NBC Universal presents "Education Nation"

NBC News launches its first annual “Education Nation” the week of September 27, 2010–a nationally broadcast in-depth conversation about improving education in America, beginning with an interactive two-day summit on Rockefeller Plaza. The two-day summit is a call to action, shining a spotlight on the pressing national issue of education in America. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Delaware Governor Jack Markell, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, Harlem Children Zone’s CEO Geoffrey Canada, MIT President Susan Hockfield, National Superintendent of the Year Elizabeth Morgan, civil rights activist Al Sharpton, and University of Phoenix President Bill Pepicello join a host of top leaders in education to open a national dialogue and address the gap between how we perceive education and the actual results we are producing today.

"Education Nation" will include more than 300 big thinkers in government, politics, business, and technology–as well as school administrators, teachers, parents, and students from across the country–to tackle the challenges in education and highlight exciting opportunities and big ideas in education reform. The goal of “Education Nation” is to provide clear information on how schools are performing, reimagine what education in America can be, build on national momentum within the policy and reform communities, and inspire changes that enable our nation to prepare a skilled workforce to meet the demands of the future.

Special news coverage and programming airing across all NBC News programs and platforms will extend beyond the two-day summit. For the entire week of September 27, Nightly News, Today, Meet the Press, Your Business, MSNBC, CNBC, Telemundo, msnbc.com, and nbclearn.com will highlight educational success stories, uncover staggering truths and myths about education, and demonstrate how poor education cripples our economy and society.

For more information about “Education Nation,” including a list of participants and schedule of events, visit the event's website or follow @EducationNation on Twitter (also #EducationNation). More information about “Education Nation” will be announced as the date nears.