Kim Marion Goes to Washington

Last week, Kim Marion, the school system’s program manager for magnet schools & STEM programs, headed to Washington to speak to U.S. senators and representatives as a member of panel organized by the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education.

The panel discussion was called Investing in Solutions: The Teacher Quality Partnership Grant Program. It was held in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, and everyone in Congress was invited.

“Many times, in the K-12 and higher education sectors, we don’t realize the vast amount of time that goes into advocating for federal funds to support programs that benefit our students,” Marion said.

“It was insightful to see this work firsthand, sharing our achievements and challenges with both sides of the aisle, petitioning to protect funds for this grant in particular – the Teacher Quality Partnership – which supports new and master teachers in the profession. 

“We know that teacher quality has the most impact on student learning, and with the federal government’s new requirement of providing evidence of promise in grant applications, it helps to build upon existing successful programs, like the one we currently have with our higher education partner, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

“It was an honor to represent our area and the work we are doing to encourage teachers new into the profession, as well as advance the need for more quality programs like this across the country.”

Joining Marion on the panel were educators from Virginia and New Jersey.