JACKSON ― One of the nation’s most prominent advocates for school safety is the featured speaker for the Mississippi Association of School Superintendents’ 2019 Winter Conference set for January 27-30 Jackson’s Marriott Hotel.
Frank DeAnglis, retired Columbine High School principal, will challenge participants to take proactive steps to protect their students by sharing personal accounts of the tragic events that occurred at his school on April 20, 1999.
The day was unfolding like most Spring mornings in high schools across America when an assistant burst in to tell DeAnglis that gunshots were being reported in one of the buildings. Two students carrying guns and bombs, were firing inside the school, eventually killing 13 and wounding 23 others before killing themselves.
With the theme “Instruction Leadership: The Pulse of Our Success,” the MASS Winter Conference will engage nearly 350 educators from around the state in a series of thought-provoking sessions aimed at identifying solutions to the challenges and issues facing education.
In addition to school safety, participants will discuss teacher shortages, instructional leadership, behavior issues stemming from outside the classroom, appropriate use of social media, mentoring, and learning and leading in a digital age.
“The landscape of education is changing rapidly,” said MASS executive director Phil Burchfield. “That’s what makes this year’s conference particularly important. These informative sessions led by expert presenters will provide an enlightening learning experience that leads to increased student achievement in Mississippi.”
Joining DeAngelis as speakers will be Tony Holland, dean of instructional affairs at Wallace Community College, FBI agent Chris Freeze and five College of Education deans from Mississippi’s university system.
Superintendent sessions run from January 27–30. Members of the Alliance of Educational Leaders of Mississippi should plan to attend from January 28–30.
Conference registration is $275 and can be completed online at superintendents.ms/events/winter_conference_registration.phtml. MASS-member school districts, are encouraged to sponsor attendance for administrators and faculty members.