Kristen French to moderate discussion on the future of education

Kristen French, Director of The Center for Education Equity and Diversity at Western Washington University, will moderate a panel discussion Aug. 16 as part of the Seattle Center Next 50 events.

What is the future we hope to realize for our children 50 years from now? What are the skills today’s children need in order to become the architects of a better world tomorrow? How are new advances in areas such as technology and brain research opening up exciting new pathways for teaching and learning? How will we make innovations in education meaningful and accessible to all children in the Next 50? How will the investments we make in educating very young children today profoundly affect our community - for better or for worse - in the next 50 years?

National leaders whose work shapes new ideas in education will discuss these questions at the 7 p.m. event, which will take place at Marion Oliver McCaw Hall in Seattle.

Presenters:

• Jane McGonigal, Ph.D., Creative Director of Social Chocolate, Director of Game Research and Development at Institute for the Future, best-selling author of Reality is Broken, named by The New York Times as one of 10 scientists with the best vision for what’s coming next.
• Milton Chen, Ph.D., Director Emeritus of Edutopia/The George Lucas Educational Foundation
• Bette Hyde, Ph.D., Director of Washington State Department of Early Learning
• Roger Weissberg, Ph.D., Psychology Professor at University of Illinois and CEO of Collaborative for Academic, Social & Emotional Learning (CASEL)

Admission is $10 for students and educators, $16 for general admission, $37 for premium seating and post-event reception. Tickets available at ticketmaster.com. Those who are unable to attend may go to the Next Fifty Global Channel (seattlecenter.com) later to watch the recorded broadcast.