Workforce Development Core Focus in The Hunt Institute’s Governors’ Advisors Retreat

Miami, Fla. – A commitment to education and the economy means ensuring that all parts of the education continuum—early childhood through workforce—are coordinated and moving toward the same goals. To assist states with this work, The Hunt Institute will host the 2020 Governors’ Advisors Retreat: Leveraging State Leadership to Support Workforce Development on Feb. 20-21 in Miami.

Gubernatorial staff and other key state advisors, including lieutenant governors and state agency commissioners, from 22 states will hear from two former governors and leading national resource experts to discuss critical issues facing their states, with participants focused on problem identification, coalition building and implementation.

“The Hunt Institute is excited to host the Governors’ Advisors Retreat, offering state teams, developed and led by gubernatorial staff, a unique opportunity to engage and reflect with colleagues on how to cultivate and sustain efficient education systems in their states,” said The Hunt Institute’s President & CEO Dr. Javaid Siddiqi.  

Sessions will take a deep dive into how leaders in business, state and local government, and education must work collaboratively to achieve maximum impact for students. Two former governors –  The Hunt Institute Board Member, Gov. Don Carcieri of Rhode Island, and Gov. Dannel Malloy of Connecticut, who now serves as Chancellor of the University of Maine System – will provide additional inspiration, sharing the importance of working with local leaders, how state policies can complement and supplement local efforts and about the value of building coalitions.

Reflecting on his time as in office, Governor Carcieri imparted that, “Advisors who are informed about the issues, strategic about their coalitions, and results-oriented are a governor’s best tool.”

“The Governor can set the vision, but it takes a whole team and partners across sectors to drive meaningful change,” concluded Governor Malloy.

Attendees will also hear from a variety of resource experts and education leaders including several Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellows:

• Matthew Cook, Public Finance Manager, Arnold Ventures
• John D. Denning, Senior Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• Adam Edelen, Former Chief of Staff, Office of Governor Steve Beshear; Former Auditor of Public Accounts, Commonwealth of Kentucky; Founder, Edelen Ventures; Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellow
• Mayor Coral Evans, City of Flagstaff, Arizona; Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellow
• Laura Fornash, Former Virginia Secretary of Education; Senior Vice President McGuireWoods Consulting
• Angela Henneberger, Principal Investigator and Director of Research, Maryland Longitudinal Data System Center
• Sam Gutter, Former Education Policy Advisor, Office of Governor Bill Haslam; Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives, Tennessee SCORE
• Chuck Kaylor, Chief of Staff, John M Belk Endowment
• Mike Krause, Former Executive Director, Tennessee Promise and Drive to 55; Executive Director, Tennessee Higher Education Commission and Tennessee Student Assistance Corporation
• Teresa Ruiz, President Pro Tempore, New Jersey State Senate; Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellow
• Mayor Levar Stoney, City of Richmond, Virginia; Former Secretary of State, Commonwealth of Virginia; Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellow

About the Hunt Institute

An affiliate of the Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy, the Hunt Institute is a recognized leader in the movement to transform public education. Marshaling expertise from a nationwide partner network since it was established in 2001, The Institute brings together people and resources that help build and nurture visionary leadership and mobilize strategic action for greater educational outcomes and student success. For more information, please visit: http://www.hunt-institute.org/