REGION 1

9 - 21 - 99 Meeting Minutes

Fourth Meeting
Regional Professional Development Advisory Council ( RPDAC)
Tradewinds Resort
St. Petersburg Beach

Tuesday, September 21, 1999

1. Welcome and Introductions

Barbara VanCamp convened the meeting at approximately 7:10 p.m.

COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT:

Doris Johnson, Okaloosa Walton Community College
Jack Newell, JNS Facilitation
Thomas Rezek, Escambia County School District
Barbara Van Camp, Leon County School District

COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT:

Gail Cole, Walton County Vocational Center
Mary Davis, Washington/Holmes Technical Center
Sandra Davis, Haney Vocational Technical Center
Wally Holmes-Bouchillon, University of West Florida
Denise Horne, Goodwill Industries Big Bend, Inc.
Tim Mahler, Florida DOC
Raymond Rogers, Santa Rosa County School Board

GUESTS PRESENT:

Carolyn Formsma, Pensacola Junior College
James Grant, Pensacola Junior College

DOE STAFF PRESENT:

Sandra Burkholder, DOE Region One Regional Consultant

FSU TEAM MEMBERS PRESENT:

Cyndi Godbey, Project Director

2. Strategic Planning

Ms. VanCamp then turned the meeting over to Ron Froman (Florida Human Resources Development, Inc.) to facilitate a planning session. Mr. Froman began by pointing out that there are some deliverables that are desired by FSU which can result from this strategic planning process. However, it is his desire to also help this Council review information that will assist then in preparing a response to the RFP that is expected to be released by the DOE in the next few weeks. It is his understanding that the RFP will be out within 2 weeks and the Council has until December 1 to respond. However, the sooner we respond, the sooner the money could be awarded.

Mr. Froman provided the members with a handout that outlines information related to and the steps involved in strategic planning. He began by reviewing the expected outcomes of this strategic planning activity:

to determine the depth and scope of planning to be done by the Council;
explore the membership commitment to the Council and its functions - is it capable of operating like a business with a corresponding commitment from the Council members;
discuss stakeholder analysis and their corresponding resources and needs;
determine strengths, opportunities, weaknesses to be addressed by the Council;
set a strategic direction for the operation of the Council;
identify the key issues - what the Council wants to do and how to do it;
discuss accountability measures - how to demonstrate success and effectiveness (if you can't show what you've done, nobody cares); and
establish specific strategies.

Mr. Froman elaborated on the first by stating that the depth should be enough to meet FSU's needs related to their deliverables and plan for next year but not so deep that it constrains work in the future. He also discussed the commitment required by pointing out that each Council member must be fully vested in the outcome of this planning for next year or the group will become non-functional. Mr. Froman pointed out that the stakeholder analysis referred requires that we look at the resources available from the groups represented by the Council - this relates to the commitment that is required to make this process work. He indicated that the strengths and weaknesses to be addressed will relate to what was identified in the needs assessment. The strategic direction to be set by this Council should be to organize to address professional development for the Region and nothing more. To go beyond that will cause the group to lose their focus. He added that there are at least four reasons why setting a strategic direction is important: 1) it helps set priorities, 2) it helps make judgments about specific tasks, 3) it helps build a sense of teamwork and morale, and 4) it frames the long-term perspective needed to bring about change.

He then referred to the four major questions to be addressed through the strategic planning process:

Where are we now?
Where do we want to be in the future?
How will we get there?
How do we measure our progress?

Mr. Froman shared with the group that Loretta Costin has put together a team - the Oval Team which will serve as the statewide professional development advisory Council. The intent is that these Councils would feed into that body. More importantly, this will create a mechanism for information to flow both ways.

Mr. Froman pointed out that there are some questions regarding setting specific strategic direction for the Council which should be sorted out first:

Who do we serve? Teachers, CBO's, volunteers and administrators.
What are the basic purposes for which we exist? In response to this we need to decide what we can do for Region I.
What are the basic problems we were established to address?
What are we trying to achieve?
What makes us distinctive or unique?

Mr. Froman then reviewed a summary of the various functions that may be required to support the Council's activities:

Fiscal -

Produce contracts, payroll
Dispense expense monies
Reimburse districts, CBO's or community colleges for total travel costs of participants
Invoice state
Prepare budgets for grants
Report to Council on financial status
Ensure proper documentation of expenditures
Review expenditures for duplication, economy and accountability

Information -

Prepares grant in conjunction with the Council
Deals with outside audits
Collects deliverables (if applicable)
Collects data on activities
Prepares and conducts needs assessments
Collects information from Grants Management Office on SPD's available

Training -

Prepares guidelines for presenting training requests
Works with site coordinator to ensure that the site is well-prepared
Prepares report items
Coordinates training with additional institutions
Collects information for brochures and reports

Communications -

Maintain database of membership, trainings, trainers, sites, etc.
Keeps Council members updated on contact lists and informed about what the Council is doing

Production/Technology -

Produces brochures
Deals with website input
Produces learning modules
Does research upon request
Arranges for distance learning, conference calls, teleconferences, etc.

Mr. Froman reviewed all of this very briefly and asked the group to think about this and let him know if they had other tasks or functions to add or wanted to make other modifications.

Cyndi Godbey then reviewed the findings from the needs assessment which was recently conducted in Region I. Teachers were most concerned with:

the changing adult education delivery system,- in particular, motivating students and facilitating their performance;
the use of technology, in particular, integrating the use of technology in instruction;
teaching students with special needs - in particular, working with learning disabled and low ability students.
curriculum design - in particular, ABE, pre-GED, GED and writing and math; and
career/job awareness - in particular,strategies for teaching basic employability skills.

Administrators likewise put their emphasis on changes in the delivery system, followed by use of technology and peformance assessment. They were also concerned with classroom and behavior management.

Mr. Froman asked the group to consider this information and then consider what they think are the key issues to be addressed by this Council in the next year. The group responded with the following training needs for teachers:

Curriculum development
Changes in adult ed system (frameworks, programs, courses)
Assessment
Pre-servicing new teachers in light of the rapid influx of new teachers
Pre-servicing volunteers on the curriculum frameworks in a version adapted to their levels
Learning disabilities/learning styles/makeup of the students we are trying to serve
Teaching adult students
Retention/motivation
Volunteer recruitment
Collaboration with volunteer/CBO groups
Record keeping

Carolyn Formsma pointed out that even the experienced teachers are really new to all the changes that have occurred in the system in the last few years.

The group brainstormed on the training needs of administrators, as well:

Record keeping
Curriculum development
Administrators need the same information identified in training needs for teachers
Marketing/recruiting volunteers
Keeping up with state mandates/policy issues
Assessment
Evaluation
Fostering staff development
Management (even accounting)
Program Management
People skills/Leadership/Team building

3. Homework

Mr. Froman recognized that the group was tired from the long day at the conference and asked the group to take this information, think about it, do some homework assignments and forward their input to him by Wednesday, September 29, as follows:

Consider the breakdown of functions and tasks (as Mr. Froman has proposed) that will be required to support the Council activities. Provide Mr. Froman with any feedback, additions, deletions or modifications.
From the training priorities or areas that were reviewed, prioritize the top 5 for each of the administrators and teachers.
Present your ideas about the strategies that should be used to address those training needs. In particular, think about the mode of delivery that will be most effective at reaching the intended audience.
Lastly, consider how we can demonstrate our success/effectiveness at ensuring transfer to job related performance.
Mr. Froman indicated that he doesn't intend for the group to spend hours on this, just give it a little thought and present the ideas that have come to mind as you have considered these issues in the past. He reminded the group to be careful not to be constrained by the money considerations, yet.
Mr. Froman indicated that he needs for the group to get your reactions/input to him no later than 5 p.m. on Wednesday, September 29. This will allow him to prepare the plan that FSU needs by the end of September. However, this group will probably need to meet again in October to refine the plan and determine the budget so the RFP response can be prepared.
The meeting adjourned at 8:00 p.m.

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