Let’s talk: Innovation in education, anyone?

February 18th, 2012 by

Hey everybody.  We need to talk:  What are you doing in rural education that is innovative?  How are you overcoming the unique challenges faced by rural schools?  Are your students experiencing increased academic achievement? That’s the message I caught in a recent tweet from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation  ( @WK_Kellogg_Fdn). On Feb. 22 at 3 p.m. ET, John White, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Rural Outreach, and Sterling Speirn, president & CEO of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation will be hopping on Twitter to chat about unique rural partnerships and innovative solutions that people are developing. My mind immediately goes to the Rural School and Community Trust’s efforts to bring rural schools and communities together through place-based education.  If the Rural Trust hadn’t invested in our efforts in Howard, SD back in the mid-1990s, I’m confident that innovative projects like the Maroney Commons would never have developed. If I were to pick a new initiative, however, I would select the work of the Center for Midwest Innovation, a project being developed in partnership with the Rural Trust.  They are quickly becoming a great source on how rural schools, communities, and foundations can partner to create innovative educational projects. I might also highlight the efforts of the GoTeachSD program, which the Rural Learning Center is a part of developing.  Centered at the University of South Dakota, GoTeachSD has a clear focus on increasing the number and improving the quality of teachers in rural schools. I’m always interested in hearing about great work in rural education.  Unfortunately, because of work conflicts, I won’t be able to join the conversation live.  So I figured I could contribute by writing this post.  And I’ll be sure to check out the summary of the Twitter chat that will be posted to the US Dept of Education’s Blog afterward. I know you are all probably busy as well, but I hope you find a way to join in this conversation.    It’s too important to ignore.   (To learn more on this event, check out this Dept. of Education blog post.   Photo Credit:  limonada - Flickr    

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Posted in education, Rural, Training and Events | Comments ( 2 )

2 Responses to “Let’s talk: Innovation in education, anyone?”

  1. Gary Funk Says:
    February 20th, 2012 at 1:15 pm

    Mike, thanks for the encouraging words. Our fledgling effort is truly collaborative in nature, and we need as much support as possible–not money–but ideas and commitment. I hope folks will visit our website at http://www.cmi.ruraledu.org .

    Best wishes to everyone on the Plains.

    Gary Funk
    Center for Midwestern Initiatives

  2. Mike Knutson Says:
    February 21st, 2012 at 11:35 am

    Gary,
    “Fledgling effort?” Inspirational is more like it. Back when I was teaching in the pre-Web-2.0 days, people with a passion for rural education were largely isolated by geography. Thanks to efforts like yours — and the aforementioned Twitter chat — we are able to connect, learn from each other, and build stronger networks. The end game will be innovation. So, thanks for what you do.

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