Milken Family Foundation - Connections

Photos courtesy of Wade Whitehead

For all it does to recognize and reward great teaching across the country, I believe the Milken Family Foundation's greatest achievement is the National Education Conference it offers each spring.

The year I was recognized as a Milken Educator, I had the privilege of traveling to Los Angeles for this amazing event.

I admit that my three days there were a bit of a blur. My memories are still a bit spotty, influenced by emotion, opportunity, and plain old shock. Like my colleagues who were there, I was still recovering from my Award notification, and still wondered whether or not I deserved the once-in-a-lifetime recognition given me by the Milken family.

But I do remember — and always will — a small, but important, experience I had late in the second afternoon of that year's conference. Together with the other new Milken Educators, I had been scheduled to attend a session spotlighting the accomplishments of Milken Educator networks from across the country. I sat in the room with teachers and principals from several other states, and listened attentively to the stories told by veteran Award recipients and their peers.

I expected to learn about initiatives and network activities – and I did. But I did not expect that session to become the watershed moment for me that it has. In the end, hearing from other networks instilled in me a certain, permanent thought: that I could, in cooperation with my friends and colleagues in Virginia, make a far-reaching difference in the quality of teaching and learning in my home state.

When I returned home, I found that Virginia's other Milken Educators had a similar reaction after hearing from other networks. We all believed, and still do, that we can do great things together. And now, only a short time later, we feel that we've accomplished just such a thing.

Several years ago, the Virginia Milken Educator Network (VMEN) established three simple but admirable goals: to celebrate the teaching profession in Virginia, to elevate the status of the teaching profession, and to activate educators and educators-to-be in our state.

Since then, our network's endeavors and initiatives have been centered around this theme: Celebrate, Elevate, Activate.

Toward that end, our network created the Teachers of Promise Institute, which was held for the first time in March of this year. Teachers of Promise focuses our efforts on Virginia's teachers in training, and is designed to impact their decisions to stay in education and, ultimately, to teach in Virginia.

Four Virginia Teachers of Promise with Virginia Milken Educator Raegan Rangel (VA '03), second from right

The 2004 Teachers of Promise Institute was held at James Madison University (JMU), where Philip Bigler (VA '99) now directs the James Madison Center. Together with Phil's staff at the Center, several Virginia State Teachers of the Year, and the Virginia Department of Education's Division of Teacher Education and Licensure, VMEN planned and implemented a two-day event for prospective teachers from nearly all of Virginia's 37 colleges and schools of education.

Our Institute featured appearances by Virginia State Superintendent for Public Instruction Dr. Jo Lynne DeMary, JMU President Dr. Linwood Rose, Virginia Milken Educator Awards Coordinator Dr. Thomas Elliot, and 2004 National Teacher of the Year Dr. Betsy Rogers. Each added a unique perspective on the opportunities our college students have and the incredible potential they can reach in the education profession.

While our keynote speakers provided anchor points for our Institute, participants also enjoyed a wide range of workshops and seminars presented by Milken Educators, State Teachers of the Year, and Department of Education staff. Carefully designed to meet a wide range of needs, these sessions covered topics including the first week of school, collaborating with the community, a principal's expectations of first year teachers, technology integration, teaching exceptional students, and individualizing instruction. Sessions were designed to complement college coursework and to provide what our network perceived to be important strategies and ideas for teaching in public schools.

Deborah Hunley-Stukes (VA ‘99) (center) discusses teaching with education students from throughout Virginia

The most memorable and poignant moment, however, arrived when our attendees were recognized as official Virginia Teachers of Promise. In the Milken family tradition, each was pinned with a network-designed seal of acknowledgment and gratitude. Smiles and tears of surprise prevailed as our teachers-to-be were celebrated, their career paths elevated.

All of the ideas discussed in our general and smaller sessions were held together by an essential piece of our Institute. Throughout the two days, Milken Educators met with a small mentee group of college students in private, focused sessions to discuss highlights, answer questions, and provide suggestions. Many participants have since formed relationships with their mentors, and several mentors have already had a hand in assisting with job searches for Teachers of Promise.

While Virginia's Milken Educators are proud of the Teachers of Promise Institute, it simply wouldn't have been possible without the support of the Virginia Department of Education and other exemplary educators. We sincerely appreciate and applaud their indispensable contributions to our initiative, and look forward to working together on future Institutes. *

For more information or ideas, please contact Wade Whitehead at wade@wadewhitehead.com.