San Diego

A month ago I received an invitation to attend a conference in San Diego for teachers who are also in leadership roles in their buildings.  It was being put on by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.  I just got back and had a fantastic time.  We were booked almost every minute of the whole time we were there, but I learned a lot.  It was very neat to be surrounded by teachers from across the country.  They put us in Colleague circles and in my circle I had the teacher with the largest achievement gap in the country and the poorest school district in the country.  I learned a lot about how different places are implementing the new common core standards and how other districts do their peer mentoring programs.  I was able to sit with all the Colorado teachers for a small part of the trip, but it was nice to discuss the new state teacher evaluation rubric that is going to me implemented across our state next year. 
One other teacher from my district went too.  She was the teacher that when Bill and Melinda Gates came earlier in the year they observed her classroom and she was apart of the 9 teachers who were in the discussion with them as well.  This apparetnly makes her very well known to everyone who works for the Gates foundation.  I found myself the first night at a table with all the Gates foundation people (Bill and Melinda were not there).  It was pretty crazy, and cool, and a little nerveracking:)
The crazy thing about the conference was they filled and photographed everything..and not with a flip camera like in my district.  With cameras like these...

They were everywhere!  Even trying to get orange juice in the morning and there is the dude with the camera.
I didn't take any other pictures.   I didn't even get to see the beach:( 
Here is a summary video they put out about the conference if you happen to be interested.

I am in it for a split second, clapping at a table, my Hollywood minute:)

ECET2 La Jolla Final Video from Long Story Short on Vimeo.


I got lots of pictures sent to me of Carter, they made me smile:)

Great trip and now a busy PT conferences week!