Franklin Covey Hosts The Leader in Me Symposium Series: Offers New Approaches to Transform Education and Develop 21st Century Leaders in K-12 Schools

Franklin Covey Co. (NYSE: FC) today announced the company is hosting its annual Franklin Covey: The Leader in Me Symposium Series. Attendees will learn new approaches to transform education and develop 21st century leaders in K-12 schools. Held in 16 cities across North America, participants at The Leader in Me Symposium Series will include nearly 10,000 pioneering educators, government and business leaders and community stakeholders. They will connect as a community of innovators with a passion for education and its impact on communities and society. (http://www.theleaderinme.org/symposium)

They will participate in an inspiring experience of accelerated growth and development and learn about proven leadership methodologies and tools, which instill a deep sense of responsibility and personal leadership accountability in students, whereby every student may become a leader. Additionally, they will experience world-class keynotes, student leader presentations, best-in-class breakout sessions, on-site school visits, relationship and networking opportunities.

The schedule for the symposium series follows:

Participants of The Leader in Me Symposium Series will hear from an impressive lineup of education thought leaders on various educational and inspirational topics, including:

• Daniel Pink – New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post bestselling author of five provocative books, including To Sell is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others, A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future, and Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. His books have been translated into 34 languages. He has appeared in The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and on CNN, CNBC, ABC and NPR.
• Geoffrey Canada – President and CEO of Harlem Children’s Zone, nationally recognized for his pioneering work helping children and families in Harlem and passionate advocate for education reform. He authored Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence in America and Reaching Up for Manhood: Transforming the Lives of Boys in America.
• Erin Gruwell – Educator, change agent, catalyst for education and social change, featured in the film Freedom Writers starring Oscar winner Hilary Swank as Gruwell, chronicled her extraordinary journey with 150 high school students who had been written off by the education system, and is the New York Times bestselling author of The Freedom Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around Them.
• Ron Clark – “America's Educator,” New York Times bestselling author of The Essential 55: An Award-Winning Educator’s Rules for Discovering the Successful Student in Every Child, Disney's American Teacher of the Year, whose teaching experiences in New York City inspired the uplifting film, The Ron Clark Story, starring Matthew Perry.
• Rafe Esquith – Award-winning teacher at Hobart Boulevard Elementary School, in Los Angeles. He helps his students, who are from a community of poor and immigrant families, achieve high test scores on standardized testing by starting class early and leaving late. Teaching honors include 1992 Disney National Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award, a Sigma Beta Delta Fellowship from Johns Hopkins University, Oprah Winfrey’s $100,000 "Use Your Life Award," Parents Magazine’s "As You Grow Award," National Medal of Arts and honorary Member of the Order of the British Empire.
• Jon Gordon – He is the author of The Wall Street Journal bestseller The Energy Bus: 10 Rules to Fuel Your Life, Work, and Team with Positive Energy as well as numerous other books. His principles have been put to the test by numerous NFL, NBA, college coaches and teams, Fortune 500 companies, school districts, hospitals and non-profits. He is a graduate of Cornell University, holds a Masters in Teaching from Emory University, and through his training/consulting company is passionate about developing positive leaders, organizations and teams.
• Drew Dudley – He inspires others, speaking on leadership in a more nuanced, practical, and entirely hopeful way. Dudley believes that leadership is about changing the world and nothing less. He has spoken at TEDxToronto and other high profile venues and is founder and director of one of the largest leadership development programs in North America. He embraces the idea that leadership can't really be taught, only learned — an idea that has resonated with thousands of people over the years.
• Salome Thomas-El – Nationally recognized educator, has transformed the attitudes and strategies of school staff, parents, and community to help troubled children graduate from high school and earn college degrees, is a teacher, principal and chess coach in the Philadelphia School District, whose students were eight-time national chess champions. He is the author of the bestselling books, I Choose to Stay: A Black Teacher Refuses to Desert the Inner City and The Immortality of Influence: We Can Build the Best Minds of the Next Generation, for which Walt Disney optioned the movie rights. He has appeared on C-SPAN, CNN, NPR Radio, The Oprah Radio Network and Dr. Oz.
• Sean Covey – Author of the New York Times bestselling The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, which has sold three million copies in 16 languages and The 7 Habits of Happy Kids, which has sold more than one million copies and is in 24 languages. He also authored The 6 Most Important Decisions You’ll Ever Make, and is Franklin Covey’s Executive Vice President of Global Solutions and Product Architect, as well as the Education Practice Leader at Franklin Covey Co.
• Muriel Summers – Principal of A.B. Combs Elementary in Raleigh, North Carolina, original practitioner with the vision to create the leadership model now known as Franklin Covey’s The Leader in Me process where Summers, the teachers, staff and students at A.B. Combs Elementary first incorporated The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and other leadership skills into their core curriculum in unique and creative ways and experienced remarkable, sustainable results.

This year, attendees will be introduced to and celebrate the advancements schools are making using The Leader in Me, Franklin Covey’s whole school education transformation process, which teaches leadership principles to students in K-12 schools. It has been adopted by nearly 1,500 schools in more than 35 countries, with more than 600,000 students and 50,000 staff having been trained, worldwide.

The Leader in Me is a whole school education transformation process, which teaches leadership principles to students in K-12 schools. It emphasizes leadership skills development and creates a culture of student empowerment. Included, is content from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, authored by Stephen Covey, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. The content is integrated in everyday, age-appropriate language into the core subjects and curriculum of a school. It is a holistic, school-wide experience for school staff, students and parents and creates a common language and culture within the school. It inspires young students at elementary schools to develop the skills and self-confidence to lead their lives and succeed in the 21st century.

Also included are principles from Stephen Covey’s book, The Leader in Me: How Schools and Parents Around the World are Inspiring Greatness, One Child at a Time. The book chronicles how extraordinary elementary schools are teaching to elementary school-age children, the same timeless leadership principles which have guided corporate and government boardroom decisions for years, with impressive results. (See Promising Results at www.TheLeaderinMe.org).

For more information, such as the full symposium series schedule, or to register to attend The Leader in Me Symposium Series, visit http://www.theleaderinme.org/symposium. Registration is required and seating is limited. Admission for participants is as follows:

• 10% discount for groups of 10 or more
• Admission is $295
• Additional $165 for pre-conference preview of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Signature Program, onsite the day before the conference begins.

For more information on Franklin Covey Education solutions, visit www.theleaderinme.org.

About Franklin Covey

Franklin Covey Co. (NYSE: FC) is a global company specializing in performance improvement. We help organizations achieve results that require a change in human behavior. Our expertise is in seven areas: leadership, execution, productivity, trust, sales performance, customer loyalty and education. Franklin Covey clients have included 90 percent of the Fortune 100, more than 75 percent of the Fortune 500, thousands of small- and mid-sized businesses, as well as numerous government entities and educational institutions. Franklin Covey has more than 100 offices providing professional services in over 150 countries. For more information, visit www.franklincovey.com.