MAYOR ANDRE SAYEGH SELECTED AS HUNT-KEAN LEADERSHIP FELLOW 

Mayor Sayegh has been chosen as one of twenty-nine fellows in the Hunt Institute’s seventh cohort, serving as the group’s only mayor and representative from the State of New Jersey.

The Hunt Institute has announced its latest group of Hunt-Kean Fellows, a list which includes Mayor Andre Sayegh. Over time, the Hunt-Kean Fellowship has grown to become a network of over 100 Fellows from all 50 states with the goals to discuss the most updated research and analysis on education policy and practice. The Fellowship is meant to act as an environment welcoming bipartisan, distinct views in order to, “foster debate on multifaceted education issues,” and to, “provide political leaders from across the country with the knowledge they need to cultivate smart and effective education agendas.”

Mayor Sayegh will be the only Mayoral-level participant in the Fellowship’s seventh cohort, as well as the only representative from New Jersey in this group. Former Fellowship Cohorts have included Former Attorney General Gurbir Grewal (2020), Assemblywoman Shavonda Sumter (2018), and State Senator Teresa Ruiz (2015).

During their tenure, Fellows are invited to two in-person sessions where they are able to engage with area-experts and state-level leaders on education leadership and policy. Topics covered at in-person session allow “Fellows, educators, and experts engage in critical dialogue about key education issues such as prenatal to three years, early childhood, teacher policies, school leadership, school choice, standards and assessments, school accountability, postsecondary education, and the workforce.” Venues for discussion include policy discussions, study groups, strategy breakouts, site visits, and classroom-perspective lessons. Additionally, Fellows are expected to attend monthly webinars, personalized/State-specific policy discussions, and to host regional site visits from other Hunt-Kean Fellows.

While the 2021 Fellow’s initial meeting had been delayed due to COVID-19, it has now been rescheduled for August 11-13^th. All costs to attend the New Mexico-based event are being covered by the Hunt Institute.

The Hunt-Kean Fellowship first launched in 2014 and is named for former New Jersey Governor Tom Kean (1982-1990) and former North Carolina Governor Jim Hunt (1977-1985 and 1993-2001), a republican and democrat both strongly dedicated to education policy reform.