29th Annual Conference on South Padre Island, 2000
30th Annual Conference in Little Rock, 2001

IT WAS A FABULOUS CONFERENCE!

Cincinnati Highlights
by Andrea Shotkin

About 1,000 educators converged on Cincinnati for NAAEE’s 28th Annual Conference, held August 26-30. The meetings and presentations took place in the Cincinnati Convention Center, the Hyatt Regency Hotel, and the Regal Hotel, all right in the heart of downtown Cincinnati.

The theme of the conference, for those of you who were not able to attend, was “Linking EE & Education Reform,” which was reflected in sessions throughout the conference, including keynotes. We were inspired by:

• Talbert Spence, Vice President and Director of the Cranbrook Institute of Science (Michigan), who spoke on “Synergy: Education Reform for the Year 2000 — What EE Must Do;”
   
• Marshall “Mike” S. Smith, Acting Deputy Secretary and Under Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education, on “Building Connections: Standards-based Reform & EE;”
   
• Carol D. Hanley, Math/Sciences Branch Manager at the Division of Curriculum Development, Kentucky Dept. of Education, on “EE in Kentucky’s Education Reform Effort;” and
   
• Diane Berreth, Deputy Executive Director of the Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) on “Making a Difference in Schools: Being a Partner in Reform That Works.”

John F. Disinger, Susan Toth, and Michelle Harvey organized thought-provoking panel discussions on “EE: Continuing and Emerging Challenges,” “Building Bridges: EE and Educational Reform,” and “The Environment, Education, and the Fit for Improvement: What’s the Fit for the Future,” respectively.

The Affiliates Partnership was a galvanizing force, with its pre-conference workshop, the Welcome Table and Map, and the first annual Affiliates Dessert on opening night, with astonishingly beautiful cakes shaped like participating Affiliates’ provinces or states. What fun! There were also numerous other occasions for socializing at the conference, such as the Urban Leadership Collaboratives Reception, the President’s Reception, and during the ten field trips offered to get to know the surrounding area better.

An interesting addition to the conference experience this year was the special NAAEE Conference web pages, set up and maintained by Art Sussman, Joy Wochenske, and Richard Wenn at EdGateway, the web site of WestEd, one of the Department of Education’s Regional Education Laboratories. Lori Mann also worked on behalf of this effort. Many conference participants spent time before the conference on EdGateway — participating in discussions on the conference theme, looking at information on the panel discussions, keynotes, workshops, sessions, and actually being able to develop a personal conference schedule! And during the conference, EdGateway ran professional development sessions in the Cyber Café.

Feedback on the conference so far has been extremely positive. If you have not yet returned your conference evaluation form (it was stuck into the pocket of your conference program), please take a few minutes to fill it out and send it in. Your feedback is valuable to us as we plan for future conferences.

A huge thanks on behalf of NAAEE to the conference co-chairs, Kathy McGlauflin and Bora Simmons, and to NAAEE President Judy Braus, all of whom worked so hard to ensure a great conference. And another huge thank you to all of the countless others who volunteered their time to make sure that everything from local arrangements (Thane Maynard, chair) to field trips (Joan Horn, coordinator) to Special Events (Caroline Alston, coordinator; Steve Bolton, Aimee Giles, Betty Olivolo, Celeste Prussia, Karen Reagor, Sue Shaddeau) to scholarship application reviews (Rosalyn McKeown, Nick Smith-Sebasto, Emilio Williams) to so many other areas and events went smoothly. This organization is blessed with wonderful members who are willing to take on responsibilities, and NAAEE could not succeed without their efforts.

Promoting a healthy, sustainable environment through education.