U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Senior Staff to Visit Colorado on the 2012 Cross-Country Back-To-School Bus Tour: “Education Drives America”

As a part of the U.S. Department of Education’s third annual back-to-school bus tour, on Monday, Sept. 17, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will visit Lowry Elementary School in Denver and Limon Public Schools in Limon, Colo.

These engagements are part of a series of events and community conversations being held coast- to-coast by Secretary Duncan and his leadership team from Sept. 12-21 to highlight the theme that Education Drives America.

At Lowry Elementary School, Secretary Duncan will participate in a “Let’s Move!” event, visiting with students and staff in the lunchroom to hear about their “Garden to Cafeteria” lunch program and then moving to the soccer field for sports and physical fitness activities.  Secretary Duncan will be joined by Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, U.S. Sens. Mark Udall and Michael Bennet, Colorado Commissioner of Education Robert Hammond, and Superintendent of Denver Public Schools Tom Boasberg. “Let’s Move!” is First Lady Michelle Obama’s initiative to confront and end childhood obesity through good nutrition and physical activity.

Later on Monday, the Education Drives America tour bus will arrive at Limon Public Schools. There, Secretary Duncan will address some 400 K-12 students, parents, teachers, and community members at the school’s Constitution Day celebration. Limon Superintendent of Schools Dave Marx and Limon Mayor Julie Coonts will join Secretary Duncan at the event.

In addition to these engagements with Secretary Duncan, also on Sept. 17, Acting Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education David Bergeron will host a roundtable discussion on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education at the University of Colorado Boulder.  Joining him for the discussion will be CU faculty and administrators, students, K-12 teachers, and state government and community leaders.

For live, up-to-the-minute updates from the road, follow the Education Drives America tour on Twitter using the hashtag #edtour12, or see the department’s bus tour blog. To receive media advisories, press releases, notifications about postings to the blog, and other special updates during the tour, subscribe to the department’s Education Drives America e-mail updates by clicking here.