Professional Development

2009-2010 Opportunities

Click on the link below to see current opportunities for your professional group.

  1. General
  2. Administrators
  3. Elementary
  4. Arts
  5. English Language Arts & Reading
  6. Mathematics
  7. Science
  8. World Languages
  9. Specialists
  10. Special Education
  11. Nurses and Psychologists

General

Children’s Behavioral Health Initiative (CBHI): School Personnel Information Briefing, Wednesday, April 7

3:30 pm-5:00 pm, Herberg Middle School Auditorium. Learn about new behavioral health services available to MassHealth-eligible students. Please RSVP Rose Blake, 499-9512.

Leadership Academy of the Berkshires

A 1-year program for administration certification by June 2011. Begins in June, July or August 2010; includes 7 courses. Master’s degree can be added on with 2 additional courses. Download the information sheet, or email Kristen Gordon, gordonk@acrsd.net

FUEL: Forming Units to Elevate Learning, March 19, 2010, Marblehead Charter School, Marblehead, MA

FREE…Creating & Sharing Project-Based Units, Lessons and Assessments. $150.00 stipends for teachers who submit completed units. For more information or to sign up, visit http://fuelforstudents.com, download brochure, or email Pam Miller: pmiller@marbleheadcharter.com

New Scholarship Program for Autism at Elms College, Chicopee, through the Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation

The program will fund scholarships to graduate students enrolled in the college’s Master’s of Science and Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Autism Spectrum Disorders programs. Read more here.

Holyoke Community College K-12 Professional Development Courses

Offered through Virtual Education Software, Inc., Holyoke Community College is providing a range of interactive instruction on strategies for teaching students with behavioral and learning needs. These computer-based, accredited programs are available online. For details, please visit the website. To register, call the college at 1-413-594-1255 or email: alingham@hcc.mass.edu.

Professional Development in Ireland via Cardinal Stritch University: June 22-28 and June 28-July 5, 2010

Literary Ireland: A study in Tolerance & Diversity, June 22-28; and Curriculum Design: NEA’s Key Indicator 2, June 28-July 5. For information, email Kerry McNamee Ninneman : kkninneman@stritch.edu or call 303.393-8688. Download flyer here.

2010 Travel/Study Program for Teachers and Administrators: July 1-24, 2010

National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland. Seminar: Education in Ireland, a comparative study of the Irish and American Educational Systems 6 Graduate Credits. For information email lilysky@ncia.net Or call Barney Keenan, NUI Coordinator, 603.477-2972.

Administrators

  • For full-day kindergarten and PreK-3 Coordinators: Addressing Challenging Behaviors in the Classroom: Helping Young Children Calm Their Bodies, Focus Their Minds, Manage Their Emotions, co-sponsored by The DESE and the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care (EEC). A two-part training for small teams, held on Wednesday, April 7 and Wednesday, June 2. Districts are encouraged to coordinate a team with staff and local early education and care programs serving young children with disabilities. Registrations are being accepted online at: http://www.doe.mass.edu/conference/?ConferenceID=829. For more information, please email: ess@doe.mass.edu
  • For principals and other administrators: A Kim Marshall Seminar, “Rethinking Teacher Supervision and Evaluation,” will be offered on April 30, 8:30 am-3:00 pm, at Westfield State College. $60.00 registration fee covers morning coffee, lunch and all materials. Download information here or call Priscilla Miller at 413.572-8065; email pmiller@wsc.ma.edu

Elementary

  • Representative Democracy in America: Voices of the People free workshop. $25 stipend, free materials, lesson demonstrations and training. First come, first served, 20 participants at each location. Closest session is March 18, 3:30-8:00 pm, UMass Amherst. For more information email Roger Desrosiers, rodesros@charter.net Suitable for teachers of grades 3-12.
  • See Emerging America: Teaching American History information below, under Social Studies & History.

Arts

Nothing right now.

English Language Arts & Reading

Nothing right now.

Mathematics

  • Harvard Graduate School of Education is recruiting middle and high school Algebra I teachers to participate in a research project on recently developed curriculum supplements. Participants attend a free one-week professional development institute at Harvard University during the summer and then implement the curriculum supplements (in addition to teachers’ regular algebra curriculum) throughout the Algebra I course. An honorarium for both the summer institute and the implementation of the curriculum supplements throughout the year is included. For more information, see: www.gse.harvard.edu/ppe/enews/k12/10k121/algebra.html Or contact Dr. Jon Star at 617.496-2511 or compare@gse.harvard.edu.

  • Mathematics Leadership Program Summer Institutes 2010, at Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA. Includes sessions on Developing Mathematical Ideas, Professional Development for Math Coaching and Secondary Lenses on Learning for Systems. Download flyer or visit the Mathematics Leadership Program web site. Or contact Kay Caruso, 617.969-7100, kcaruso@edc.org; or contact Mount Holyoke at 413.538-2063, jpaquett@mtholyoke.edu

Science

  • M.A.S.T. Gathering, Friday, April 9, 4:00-5:30 pm, The Berkshire Museum. RSVP: 443-7171, x18.
  • Museum Institute for Teaching Science (MITS) Summer Institute, July 6-16, 2010. Participants earn 60 or 90 PDPs, with graduate credits also available. For more information, download the flyer, call 617.328-1515 or visit www.mits.org

Social Studies & History

  • Representative Democracy in America: Voices of the People free workshop. $25 stipend, free materials, lesson demonstrations and training. First come, first served, 20 participants at each location. Closest session is March 18, 3:30-8:00 pm, UMass Amherst. For more information email Roger Desrosiers, rodesros@charter.net
  • SUMMER PD: Emerging America, for elementary and high school history teachers. Please download the form and return the registration page: http://emergingamerica.org/ Features strategies for teaching reading of historical fiction, nonfiction and primary sources. Contact rcairn@collaborative.org or 413.586-4900, x166 for more information.
  • We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution. A free one-day workshop through The Center for Civic Education: www.civiced.org. April 19 in Old Sturbridge Village or April 29 in the John Adams Courthouse. The culminating activity is a simulated congressional hearing in which students “testify” before a panel of judges. PDP’s available. For more information, download the brochure or call Roger Desrosiers: 508.728-4733 or email: wtpmass@bu.edu
  • New Emerging America: Teaching American History Winter-Spring brochure available at the TAH Collaborative website. Free PD with stipends; designed to help teachers, K-12, strengthen teaching of reading, writing and critical thinking. More information and registration form also by calling Rich Cairn, 413.586-4900, x166 or emailing him: rcairn@collaborative.org. Information also at http://emergingamerica.org

World Languages

Nothing right now.

Specialists

Nothing right now.

Special Education

  • “The Aspergian Mind,” a one-day course led by John Robison, author of Look Me in the Eye, and Dr. Kathryn James, the Department Chair of Communication and Speech Disorders at Elms College on March 20, 9:00 am-6:00 pm, 291 Springfield Street, Chicopee. To register, call the Registrar’s Office: 413.265-2314 or contact Donna Harvey for more information: harveyd@elms.edu, 413.265-2445; or download the flyer.
  • See DESE Special Ed online courses through MassONE, above.
  • See Elms College scholarship program in Autism studies above.

Nurses and Psychologists

  • Berkshire Area Health Education Center (AHEC) presents “Deciphering the Hunger Code: Treating Eating Disorders with Imagery & Metaphor.” Thursday, April 15, 2010, 8:30 am-4:00 pm. The Log Cabin, 500 Easthampton Road, Holyoke, MA. Register before March 31 to avoid late fee. Download brochure here, or visit berkshireahec.org