General Information

In an effort to better facilitate two-way communication between teachers and the Office of Staff Development, Kim Bailey, Director , is conducting quarterly meetings with school site liaisons. Every school site was asked to send a teacher representative. During meetings, the goals of the department are explained to clarified the role of the liaison, and engage the audience in a feedback session of concerns and questions.

Listed below are some handy tips given at meetings.

Before signing up for a class given outside of the CUSD Professional Development Academy (PDA), check the list of approved institutions on pages 3 and 4 of the purple Staff Development and Graduate Work Approval Handbook. These were distributed to all teachers last spring. The staff development liaison has an updated copy; new copies will be distributed to all teachers in January.

If you are taking a class that is not given by PDA nor a university or college, you may use the "Professional Development Activity Verification Form" found on Appendix 5 of the Graduate Work Approval Handbook. (OCDE workshops, for instance, would fall into this category.) Your site liaison has the revised Handbook which includes this Appendix.

On-line classes are considered to be independent study classes and require a Graduate Work Approval form.

If in doubt, fill one out! A Graduate Work Approval Form, that is!

Call the Graduate Work Approval Hotline at 489.7372 for answers to your questions.

Log on to the Staff Development Website here.

Getting Credit: Credit for attending classes is based on the white sign-in/sign-out sheets. Do not submit timesheets if you are only receiving credit for the class. (15 hours = 1 unit of credit)

A RIC certificate is not required for column movement, although three units of reading (45 hours) are required. A RIC certificate happens to require 45 hours, and is a convenient way to earn the required reading hours as well as pick up the $200 a year bonus for the certificate.

Your school site liaison has a transcript request form if you need to know how many hours you have participated in CUSD PDA classes.

Your school site liaison is your voice to the Office of Staff Development. In an effort to be responsive to teacher needs, the Office of Staff Development is interested in maintaining an open line of communication through the liaison. If you have questions or suggestions regarding the Professional Development Academy be sure to contact your school site liaison.