2008 Annual Conference Keynote Speakers

February 27 - March 1, 2008
Hilton New York, Radio City Music Hall & Sheraton New York
New York City, NY, USA
Schools of the Future: Embracing the Educational ReNAISsance

Below is a list of the featured speakers, and links to any clips or articles. You may also download a PDF of the full speaker biographies.

NAIS President, Pat Bassett
Annual Meeting Presentation
Workshop: Right-Brained Future: Creating 21st Century Schools

GENERAL SESSION SPEAKERS INCLUDE:

	KEN ROBINSON Thursday, February 28: 9:30 - 11:00 am Out of Our Minds: Learning to be Creative Click here to view a video clip of Ken Robinson's presentation. Sir Ken Robinson is an internationally recognized leader in the development of creativity, innovation, and human resources. He is author of the report, “All Our Futures: Creativity, Culture and Education (The Robinson Report)” was the book Out of Our Minds: Learning to be Creative.
	PEARL CLEAGE Thursday, February 28: 3:15 - 5 pm A Writer's Role in Wartime: The Campfire at the End of the World Click here to read an article about Pearl Cleage's presentation. Click here to view a video clip of Pearl Cleage's presentation. Accomplished playwright, journalist, poet, and novelist, Pearl Cleage probes issues of race, sex, and love in a growing body of literary work while she reveals poignant truths about brave black women. An Atlanta-based writer, her works include five novels, a dozen plays, two books of essays, two books of poetry, and ten years of newspaper columns. Chosen by Spelman College as one of their Cosby Chairs in the Humanities, Cleage is currently teaching at the college. Her upcoming novel, Seen It All and Done the Rest, will be released in 2008.
	DANIEL PINK Friday, February 29: 9:30 - 11:00 am A Whole New Mind Click here to read an article about Daniel Pink's presentation. Click here to view a video clip of Daniel Pink's presentation. Daniel Pink is a best-selling author and an expert on innovation, competition, and the changing world of work. His latest book, A Whole New Mind, charts the rise of right-brain thinking in modern economies and explains the six abilities individuals and organizations must master in an outsourced and automated world. Dan’s first book, Free Agent Nation, about the rise of people working for themselves, was a Washington Post best seller.
	MARIANE PEARL Friday, February 29: 3:00 – 4:30 pm Fighting Violence: Open Up a Dialogue Click here to view a video clip of Mariane Pearl's presentation. Mariane Pearl is author of A Mighty Heart:The Brave Life and Death of My Husband Daniel Pearl, a book that introduced the world to Daniel Pearl as he was when he was alive while also providing a heart-breaking first person account of his disappearance and death. She is co-founder of the Daniel Pearl Foundation, created to further the ideals that inspired his life and work and to promote cross-cultural understanding through journalism, music, and innovative communications. Sponsored by: Sodexho

FEATURED WORKSHOPS INCLUDE:

		ROLAND FRYER Thursday, February 28: 8:00 – 9:00 am Economics of Incentives: What Drives Individuals and Organizations to Make Decisions? Click here to read an article about Roland Fryer's presentation. Economist Roland Fryer is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Harvard University, He is a major player in the application of economic theories to issues of race and discrimination. Many recognize Fryer’s name from the best-selling book Freakonomics, on which he collaborated with the book’s author Stephen Levitt. Sponsored by: The American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence (ABCTE)
		KAREN KASMAUSKI Thursday, February 28: 12:30 – 1:30 pm The World's Other War: A Decade on the Front Lines of Global Health Click here to read an article about Karen Kasmauski's presentation. In her role as a contributing photographer-in-residence, Karen Kasmauski is driving a global health/global change initiative at National Geographic. Celebrated for her ability to illustrate the microscopic architecture of a disease and to record the social impact left in its wake, Kasmauski’s work has won the praise of both the medical and journalism communities.
		MALCOLM GLADWELL & ADAM GOPNIK Thursday, February 28: 12:30 – 1:30 pm The Ends of Education: A Spirited Conversation between Writers Adam Gopnik and Malcolm Gladwell about 21st Century Schooling Click here to read an article about Gladwell & Gopnik's presentation. Malcolm Gladwell has been named by Time Magazine as of its 100 Most Influential People. He is the author of two New York Times #1 best sellers, The Tipping Point and Blink. He is currently a staff writer for the The New Yorker magazine. Adam Gopnik is an award-winning journalist who also writes for The New Yorker and has a genius for bringing people and their ideas to life, for communicating the emotions behind ideas and their relevance to modern life. Adam’s most recent book is Through the Children’s Gate: A Home in New York. Sponsored by: The Klingenstein Fund
		ISHMAEL BEAH Thursday, February 28: 1:45 – 2:45 pm A Long Way Gone: A Story of Redemption and Hope Author of A Long Way Gone, Beah tells a riveting story of his childhood in Sierra Leoneans and his struggle to regain his humanity and re-enter the world of civilians. Beah is now an advocate, speaking on behalf of UNICEF, Human Rights Watch, UN Secretary General’s Office for Children and Armed Conflict.
		FAITH POPCORN Thursday, February 28: 1:45–2:45 pm The Trend Oracle Click here to read an article about Faith Popcorn's presentation. The New York Times has called Faith Popcorn “the trend oracle” and she is recognized as America’s foremost trend expert. She is founder of BrainReserve, her futurefocused marketing consultancy, and the author of the mega-bestseller The Popcorn Report and EVEolution: The Eight Truths of Marketing to Women. Her latest book, Dictionary of the Future, includes 1,500 new, emerging, and just-invented terms in 35 diverse categories so readers can see the future taking shape, word by word, idea by idea.
		SIMRAN SETHI Friday, February 29: 8 - 9 am Musings and Advice from a Sustainability Journalist Simran Sethi is an award-winning journalist who reports on issues of economic sustainability, environmental stewardship, and social justice. She is a contributing author to Ethical Markets: Growing the Green Economy, the companion guide to the PBS series Ethical Markets. Sethi is the host and writer of Sundance Channel's program The Green and is a commentator and consultant for its series Big Ideas for a Small Planet. She hosts a weekly environmental podcast for TreeHugger.com.
		KEVIN JENNINGS Friday, February 29: 11:30 am - 12:30 pm Diversity Leadership Award Recipient An accomplished writer, teacher, and leader in the fields of K-12 education and civil rights, Kevin Jennings began his career as a high school history teacher. In 1990 he founded the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (www.GLSEN.org). Under his leadership, GLSEN has made safe schools a national issue. Newsweek named Jennings to the “Century Club” as one of “100 people to watch in the new century.” In addition to authoring six books, Jennings helped write and produce the documentary Out of the Past.
		FIROOZEH DUMAS Friday, February 29: 11:30 am - 12:30 pm Funny in Farsi: Humor & Shared Humanity Click here to read an article about Firoozeh Dumas's presentation. Firoozeh Dumas was born in Abadan, Iran, and, at the age of seven, moved to Whittier, California, with her family. After a two-year stay, they moved back to Iran, then two years later, returned again to California. She grew up listening to her father recount the many colorful stories of his life in both Iran and America. Firoozeh decided to write her own stories as a gift to her children, resulting in the collection called Funny in Farsi. Firoozeh reminds us that our commonalities far outweigh our differences… and she does so with humor.
		REZA ASLAN Friday, February 29: 1:30 – 2:30 pm Maneuvering Through the Muslim World Reza Aslan is one of the nation's most respected experts on Islam and the Middle East. He is a research associate at the University of Southern California's Center on Public Diplomacy, Middle East Commentator for NPR's "Marketplace," Muslim Affairs Analyst for CBS News, and author of internationally acclaimed book No God but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam.