The College of Education’s department of Leadership and Education Policy Studies will be cosponsoring an event this weekend with the Thresholds in Education Foundation.

Jeanette Heinisch, director of non-credit programming for the College of Education, said the third annual research symposium is titled “Knowledge Production and Educational Change for Democratic Renewal.”

The event will begin with registration at noon this Friday and continue Saturday in the Holmes Student Center.

The conference will include about 30 educators presenting books, research and papers they have written, she said.

Heinisch said, “There will be a wide range of topics dealing with education.”

Topics for this year include schools and multiculturalism, education change and reform, she said.

Heinisch said while some speakers primarily will present information from research, three speakers will address directly the theme of the conference.

Hugh Sockett, president of the Institution for Educational Transformation at George Mason University, will be the first speaker. He will speak at 4:30 p.m. Friday in the Capitol Room of the student center.

Sockett will discuss the moral base for the teaching profession.

The next major speaker at the symposium is Dena Stoner from the Council for Education Development and Research.

Stoner will appear from 11 a.m. to noon Saturday in room 505 of the student center.

Stoner will address the formal research and development system of education, Heinisch said.

The final speaker will appear following the LEPS dinner and awards ceremony at 8:15 p.m. Saturday in the Blackhawk Cafeteria.

Rosamaria Torres, senior education advisor for UNICEF in New York, will be the final speaker. She will be discussing whether having an education will help people find employment.

Heinisch said the majority of the people attending the symposium will be from all facets of the educational system.

However, this should not deter interested students from attending, she added. All sessions are free.

For more information call Heinisch at 753-6926.