San Diego North County Professional Development Federation (NCPDF)

PDF: Site Profile | Case Study  | Data Table

Word: Site Profile | Case Study  | Data Table

How can a wide variety of districts collaboratively conduct effective professional development for teachers and administrators?

Twenty-seven school districts in North San Diego County area and two in South Riverside County decided to join with the San Diego County Office of Education and California State University, San Marcos to pool resources and use individual and group expertise to maximize professional growth of teachers and administrators. The North County Professional Development Federation began in 1993 with six districts to provide teachers with access to the best curriculum and instructional practices. Since the inception of the Federation, each partner has been involved in a variety of reform efforts within its district and the Federation. The Federation's goal is to maximize and share resources to improve curriculum and instruction through staff development using a process of collaborative articulation, assessment, and evaluation. Collectively, participating districts can respond more effectively and efficiently to state initiatives and common needs of teachers across districts.

The Federation is governed by a Steering Committee comprised of a representative of each participating district, a representative of the State University, one from the County Office, and the Director of the Federation. A centralized calendar of professional development activities and in-service training is developed and disseminated each year.

The effectiveness of this collaboration is evident in the fact that almost all eligible districts are members. The Federation is a volunteer membership organization. Each year, member districts decide on continuing participation. When they join, they agree to pay membership fees based on the rate of $0.90 per average daily attendance. These fees plus annual contributions from the San Diego County Office of Education and California State University, San Marcos of approximately $29,900 each provide the base budget. Membership dues fund the general operating budget, or the infrastructure, as "hard" money. These funds provide a stable source of continuous funding for the Federation. Grants obtained to support specific programs augment this amount. For the 2001-2002 school year, the base budget was $227,500. In addition, grants brought in approximately $3 million.

The County Office annually surveys and reports on services provided by the Federation. Data are collected on the number of teachers trained, and services requested compared to services provided are reviewed. Over 75 professional development activities have been sponsored by the Federation during the last 11 years. Satisfaction of member districts is evaluated frequently. The Director meets annually with the superintendent of each member district to receive advice and ascertain the needs of the district. A data base contains information on the professional development activities that teachers have utilized. Event and workshop evaluations are collected after each day of training; and outside evaluators review student achievement related to some grants.

The Federation trained 871 teachers in nine districts in the summer of 1999 on LANGUAGE! - a curriculum that teaches older students to read. In the schools employing the teachers who participated in this program, there was a gain on the Academic Performance Index (API) of 79 points as contrasted to the expected gain of 21 points.

The Federation has served as a mechanism for 27 districts, the County Office of Education, and the State University to improve instruction for over 200,000 students. The Federation has been extremely successful in securing state grant money, especially for mandated programs.

Notable Result:

• Hundreds of teachers were trained in the Language! program in 1999. Schools that employed the teachers who participated in this collaborative training quadrupled the gain in Academic Performance Index (API) scores (79 points) as contrasted to the expected gain on that index (21 points).

Lessons:

• An appropriate organizational model includes all relevant parties.
• Relevance is assured by voluntary membership that is reaffirmed annually.
• Financial stability is ensured by annual membership fees.
• Grants are easier to obtain and administer when they serve many districts and there is one focal point.