TAMIU Hosts A&M Chancellor’s Summit on Teacher Education
Written by Post Public Information Representative, Sep 19, 2018, Comments Off
Courtesy Mika S. Akikuni,
(Laredo, Texas)-Faculty and educators from throughout The Texas A&M University System will be at Texas A&M International University’s (TAMIU) campus this weekend for the 9th Annual Chancellor’s Summit on Texas Education, Sunday, Sept. 23 and Monday, Sept. 24.
The two day-event is focused this year on educating teacher preparation faculty on ways to prepare teacher candidates for possible violence in schools. The theme is “New Dimensions of Educator Development – Be Prepared.” Some 100 delegates including Senior Representatives from the Chancellors office, 11 deans, academics and leaders from school districts across Texas will attend. This is the first time that TAMIU has hosted the event .
The Summit will begin Sunday at 2 p.m. and continue through Monday. The Summit’s keynote speaker will be Frank DeAngelis, the principal at Columbine High School when the tragic shooting that killed 13 and wounded more than 20 took place in 1999 in Littleton, Col.
Welcoming Summit participants from the Texas A&M System will be Irma Harper, associate Vice Chancellor, andMichelle Skinner, coordinator of Education Initiatives, Office of Academic Affairs.
Chancellor John Sharp said that outstanding teacher training programs are the hallmark of the System.
“Creating quality educators is a tradition of the A&M System,” Sharp said, “All of our campuses have prepared generations of students to lead PK-12 students across Texas into the best future possible through remarkable teacher training programs that are the hallmark of our System.”
DeAngelis, retired principal of Columbine High School, served as an educator for the Jeffco School District in Littleton, Colorado since 1979, and became the Columbine High School principal in 1996. He is a national speaker on school-based tragedy and recovery after incidents of violence. He retired in June 2014 after 35 years at Columbine.
He works closely with Safe and Sound Schools, a national organization that formed in response to another school shooting tragedy, 2012’s Sandy Hook, in which 26, 20 first graders and six school employees, perished.
“Over the last decade (2006-2016) TAMIU teacher ed programs have prepared the majority (2055/ 85.67%) of the educators working in our region,” said TAMIU College of Education Dean Dr. James O’Meara, “Our graduates continue to make a lasting impact on South Texas by developing local learners who go beyond in ways that contribute to the growth of our economy and the well-being of our region.”
