 2007 National Conference
Four-day Event in Atlanta Will Mark Three Decades of Helping Students Stay in School and Prepare for Life
Alexandria, VA - Communities In Schools, Inc. (CIS), the nation’s largest dropout prevention organization, will be hosting its 2007 national conference in Atlanta, GA, from November 1 - 4. The event will bring together more than 1,000 experts from the youth services and nonprofit communities to learn from each other and maximize their work through the latest developments, practices, and research available today.
"With nearly one in three students not graduating, this is a unique opportunity to come together with friends and colleagues to share information and develop the best strategies for serving young people and providing the tools they need to stay in school and prepare for life," said Daniel J. Cardinali, president, Communities In Schools.
The conference will present 87 Leadership Panels, Best Practices workshops, and CIS-sanctioned courses. Leadership Panels will explore national policy and education issues such as comprehensive school reform and reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act. The Best Practices Workshops build upon groundbreaking research conducted by CIS and the National Dropout Prevention Center, and will highlight significant dropout risk factors and the evidence based programs to combat them in areas of mentoring, service-learning, and family training. Designed primarily for local CIS affiliate members, board members, and staff, the courses will immerse learners in newly developed CIS materials and help them put the content into practice wherever they may be.
The conference’s general sessions will highlight nationally recognized youth services advocates who will excite the passion and commitment of attendees. Beginning with First Lady Laura Bush, nationally recognized speakers will include former Virginia governor Mark Warner; David Eisner, CEO, Corporation for National and Community Service; and Wintley Phipps, president and CEO, U.S. Dream Academy.
"The CIS 2007 National Conference will be an unprecedented opportunity to connect with key policy makers, funders, and other stakeholders in the youth services arena. The program has been designed to encourage a robust exchange of ideas among the leading minds in the field," said Cardinali.
During CIS’ 30 years of serving students, the organization has developed a proven series of principles based on improving student outcomes by bringing community resources into schools. These principles are outlined in CIS founder Bill Milliken’s latest book, The Last Dropout: Stop the Epidemic! In the book, Milliken connects those principles with compelling anecdotes from his three decades on the frontline of the dropout crisis. He will be personally signing copies of the book throughout the conference.
The conference will also include an exhibit hall that will feature nearly 40 youth services organizations and corporations that are working to support public education and youth-serving nonprofits in America.
Conference sponsors include: Capital One Financial Corporation; Bank of America; Cox Communications; Crowe Chizek; HotChalk; Majestic Realty; PepsiCo; and Sutherland, Asbill, and Brennan.
For more information about CIS’s 2007 National Conference, visit www.CISNationalConference.com. For more information about CIS, visit www.CISNet.org.
Communities In Schools is the nation’s largest dropout prevention organization, working in more than 3,200 K-12 public schools. Founded in 1977, Communities In Schools is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia. Today, 1.2 million young people every year receive direct services through more than 200 Communities In Schools local affiliates in 27 states and the District of Columbia. Between 80-90 percent of our tracked students show improvement in academic achievement, attendance, behavior and promotion to the next grade level.
Contact: Debbie Veney Robinson, CIS National Office, 703-518-2545, Robinsond@CISNet.org or Peter Wilson, CIS National Office, 703-518-2565, WilsonP@CISNet.org