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Kent Pekel is an educator who has worked at the school, district, state, federal, and university levels. Throughout his diverse career, he has sought to bridge the divides that too often exist between educational practice, research, and policy. Kent is currently President and CEO of Search Institute, an internationally recognized research organization that studies and works to strengthen youth outcomes in schools, families, out-of-school time programs, and communities. Prior to joining Search Institute in 2012, Kent served as the founding Executive Director of the University of Minnesota’s College Readiness Consortium. From 2000-2005, Kent served as Executive Director of Research and Development in the Saint Paul Public Schools, where he led development and implementation of the urban school district’s strategic plan and supervised the departments of research, technology, fund development, policy, high school reform, and transportation. From 1995-2000 Kent held several senior staff-level positions in the Clinton Administration, including White House Fellow assigned to the Director of Central Intelligence, Special Advisor to the Deputy Secretary of State, and Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of Education. Kent began his career as a high school social studies teacher in his home state of Minnesota. He holds a B.A. in East Asian Studies from Yale University, a Master’s in Education from Harvard University, and a Doctorate in Education from the University of Minnesota.
Kelvin Oliver is an Educational Consultant specializing in Restorative Practices in Schools. As an assistant principal, he played an instrumental role in the development, implementation, and support of Restorative Practices. Mr. Oliver is credited for creating a Restorative Practices campus-based support model that included weekly professional development and an implementation support team. He has over 10 years of experience in public education as a special education teacher, classroom teacher, campus math specialist, district curriculum specialist, assistant principal and, most recently, principal.
The fee for this 2-day conference is $395/participant, or $350 if registering before the early bird deadline of April 24th, 2019. Online registration is now closed. A limited number of on-site registrations can be made available with a credit card. Please contact checkandconnect@umn.edu
The conference will be held at McNamara Alumni Center on the campus of the University of Minnesota, 200 Oak St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455.
Room blocks have been secured at The Graduate Hotel and Doubletree Minneapolis University. You must book your hotel by June 21, 2019 to receive the conference rate.
The Graduate Minneapolis Hotel is the closest hotel to the conference and within walking distance. To book a room, use the direct link ) and click "modify" to change the dates. You can also visit the main website and use Group code 071719CHO or call 612-379-8888 or toll free 1-800-822-6757. When calling to make a reservation you must ask for the “Student Engagement Conference” block to receive the conference rate of $184 per night.
Use the direct link or call the reservations center at (844) 327-3827 book a room. When making a reservation you must ask for the “Student Engagement Conference” block with the group code: CC5 to receive the group rate of $185 per night. If your stay extends beyond the conference dates, please call the front desk directly at 612-504-3000 to make your reservation (the booking link & central reservations will only allow reservations within the group block dates).
To receive updates regarding the 2019 Student Engagement Conference: Solutions for Success, sign up to receive our monthly Check & Connect Implementation Resources Newsletter.
For information on the second national Check & Connect conference, see 2017 Student Engagement Conference: Connection to School, Motivation to Learn
For information on the first national Check & Connect conference, see 2015 Conference, Celebrating 25 Years of Student Engagement (1990-2015)
For more information on the Check & Connect national conference, please contact us.