The office of Curriculum and Instruction facilitates professional development for all district staff. The 2011-2012 school year's professional development primary focuses are on the continued implementation of Responsive Classroom at the elementary level, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math), Developmental Designs at the middle school level, and focused team collaboration for student success.  Faculty are also working on aligning currciulum to the new Common Core State Standards (CCSS).  For more information on CCSS, please visit www.corestandards.org 

Other areas of focus for the district include training from Quality Leadership by Design on the SMART Goal method--a results-driven school improvement process.  Each of our buildings has identified a Greatest Area of Need (GAN) based on student data. SMART Goals have been developed with indicators, measures, and targets identified.  Best practices of the goal area are researched and implemented with supportive professional development provided.  The effectiveness of the new practices are then monitored with adjustments made accordingly.  This is a long-term commitment by the district following its vision for continuous improvement.

Additionally, staff may request to attend professional development conferences and workshops relative to their specific needs. The Curriculum and Instruction office also has a large professional lending library on a variety of relative and timely instructional topics.