Cal State San Bernardino’s College of Education will celebrate the university’s 50th anniversary with a speaker series featuring four educators who are on the cutting edge of the profession.

Sing Kong Lee, a professor of biological sciences at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, will kick off the series on Friday, Oct. 16, at 3 p.m. His presentation will take place at the Santos Manuel Student Union Events Center, with livestreaming available at the CSUSB Palm Desert Campus.

Admission is free to the event, which is open to the public, and parking at CSUSB is free in Lots D and Parking Structure East. Register in advance at the Speaker Series Online Registration website.

The theme of the College of Education 50th Anniversary Speaker Series is “Reclaiming Excellence in Educator Preparation for Public Schools.” Lee’s presentation will be on “Teacher Education with Relevance: The Role of the National Institute of Education.” Breakout discussion sessions will follow the keynote address.

In addition to being a professor of biological sciences, Lee is also vice president of Education Strategies at Nanyang Technological University, as well as the the managing director of the National Institute of Education International.

Lee earned First Class Honours in horticultural science from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, and received his Ph.D. in plant biology from the National University of Singapore. He joined the National Institute of Education International in 1991 and was in various positions of leadership, including director, dean of the External Programmes Office and the Graduate Programmes Office.

He has served on several national committees on education, agrotechnology and biotechnology during his career. Lee also serves on the boards of several key establishments and received numerous awards for his contributions.

Among his accolades are the Public Administration Medal (Bronze, 1981), Save Planet Earth Merit Award (1992), Asian Innovation Award (Bronze, 1998), Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Palmes Academiques (1999), National Technology Award 2000, Urban Agriculture Award 2000, Excellence for Singapore Award 2001, Singapore Innovation Award 2001, Public Administration Medal (Silver, 2004), Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Biology (2005), NUS Distinguished Alumni in Science Award (2009), Public Administration Medal (Gold, 2011) and Medal of Honour for the Cause of Education (Vietnam, 2011).

Also scheduled in the speaker series, sponsored by SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union:

Jan. 22, 2016: “Teacher Education Around the World: Facts and Myths About Great Teachers and How They Are Made,” by Pasi Sahlbert, a Finish educator, author and scholar, currently a visiting Professor of Practice at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education.

March 18, 2016: “Fixing the Past or Inventing the Future: Education at a Crossroad,” by Young Zhao, a professor and presidential chair and director of the Institute for Global and Online Education, College of Education at the University of Oregon.

May 20, 2016: “Retooling for the Future,” by Mary Vixie Sandy, executive director, California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.

For more information on the CSUSB College of Education 50th Anniversary Speaker Series, contact Mick Verdi, associate dean, at (909) 537-7530 or email mverdi@csusb.edu.

Set in the foothills of the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, CSUSB is a preeminent center of intellectual and cultural activity in inland Southern California. Celebrating its 50thanniversary in 2015, CSUSB serves more than 20,000 students each year and graduates about 4,000 students annually.

For more information about Cal State San Bernardino, contact the university’s Office of Strategic Communication at (909) 537-5007 and visit news.csusb.edu.