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Newt Gingrich and Al Sharpton to Host Landmark Education Event Revealing Real Solutions to Today's Education Crisis.
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Meghan Devitt
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Event will unveil new documentary, Two Million Minutes: The 21st Century Solution, demonstrating that ordinary students can excel if given the right environment.
(Washington, D.C. - September 15, 2009) - The Education Equality Project (www.edequality.org) and American Solutions (www.americansolutions.com) announce today that Reverend Al Sharpton and Former Speaker Newt Gingrich will host a major education reform event on Thursday, September 17 in Washington, D.C.
The event will feature commentary from Gingrich and Sharpton and be the platform for the world premiere of a new documentary called Two Million Minutes: The 21st Century Solution. The film, conceived and produced by venture capitalist and entrepreneur Robert A. Compton, is a sequel to his 2007 internationally acclaimed film Two Million Minutes - A Global Examination. This first film analyzed how six students from the U.S., India and China prioritized their four years or "two million minutes" of high school and demonstrated that the Asian students were, academically, years ahead of their American peers.
Now, two years later, Compton will unveil the sequel. In Two Million Minutes: The 21st Century Solution, Compton discovers and reveals an open-enrollment school in the U.S. that teaches "ordinary" students at an extraordinarily high academic level. This school, located in a largely low-income area, beautifully demonstrates that American students are capable of competing academically with the best in the world given the right curriculum, the right teachers and the right inspiration and expectations for success.
"I was shocked to find what I consider to be the world's best high school in one of the poorest parts of America," said Compton. "This school is educating its students at a level that is globally competitive and preparing them to compete in the 21st century economy. As Education Secretary Duncan and President Obama have both stated, charters are supposed to be laboratories of innovation that we can all learn from." The U.S. needs to take some pointers from this school and apply them widely across our public school systems to sufficiently prepare our students for the global workforce.
The school and its location will be revealed during the film's premiere on Thursday.
"This is one of the most important events I will participate in all year," said Gingrich. "Education reform is crucial to America's success, and Compton's films bring the issues and solutions into light. I implore every American to watch these films and demand change. Our future depends on it."
The event and film premiere will take place on Thursday, September 17th from 6-9pm ET at the National Association of Homebuilders, located at 1201 15th Street, NW, Washington D.C. 20005. Attendance is by invitation only. For more information on Compton or to purchase copies of his documentary films, visit www.2mminutes.com.
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About Bob Compton
Bob Compton is an entrepreneur and venture capitalist who has invested in numerous companies over the past twenty years. He started his career with IBM, and after attending Harvard Business School began the venture capitalist portion of his career. He now serves on numerous company boards and has just recently released his first documentary film. Titled Two Million Minutes, the film takes an in-depth look at secondary education in the United States as compared with India and China and examines the implications this may have on the U.S. position in the global economy during the 21st century. Two Million Minutes is currently screening across the country. For more information, please visit www.2mminutes.com.
