Dixie Heights High School (Kenton County) English teacher Kris Gillis was selected to participate in the three-day 2013 NBC News Education Nation Summit at the New York Public Library.

This year’s event focused on what it takes to get a student through the public education system, ready for success in college, career and his or her community.

The cornerstone of the national event was the Teacher Town Hall moderated by Brian Williams and carried LIVE on MSNBC on Oct. 6.

Gillis, who recently was selected as one of 24 Ashland Inc. Teacher Achievement Award winners, joined nearly 300 teachers from across the nation to share ideas and insights about helping students succeed – while thousands more tuned in and participated via social media.

A Teacher Immersion Institute after the Teacher Town Hall featured workshops with national experts and master teachers and opportunities to share ideas on the Common Core State Standards. The goal was to give teachers useful training tools they can then share with their peers.

Former Holmes Middle School (Covington Independent) teacher Hallie Booth was part of the national broadcast in 2012. Booth is with Kentucky Department of Education’s Office of Next-Generation Learners as a Northern Kentucky regional literacy specialist.

She said her experience in the event last year served as a great opportunity to learn and network with other educators.

“I can’t begin to describe how much I got out of that,” Booth said. “I’m still in contact with a lot of people I met through the process from business leaders to higher education educators. Everyone came together and shared some truly fascinating ideas and concepts for the classroom.”