Dr. James P. Comer gave the keynote presentation to an enthusiastic crowd of more than 750 principals and teachers at the Success for All Foundation's 2015 Experienced Sites Conference on February 9, 2015 in New Orleans. He spoke about his own upbringing and family influences and about how this experience inspires his own commitment to help schools focus on child development, not just academics.
"The Family Support and Solutions Team components of Success for All owe a lot to the example of the School Development Program, and it was wonderful for our staff and school partners to hear from the founder," said Dr. Robert Slavin, chairman of the Success for All Foundation and the director of the Center for Research and Reform in Education at Johns Hopkins University.
"I have a high regard for Bob Slavin, and we have a mutual respect for one another's work. Although our efforts to work together did not happen, we worked separately and got similar outcomes. Of 29 comprehensive school reform models, Success for All and the School Development Program were two of the three found to be effective in raising student achievement," said Dr. Comer.