Coordinating Commission Executive Director Mike Baumgartner will participate in a panel discussion with other national education experts this Friday at the 2017 National Forum on Education Policy, held in San Diego and hosted by the Education Commission of the States. The panel’s topic is creative approaches to education funding on the state level. Baumgartner will be joined on the panel by Michael Kirst, president of the California State Board of Education, and Natalie Shirley, Oklahoma Secretary of Education and Workforce Development.
Here's a full description of the panel's session:
When there is more work to do and less money to pay for it, creative approaches are required. When was the last time you looked across the states to investigate different funding methods at the state and local levels? Don't recreate the wheel when you can benefit from solutions others are using.
Prior to joining the Coordinating Commission in 2014, Baumgartner was chief financial officer for Complete College America, a national nonprofit organization that works with states to increase the number of Americans with quality career certificates or college degrees and to close attainment gaps for traditionally underrepresented populations. He also worked as executive deputy director at the Illinois Board of Higher Education and associate director for facilities and financial affairs at the Indiana Commission for Higher Education.
The National Forum on Education Policy brings together leaders from all 50 states to discuss the most pressing issues in both K-12 and postsecondary education. Those in attendance include governors, legislators, chief state school officers, school board members and teachers. The Education Commission of the States is a nonprofit organization that conducts research and provides expert counsel on the full spectrum of education policy issues.