MORGANTOWN, W.Va.- The fourth annual Focus Forward Symposium was held at the Morgantown Marriott on Thursday.
This event was hosted by the West Virginia Public Education Collaborative and the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation.
They brought in experts in business, industry, education, and economic leaders to discuss forward-thinking ideas to help keep the state competitive and prepare today for the future tomorrow.
“I believe that part of the dialogue always has to be sharing information. It’s about education; the more we know then the less we have to fear about what is happening, what is changing,” said Gayle Manchin, Appalachian Regional Commission Co-Chair.
This event works by learning upon past events with the use of technology to help transform the state’s education system and workforce to match future needs.
Not only that, but this event tries to solve problems that people may have experienced in the past with open questions to the public.
Manchin said, “How well do you deliver this message, how effective are you at sharing, that we do this together, it’s not either or, its how we blend, how we take the best of our past, know where we are today, and then have a vision of where we need to be five years from now.”
This event allows state leaders to ‘Focus Forward’ to the future, by making changes to what can be ‘West Virginia’s New Narrative,’ and also allows educators to prepare children for the future.
To learn more about West Virginia Public Education Collaborative click here.
For more information about the Appalachian Regional Commission click here.
If you want to contact WVPEC send an email here: WVPEC@mail.wvu.edu
