On one of the first frigid days of December, the LGW Signature Program Class of 2017 met for a program day focused on the educational landscape of the region.
Unlike Education Day in years past, this session began with leaders dispersed all around the region at schools in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and northern Virginia. Program participants met with leaders in public, charter, and private schools to learn about their unique curricula and to understand the variance in meeting students’ needs.
Following a tour of the schools’ facilities, leaders reconvened at Anacostia High School in Southeast DC, where we were welcomed by LGW member Joe Persichini (’08), Executive Director for the Washington DC Police Foundation, which recently launched the Public Safety Academy to help Anacostia High School students pursue careers in law enforcement.
Leaders came together to share their observations of schools across the region, acknowledge their differences, particular strengths, and unique opportunities to give back to the communities which they serve. The conversation ranged from demographics and varying tuition rates to school security, access to technology, and career and community services.
Following lunch, our leaders engaged during a fireside chat with Lauralyn Lee (’14) of Lee Partners LLC and Georgetown University, and Chip Paucek, Co-Founder of 2U Inc., an online education company helping universities offer their graduate degrees online to a wider number of students. Together, our guests spoke about the future of higher education and how well-established university brands are using digital technology to expand the educational opportunities offered to students around the world.
Many thanks to our guest speakers and the many schools that hosted LGW’s leaders for our exploration of education in the region:
Academy of Hope
Anacostia High School
Carlos Rosario International Public Charter School
Don Bosco Cristo Rey High School
EducareDC
Francis Scott Key Elementary
Neval Thomas Elementary
Oxon Hill High School
Sunshine Early Learning Center
The Lab School of Washington
Washington Jesuit Academy
Photos from the event can be viewed here.