Help APS Name Next Year’s CGCS Conference

Blogger’s note: There’s a surprise joke in the list at the bottom of this post. And when I say “surprise,” I mean it was a surprise to me when I copied and pasted the list of possible themes that APS sent me. Admins with a sense of humor, for your Friday.

Regular readers of my blog (which I think includes at least one of my editors and maybe two fellow reporters) may remember that I poked some fun at the theme of this year’s Council of Great City Schools conference, which was held in Indianapolis. The theme was “Driving Education into the Winner’s Circle,” and all the conference materials had black and white checkered flags on them.

Well, snarky reporters from other states just might be teasing us next year if Albuquerque Public Schools doesn’t come up with a good theme. The national conference will be held right here in the Duke City next year, and is expected to bring in edu-types from around the country.

At a school board meeting this morning, APS Superintendent Winston Brooks asked for the board’s input on the theme, while cautioning that the council will have the final say. He also told the board that Council representatives who have visited Albuquerque are pretty set on having balloons in the theme.

“There will be balloons in our theme whether we put them there or not,” Brooks said. With that in mind, I’m providing a partial list of theme ideas being considered by APS. I don’t think the district is formally soliciting public input, but I’ll share any feedback I get here with administrators. Do you particularly like one of these ideas? Do you hate them all and have a better idea? Please share!

Here’s the list, which has a lot of related ideas, or names that are the same but have different subtitles. I don’t have a particular favorite but I kind of like the “launching futures” concept. It’s got balloons and it’s aspirational, without a high cheese factor.

Education Aloft

Education Aloft…Soaring to the Future

Education Aloft….Launching Dreams

Education Aloft.…Launching the Future

Soaring Toward Educational Success

Education Aloft….Launching Futures

Soaring for Student Success

Celebrate Education in the Land of Enchantment

Education at the Peak

Education….On The Rise

Lifting Lives, Launching Futures

Reaching for Greater Heights

Reaching New Heights

Education….Launching Dreams

Education….Launching the Future

Celebrate Education in the Land of Enchantment

Soaring for Student Success

Soaring for Educational Success

Enchanted Sunrise

Education Aloft…Soaring for Student Success

Urban Education: Soaring for Student Success

Soaring to New Heights

Urban Education: Lifting Dreams

Ascending Aspirations for Student Success

Achieving Great Heights

Up, Up and Away

Reaching for the Skies

Reaching for Great Possibilities

Gliding High (sounds like a Gary Johnson campaign slogan)

Navigating Students to Greater Heights

Leading the Way

Hot on Student Success

All Rise

Education Aloft – An Enchanted Sunrise for Student Success