The Honorable Edward G. Rendell, former Governor of Pennsylvania, spoke about the value ofOn Nov. 1, the School of Education hosted its inaugural School of Education Colloquium, “Keeping the Promise of Early Childhood Education: Putting Into Practice What We Know,” which focused on the importance of early childhood education to future academic and social achievement.

The event, successfully held in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, featured a warm greeting from Arcadia’s President Carl (Tobey) Oxholm III, who introduced the keynote speaker, the Honorable Edward G. Rendell, former Governor of Pennsylvania. Governor Rendell shared his views on the central role of early childhood education through the lens of his more than 30 years of public service, which included instituting pro-education policies.

Dr. Leif Gustavson, Interim Dean of the School of Education, and Dr. Foram Bhukhanwala set the stage for an energizing panel discussion moderated by Dr. Priscilla Jeter-Isles, Adjunct Professor of Education at Arcadia, and featuring comments by Dr. Shelly Yanoff ’62, ’12H, Executive Director of Public Citizens for Children and Youth; Donna Cooper, Senior Fellow with the Center for American Progress and former Secretary of Policy and Planning for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; Dr. Mitra Assadi, M.D., Director of Pediatric Neurology at Capital Health; and Dr. Smita Mathur, Assistant Professor of Education at Arcadia.

Each of the panelists offered their expert perspectives on early childhood learning vis-a-vis their expertise in the fields of child advocacy, public and legislative policy, neurobiology and brain development, and cultural studies, respectively. The evening concluded with an energizing Q-and-A session and closing comments by Colloquium co-organizer Dr. Kathy Trainor of the School of Education.