The Plank Institute

The 30th Annual Summer Plank Institute
The Blake School
July 20 – 22, 2009
Theme of this year’s symposia: The Business of Play

On this the 30th anniversary of the Plank Institute, come learn and play with us! It seems only right to consider lifting our spirits together after a year filled with international conflicts, environmental disasters and economic troubles.

Join us for this year's Plank Summer Institute and learn about the business of play as we relax, rejuvenate, refresh, reflect and explore our own sense of play. Learn from play researchers and Twin Cities businesspeople. Find out more and get an application here. Applications due June 1.

About Plank
The Plank Summer Institute is funded from the proceeds of an endowment given to The Blake School in 1979 by Raymond Plank, a Blake graduate of the class of 1940. Ray Plank, the founder and chief executive officer of the Apache Corporation, made his gift to Blake with the intent that the proceeds would be used to further the economic education of teachers and to enable them to develop more familiarity with the world of business.

The three day summer Institute seeks to: 

  • further the economic education of the teacher participants;
  • link the Institute with a diverse group of entrepreneurial and corporate leaders in the Twin Cities and national business community;
  • inspire a broad appeal among teachers, who could relate the issues of the Institute to both their professional and personal lives;
  • enable teachers from various levels and disciplines to become better acquainted and establish ongoing professional networks;
  • create a "business professional" atmosphere, that will refresh its participants intellectually, physically and emotionally.
For more information on The Plank Institute, e-mail communications@blakeschool.org.

Past Plank participants say:

If one of the aims was to make teachers feel professional, then mission accomplished!

I was hoping to gather a little information, but instead found my mind opened to all sorts of new concepts and ideas.

relaxing . . . stimulating . . . felt special . . . top notch presenters who cared about us and made us feel cared about and special.

This teacher is still smiling.

The quality of the speakers made me feel important and privileged.

The networking with the other teachers is an invaluable resource.