PHILADELPHIA, July 2, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The inaugural NFTE Entrepreneurial Teacher Summit, a four-day conference for NFTE's Entrepreneurial Teacher Corps, a professional learning community for educators passionate about activating the entrepreneurial mindset in students, will take place at Loews Philadelphia from July 9–12, 2018. Over 250 educators are expected to gather to explore leveraging entrepreneurship content to increase student instructional engagement through project-based learning, business startup principals and competition to grow noncognitive skills in order to accelerate academic success in college, career, business startup and life.
For more than 30 years, NFTE (Network For Teaching Entrepreneurship) has been activating the entrepreneurial mindset in youth from under-resourced communities, using its award-winning entrepreneurship curriculum. NFTE is currently in 1,000 schools across the country and serves approximately 35,000 U.S. students every year. Nearly 400 entrepreneurship educators have joined NFTE's Teacher Corps to date.
"NFTE designed the Entrepreneurial Teachers Corps to ensure educators have access to training, professional development, leadership opportunities, resources and supportive services to ensure effective entrepreneurial instructional classroom practices occur. Teachers share practices with each other to grow instructional skills through this professional community of practitioners," said Dr. Ted Thompson, Vice President of NFTE. "Our inaugural Entrepreneurial Teacher Summit furthers our goal of developing a veritable army of middle and high school educators who have the tools—and the passion—to nurture the growth of the entrepreneurial mindset in their students."
"The NFTE Entrepreneurial Teacher Summit is a celebration of teacher creativity in engaging students to build business skills—which lay the groundwork for a successful future. We are thrilled to host this group of inspiring teachers in our city," noted Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney. "Education is a top priority for my administration, and I'm excited to see NFTE galvanizing educators around entrepreneurship for themselves and for their students."
Keynote speaker Dr. Christopher Emdin, a leading authority on educational equity and author of Urban Science Education for the Hip-hop Generation, noted that "developing the entrepreneurial mindset and building startup skills in youth can ensure lifelong success and create a more vibrant society."
Through peer- and expert-led sessions attendees will begin to develop their own entrepreneurial mindsets and learn how to activate the mindset in their students. Session topics include:
- Sharing best practices for blended instruction and project-based learning;
- Leveraging NFTE's curriculum to support the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), including the well-rounded education goal and focus on career/college-readiness; and
- Exploring the full suite of NFTE's Entrepreneurship Pathway programs, from introductory to in-depth learning experiences, including the plethora of support services available to teachers.
The sessions and keynote addresses are designed to give educators the skills they need to be innovators in their schools. Keynote speaker Paul Tough, noted New York Times journalist and author of Helping Children Succeed, stated that "activating the entrepreneurial mindset in students begins with passionate classroom leaders who are equipped with the tools and resources they need to support students and ignite a passion for learning and achieving."
In addition to providing resources and professional development opportunities, NFTE is dedicated to rewarding the efforts of hardworking educators. The NFTE Model Teacher Challenge (MTC) is a national competition that pushes educators to promote consistent student achievement and entrepreneurial mindset growth. This highly competitive challenge awards one highly skilled, disciplined and passionate teacher with $20,000 as a recognition of their excellence in teaching these skills. The winner's school also receives a $5,000 award. The MTC winner will be announced during the summit.
"We are thrilled to be working with NFTE in Philadelphia's middle and high school classrooms because it is truly a dynamic program that supports teachers and students in learning and applying the entrepreneurial mindset," said Dr. William R. Hite, Superintendent of The School District of Philadelphia. This mindset not only empowers and equips young people to compete in a 21st century economy but also allows our educators to greatly succeed. I have no doubt NFTE students and teachers alike will continue to flourish, making significant contributions to their communities and around the world."
Continuing education credit units (CEUs) are available to professionals attending the Summit through a partnership with Horn Entrepreneurship at the University of Delaware. The Entrepreneurial Teacher Summit is made possible through the generous support of the Diana Davis Spencer Foundation, a private philanthropy that promotes entrepreneurship education as a driver of economic growth and innovation.
About NFTE
NFTE is an internationally recognized nonprofit that activates the entrepreneurial mindset in young people. NFTE's Entrepreneurship Pathway program integrates the development of the entrepreneurial mindset with academic and industry skills to ensure that all NFTE youth are career-ready. Research shows that the entrepreneurial mindset—skills including innovation, self-reliance, comfort with risk, communication, and problem-solving—prepares young people for lifelong success. Equipped with the mindset, as well as the business and academic skills that NFTE teaches, NFTE students are ready to thrive in the innovation economy no matter what path they choose. NFTE focuses its work on under-resourced communities. Through its nationwide network of U.S. offices, NFTE programs reached almost 35,000 students in over 1000 schools last school year. Partnerships in eight other countries allowed NFTE to serve an additional 40,000 young people internationally. Learn more at http://www.nfte.com.
SOURCE NFTE
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