Former Washington state superintendent of public instruction Dr. Terry Bergeson will be the featured speaker at a March 2 gathering of the Lewis County branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW).
“Challenges and Opportunities: Education in Our State and Across the Nation” will be the title of the presentation by Bergeson, who served as the state’s leader of public education from 1997 until 2009.
The meeting will begin at 6:45 p.m. with the program beginning at 7 p.m. The event is being held at the Gathering Place at the Stillwater Estates in Centralia.
According to a news release from AAUW, Bergeson will discuss the impacts of COVID-19 on the nation’s schools among other topics.
“We need to support kids of all ages along with their teachers and principals and reach out compassionately and financially to help communities come together to rebuild the inclusiveness we have lost,” Bergeson stated in the release.
A discussion period will follow the presentation.
AAUW provided Bergeson’s background as gleaned from biographical information published by Pacific Lutheran University (PLU).
Bergeson has extensive experience in education, having served as Washington superintendent of public instruction in addition to her role as executive director of the Washington Commission on Student Learning from 1993 to 1996. Most recently, she retired from Pacific Lutheran University as interim dean of the School of Education and Kinesiology.
“Terry is perhaps best known for her bold and visionary work to develop a statewide system of academic standards and assessments grounded in deep knowledge of human development and based on decades of research,” stated former PLU resident Thomas W. Krise.
Bergeson served as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Washington Tacoma where she taught a course in human resources in educational institutions to students pursuing doctoral degrees in educational leadership. Prior to that, she served as executive director of the San Francisco School Alliance, where she brought community leaders together to correct funding inequities and support education reform for the nearly 60,000 students of the San Francisco Unified School District.
Bergeson earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Emmanuel College in 1964, a master’s in counseling and guidance from Western Michigan University in 1969 and a doctorate in education from the University of Washington in 1982.
Earlier in her career, Bergeson served as executive director of the Central Kitsap School District, and as vice president and president of the Washington Education Association, where she served as chief policy officer for the 48,000-member teacher association.
Those interested in attending can access Stillwaters Estates by driving past Providence Centralia Hospital and then turning left onto Scammon Creek Road and right onto Colonial Drive near the bus stop. Next, turn right onto Stillwaters Avenue. The Gathering Place will be on the left.
