An event designed to deal with the topic of teacher retention is planned.

According to Kansas State University, their Rural Education Center will host virtually the Rural Education Summit, “Homegrown Solutions,” on Friday, March 26, with the theme “Recruitment, Reinforcement and Retention.”

The half-day program includes national speakers and kicks off with messages from Debbie Mercer, dean of the College of Education, and Randy Watson, Kansas commissioner of education. K-State’s Tuan Nguyen, assistant professor of curriculum and instruction who researches teacher recruitment and retention, will present his findings on rural education.

Registration is open nationwide, and the fee of $10 is designed to encourage several individuals from a district to attend. Register at 2021 Rural Summit.

Gary Funk, director of the Rural Schools Collaborative, based in Cambridge, Wisconsin, will discuss the I Am a Rural Teacher national advocacy campaign, and Allen Pratt, executive director of the National Rural Education Association, based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, will present “Rural Education: Stories and Updates From Pandemic to Innovation.”

Attendees can choose from a variety of breakout sessions, with strands based on the conference’s themes of recruitment, reinforcement and retention. Presenters will provide introductory comments, then lead their session’s group discussion via Zoom. The presentations will build upon videos they created that will be uploaded prior to the conference for attendees to view.

Topics include emotional wellness; Ag in the Classroom; robots and other grants to support your schools; STEM; business and education skills partnerships; and district partnerships for community food needs. The full schedule will be posted soon.

For more information about the summit, contact the Rural Education Center at [email protected].