Today is Opening Day of NASBE's 2017 Legislative Conference in Washington, DC, which kicks off with an orientation session for new Board members: Over breakfast and through the morning, newly elected and appointed members of the NASBE Board of Directors will meet to learn more about the organization and about their role as board members. (Having attended this orientation last year, I've got the morning to myself.)
At lunch, all Board members will join for the Board of Directors quarterly business meeting - the Board is charged with setting all policy for the association. We'll be briefed by staff and members of the leadership team on NASBE's activities that support the Board's strategic plan. Parenthetically, a couple of us have been asked to share "impressions" from a survey that went out to NASBE members and non-member State Boards last summer and fall; it's not a formal presentation, or anything, but a small number of takeaways from a few of us about the survey's recommendations that may resonate with the Board. A similar survey was taken in 2014.
After the Board meeting, #NASBELegCon participants have been invited to attend an opening reception held jointly with the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) at their hotel. As I understand it, Commissioner Chester and a few others from DESE will be there.
Following the reception we'll be welcomed at dinner by Department of Defense Education Activity Director Thomas Brady and NASBE Board of Directors Chair Jay Barth. After that, Kris Amundson, NASBE President/CEO, and Chris Minnich, Executive Director CCSSO, will add some remarks before introducing Nicolle Wallace, who provides the evening's keynote address. As a Political Analyst, New York Times Best-Selling Author, and Former White House Director of Communications, she'll provide a "birds-eye view" of the political landscape in Washington, DC, including legislative priorities of the 115th Congress, priorities of the new Trump administration, and the general tenor in Washington.