Staff Development

Requirements for Staff Development

• Approved staff development activities shall relate to the following areas:  content (P-12); instructional strategies; assessment; advocacy/leadership; systemic change process; standards, frameworks, and curriculum alignment; supervision; mentoring/coaching; educational technology; principles of learning/developmental stages; cognitive research; and building a collaborative learning community.  At least six (6) of the 60 hours of required staff development shall be in the area of educational technology.
• All certified employees of public schools shall complete sixty (60) hours of staff development each year.  The 60-hour staff development requirements must be fulfilled between June 1 and May  31 of each year.
• Pursuant to Act 603 of 2003, each teacher shall be required to have no less than two (2) hours of professional development designed to enhance understanding of effective parental involvement strategies.  These two (2) hours may be included in the 60-hour requirement for staff development.
• Pursuant to Act 603 of 2003, each administrator shall be required to have no less than three (3) hours of staff development designed to enhance understanding of effective parent involvement strategies and the importance of administrative leadership in setting expectations and creating a climate conducive to parental participation.  These three (3) hours may be included in the required 60 hours of staff development.
• For each administrator, the 60-hour staff development requirement shall include training in data disaggregation, instructional leadership and fiscal management as developed or approved by the Arkansas Department of Education.
• Employees who miss any part of scheduled staff development activities for any reason (such as sickness) must make up that time in other approved professional development activities so that the 60 required hours are earned by each certified employee of the district during the school’s professional development calendar year – June 1^st –May 31^st.  Documentation of these hours must be presented to the Staff Development Office.
• A three-hour graduate-level, college credit course counts as 15 hours of staff development, if the college credit is related to and enhances the teacher’s knowledge of the subject area in which the teacher is currently teaching or is part of the requirements for the teacher to obtain additional certification in a subject matter that has been designated by the Department of Education as having critical shortage of teachers.  No more than half of the required 60 hours of staff development time may be met through college credit hours.  A 45-clock hour Professional Growth Class also counts as 12 hours of Staff Development.
• Participants in District-sponsored staff development workshops will have their hours recorded if they sign in at each session and remain in the session for the designated time.  Staff members who do not attend the full sessions designated on the District calendar for staff development must make up the time in order to earn the required 60 hours mandated by the Arkansas Department of Education. 

 Flex Technology Option

• Certified employees, with the exception of 12-month employees, may voluntarily attend a six-hour technology class offered during the summer in lieu of reporting for the Staff Development Day scheduled before Thanksgiving.  
• Additionally, those employees who attend six hours of off contract approved educational technology training prior to the Flex Day may use one of these days to count for their six-hour training in lieu of the Thanksgiving Staff Development Day.

Approval of Staff Development

• Approval of staff development hours shall be based on the requirements within the ACTAAP State Rules, Board priorities, student achievement data, and local ACSIP plans.  Improvement of student achievement shall be the prerequisite goal of all approved professional development.  
• Approved staff development activities, which occur during the instructional day or outside the employee’s annual contract days, may apply toward the 60-hour minimum professional development requirement.  However, this shall not diminish the days required in the annual contract.

 Arkansas Education Association (AEA) Days

• The Pulaski County Special School District designates the two days for the AEA conference as two of the ten required days of professional development in the year’s calendar.  Staff members must attend the AEA conference or other appropriate inservice.  
• Teachers not attending AEA or other training will be required to request leave.

 Other approved training in lieu of the AEA Conference must be documented to the Staff Development Office.

Sam Altschul, Director
501.490.6276

John McCraney, Pathwise Coach
501.490.6277

Sherry Geisler, Secretary
501.490.6283
501.490.0254, fax