Best Should Teach Keynote Speakers
For over 20 years, the has included a keynote presentation from a distinguished听invited educator.听
2024-2025
Join us in the CASE Chancellor's Hall and Auditorium (4th Floor) on Thursday, May 1, 2025,听at 6:00 p.m. MT for the Best Should Teach Lecture and Awards Ceremony followed by Keynote Alphonse Keasley.
Alphonse Keasley is a dynamic leader and our exciting keynote speaker! With over 30 years at 兔子先生传媒文化作品, Alphonse has worn many hats鈥攁s a student, faculty member, staff member, and now as Associate Vice Chancellor in the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Community Engagement. He thrives on diverse interactions with students, faculty, staff, and administration, making a lasting impact across the university. Beyond his work at CU, Dr. Keasley is the president of the Boulder County Arts Alliance and the Colorado Shakespeare Festival Guild. He is deeply committed to the Boulder community, working with initiatives like the Healthy Community Initiative and IMPACT (the fundraising arm of Boulder Valley School District). He also plays a key role in supporting the Family Learning Center鈥檚 transformative 鈥淩ites of Passage鈥 summer program for middle school students, helping shape the future of education in our community.
2024
Kevin Gannon's talk, Is It Time to Change Your Mind?, covered how might we (re)connect with our agency, and use it to anchor our practices in an ethic of hope. This talk suggested specific places to start, and offered strategies to identify and critique the assumptions we bring to teaching. Kevin Gannon is Director of the Center for the Advancement of Faculty Excellence and Professor of History at Queens University of Charlotte, in North Carolina.
2022-2023
What to do when you don鈥檛 know what to do: Teaching for equity and justice on days after.
Dr. Alyssa Hadley Dunn,听Director of Teacher Education for the Neag School of Education and an Associate Professor of Curriculum and Instruction
2021
This Best Should Teach awards ceremony听included 2020听and 2021听awardees. The ceremony was听invitation only听to minimize contact. Awardees took turns speaking at the event as they received their awards. There was no guest speaker for this event.听 听
2020
In 2020, the Best Should Teach awards ceremony was postponed听due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.听
2019
We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom
Bettina L. Love, Associate Professor of Educational Theory & Practice, the University of Georgia
2018
Habits of the Mind: Global Approaches to Teaching and Learning
Michael Puett, Professor of Chinese History and Anthropology, Harvard University听
2017
How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Classroom
Thomas Cech, Nobel Laureate, Distinguished Professor, and Director of CU's BioFrontiers Institute, University of Colorado Boulder
2016听
Using the Tools of Critical Race Theory and Racial Microaggressions to Examine Everyday Racism in and out of the Classroom听
Daniel Sol贸rzano, Professor of Social Science & Comparative Education, Graduate School of Education & Information Studies, University of California, Los Angeles听
2015听
The Republic of Imagination: Humanities & the Future of Democracies听
Azar Nafisi, Professor of English, Johns Hopkins University听
2014听
The Best Should Research Teaching: Impacts of Physics Education Research听
Steven Pollock, Professor, Physics; Carnegie Professor of the Year听
2013听
One Big Sandbox
Elisa Villanueva Beard, Co-CEO, Teach for America听
2012听
鈥淕etting Serious鈥 About Education: Cultivating Culturally听Relevant Teachers for New Century Students听
Gloria Ladson-Billings, University of Wisconsin-Madison听
2011听
The Best Should Teach Legacy听
Philip P. DiStefano, Chancellor, University of Colorado Boulder听
2010听
Science and the World鈥檚 Future听
Bruce Alberts, Editor-in-Chief, Science magazine听
2009听
The Pedagogical Imagination: Teaching toward Possibility听
Kris Guti茅rrez, Provost鈥檚 Chair, School of Education听
2008听
Why the Best Should Teach: Intellectuals and Public Responsibility听
Donna Dickenson, Emeritus Professor, Medical Ethics and Humanities, University of London听
2007听
Save the World on Your Own Time听
Stanley Fish, Davidson-Kahn Distinguished University Professor of Humanities and Law,听College of Law, Florida International University听
2006听
The Role of Teaching in Countering Social Inequality听
Pedro Noguera, Professor, Steinhardt School of Education, New York University & Director, Metropolitan Center for Urban Education听
2005听
Education in the 21st Century: Using the Tools of Science to Teach Science (and a Lot of Other Subjects)听
Carl Weiman, Professor, Physics听
2004听
The Less Teaching, the More Learning, and Other Lessons from the Radical Past听
Martin Bickman, Professor, English, CU-Boulder听
2003听
Twins Separated at Birth: the Reunion of the Sciences and the Humanities听
Patricia Limerick, Professor, History & Environmental Studies and Chair of the Board & Faculty Director for the Center of the American West听
2002听
A New Faculty for the New American Century: Challenges and Opportunities听
Orlando Taylor, Dean of the Graduate School, Howard University听
2001听
Teaching Science in the 21st Century听
Margaret Murnane, Professor, Physics听
2000听
Teaching Because Democracy Matters听
Walter Parker, University of Washington听
1999听
Where Love & Need Are One: A New Day for Teaching听
Eugene Rice, Director for the Forum on Faculty Roles & Rewards, American Association for Higher Education听