National principals' association president to give seminar
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Mary Kay Sommers, who received her doctorate in education administration from Purdue in 1990, will lead the seminar "Reflections on P-12 Education - from National Influences to Partnerships with Higher Education." The presentation and interactive seminar will take place from 9:30-11 a.m. in the Deans Auditorium in Pfendler Hall, followed by a reception.
"Sommers' contributions to elementary education are a source of pride for the College of Education," said Sidney Moon, associate dean of the College of Education and director of the Gifted Education Resource Institute. "As a successful alumna, her educational wisdom and appreciation of Purdue's status as a land-grant institution are significant in national education discussions."
Sommers was an elementary school teacher and principal for 20 years in Indiana before transferring to Colorado's Poudre School District in 1987. Currently, she is the principal of Shepardson Elementary in Fort Collins, Colo., which has received the state's John Irwin Award for Excellence three years in a row.
Sommers received the Award for Outstanding Service to Students with Special Needs in 2004 and was featured in the book "Mentoring Principals." She is a former federal relations coordinator for the Colorado Association of Elementary School Principals and for the national association, of which she will become president in July 2007.
Purdue was founded from the Morrill Land-Grant Act of 1862, which was signed by President Abraham Lincoln. The act gave states public land for the establishment of a school dedicated to the study of agriculture and mechanics.
Sponsors of the seminar are the College of Education, the Teaching Academy, College of Agriculture and Discovery Learning Center. The event is free and open to the public.
Writer: Bethany Bannister-Andrews, (765) 494-2073, bbannister@purdue.edu
Source: Tonya Agnew, communications director for the College of Education, (765) 494-0568, tragnew@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
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