The Sept. 9 guest column by Trace Pickering and Shawn Cornally, “In search of deeper conversations on education,” was right on target! Our current education system worked well for the Industrial Age task for which it was designed. Imitating the latest ideas of the time about mass production, the educational system designed for the Industrial Age helped the country achieve the highest standard of living in the world. But the Industrial Age has long since passed.

Success in a highly competitive Innovation Age requires an educational system designed for our times — one capable of developing the full potential of every child. If we pull together, we are certainly capable of designing a new system that achieves the significant goals proposed by the guest columnists in describing the IowaTransformED initiative. I heartily support those goals.

There is another initiative that supports the same lofty educational goals. The Eastern Iowa Compact is a collaborative effort initiated by local school superintendents to engage their communities in meaningful conversations about what is needed for a quality Innovation Age education. Currently, 13 local school districts have teams preparing to invite all stakeholders to participate in open conversations about how to create schools that meet the needs of our time.

At www.commitand

act4kids.org, members of the community can learn about the Eastern Iowa Compact. Individuals also can digitally sign the Compact signifying commitment to changes required to release the full potential of every child. All who care about our future should join this effort!

Dick Whitehead

Walford

Retired Superintendent of Schools

College Community school district