CCC Partnership Conference:  Business and K–12 Education Partnerships

May 20-21, 2004
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Washington, D.C.

Bringing Fresh Thinking and Key Players Together

The Partnership Conference is a signature event presented annually by CCC. The 2004 CCC Partnership Conference focused on the content, structure and effectiveness of Business & K–12 Education Partnerships because education is the number one issue that companies support philanthropically.

U.S. Chamber President Tom Donohue, Education Secretary Rod Paige (by video), and Deputy Secretary of Education, Eugene Hickok opened the conference, which also featured commentaries by Senator Lamar Alexander, Representative John Boehner, former Secretary of Education Bill Bennett, Melaleuca CEO Frank VanderSloot, and GlaxoSmithKline Vice Chair Bob Ingram.

Speakers said that policies like No Child Left Behind, partnerships like the North Carolina business and education partnerships convened by Governor James Hunt, and individual initiatives sponsored by organizations and companies like the KIPP Academy, Junior Achievement, Communities in Schools, Toyota, Westinghouse, State Farm, and Bayer are having an impact, but that the current system still needs to be significantly improved.

The result?  A number of companies decided to create a coalition to identify effective models for business involvement in education, engage with policy makers and education service providers, and develop strategies and best practices.