A National Leadership Forum on the
Nine Essentials of PDS Work
August 3-4, 2008
New Orleans, Louisiana
Sponsored by
The National Association for
Professional Development Schools

At the 2008 PDS National Conference in Orlando, Florida, the National Association for Professional Development Schools (NAPDS) is releasing a statement titled “What it Means to Be a Professional Development School.” The statement was produced because the NAPDS recognized that there is a tendency for the term “PDS” to be used as a catch-all for various models of school-university partnership work that may or may not be best described as PDS. The association’s leadership, believing in the importance of clarifying the fundamental qualities of a Professional Development School, invited P-12 educators and representatives from other national educational organizations to contribute to conversations which led to the writing of the document. The resulting statement identifies “Nine Essentials” of PDS work and invites individuals involved in school-university partnerships to share the statement with colleagues in the spirit of continuous improvement.

As a follow-up to the statement’s release, the NAPDS is inviting educators to gather in New Orleans, Louisiana, on August 3-4, 2008 for a discussion of the Nine Essentials through a two-day forum. The forum will be structured around small group examinations of the Nine Essentials, led by members of the NAPDS Executive Council and Board of Directors, who will provide participants with an understanding of each Essential and the opportunity to share with each other the variety of ways in which PDS relationships across the nation approach their partnership work. The forum will be conversation-based, with participants prepared to engage in meaningful dialogue about their work. Our overall goal is to provide participants with the ability to develop and/or enhance their PDS work using the Nine Essentials.

Because of the collaborative nature of PDSs, the association is particularly interested in welcoming teams of experienced PDS leaders (deans, partnership directors, superintendents, principals, and teacher leaders) who play key roles in initiating and sustaining Professional Development School collaborations. However, we also welcome individual representatives from either established PDSs or from institutions interested in beginning Professional Development School collaborations. Participation in the forum will be limited and based on a first come-first served basis, and so you are encouraged to register as soon as possible. The $229 registration fee for the forum will cover materials, Sunday and Monday lunches, and a Sunday evening reception.

Click here for the National Leadership Forum on the Nine Essentials of PDS Work Conference Announcement