§ Mr. Matthew TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment on what date Professor 49W Barber gave a presentation to a group of officials in the Education Department in Washington DC; and what were the names of the officials who attended. [103140]
§ Ms Estelle MorrisProfessor Barber gave a presentation to a group of officials from the Education Department in Washington DC on 11 August 1999. The seminar, which was organised by Emma Harrell on behalf of Terry Peterson, Counselor to the Secretary of Education, allowed an informal, round-table exchange of ideas with officials from the US Department of Education. Roughly 12–15 officials attended. No formal record of attendance was kept but those invited were:
- Michael Smith—Acting Deputy Secretary of Education
- Michael Cohen—Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Education
- Susan Frost—Special Advisor to the Secretary, Office of the Secretary
- Terry Dozier—Special Advisor on Teaching, Office of the Secretary
- Carol Rasco—Senior Advisor to the Secretary and Director of America Reads Challenge, Office of the Secretary
- Judith Johnson—Acting Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
- Kent McGuire—Assistant Secretary, Office of Educational Research and Improvement
- Alan Ginsburg—Planning and Evaluation Service Director, Office of the Secretary
- William Kincaid—Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
- Jim Kohlmoos—Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
- Susan Wilhelm—Education Program Specialist, Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
- Patricia McNeil—Assistant Secretary, Office of Vocational Adult Education
- Linda Roberts—Director of Education Technology, Office of the Deputy Secretary
- Mario Moreno—Assistant Secretary, Office of Intergovernmental and Interagency Affairs
- Menahem Herman—Partnership for Family Involvement in Education Coordinator, Office of Intergovernmental and Interagency Affairs
- Judith Heumann—Assistant Secretary, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
- Lenore Garcia—International Affairs Director, Office of the Under Secretary.
If we are to create a truly world-class education service, it is vital that we have a broad international perspective against which to benchmark our levels of achievement. It is important to keep in touch with, and learn from, best practice and innovations from abroad. The USA, because of its size and diversity, provides many instructive examples.