We Are Raising the Standard for Professional Development
Our Strategy
At Power of Place Learning Communities our focus is
not just on what we do, but how we do it.
The research is clear: When teachers are learning, so are their students. Not all adult learning is equal, and some is far more meaningful than others. Our work in designing rich adult learning experiences is driven by this reality, and grounded in the science of learning and development. We know that “how” educators learn is equally important to “what” they learn through professional development, and that learning sticks best when people develop a positive connection to one another.
Put simply, we offer educators the collaborative time, space, resources, and support they need to grow relationally and professionally. By connecting meaningfully with one another over time—whether inside a single school, within a district, or across districts—educators come to feel a renewed sense of purpose, increased energy, and confidence. When educators invest deeply in their own learning, they are better equipped to meet the social, emotional, and academic needs of all of their students. As a result, individual and collective efficacy grow and systems begin to change.
We Take a Different Approach to Professional Learning
All professional development is viewed as a component of lifelong learning
Learning priorities are aligned to district, school, and classroom practice
Educators are respected as learners who need support to attend to all dimensions of student development
Content is mostly adaptive, not overly technical
An inquiry model encourages learning through connection and collaboration
Educators work across content areas and grades levels and develop the collective courage to try new things
We prioritize learning in community.
“I now know that I am not alone.”
– Teacher Leadership Council Member, 2019
All of our professional learning experiences are done as a learning community, with participants at all levels from districts across our region.
Clear research that illustrates that when adults in schools learn together in sustained and intentional ways, students benefit greatly. Learning communities help to address the isolation felt by so many educators, and offer them the opportunity to share their challenges, lessons learned, and bright spots with peers who understand.
We offer two core features of what Fahey and Ippolito (2015) call an "intentional learning community:"
- Structured conversations or protocols to help professionals move out of their comfort zones. We design our experiences to prompt participants to examine their assumptions, ask difficult questions, and “embrace the discomfort in a way that is safe and manageable.”
- Skilled facilitation and coaching helps to deepen adult learning by pushing the boundaries and stimulating new kinds of conversations, especially on topics that are uncomfortable, fraught or unfamiliar.
We Offer Best-in-Class Experiences.
“I’m too busy to be here… which is why I need to be here.”
– Winter Gathering Participant, 2023
When educators are appreciated as valued professionals, they are better able to appreciate the rich array of students who enter their classrooms, schools, and communities. We provide educators with the same level of best-in-class learning experiences offered in other fields.
- Expert guest faculty. Our unique positionality allows us to connect with some of the nation’s premier practitioners and researchers from institutions of higher education, non profits, and technical assistance providers. These partners serve as presenters, facilitators, coaches and on-call advisors to our members.
- Access to new ideas. Our connections to field experts allows us to shorten the timeline between research and implementation. Our educators have the opportunity to begin pilot testing new ideas and resources much more rapidly than it would typically take for researchers and innovators to share their work and resources with the field.
- Creating a “Third Space." Educators make approximately 1500 decisions a day, leaving them little to no time at all to get "on the balcony" to gain much-needed perspective about their work. We help educators set aside the time and space for reflection and experimentation in a neutral, low-stakes environment.
- Top-notch facilitation. We leverage a diverse array of evidence-based protocols in our learning experiences including consultancies, text-based discussions, fishbowls, microlabs, and blended learning strategies. Our approach is grounded in the principles of Professional Learning Communities and the Reflection-Action Cycle. We employ a mix of heterogeneous and role-alike grouping of participants, balancing the need to flatten hierarchies and shift power dynamics among teachers and administrators, while also providing spaces for educators to be with others whose positions are most similar to their own.
- Normalizing Vulnerability. The deepest and most enduring learning happens when educators feel comfortable questioning long-held assumptions and are comfortable wading into potentially uncomfortable conversations. We are committed to creating a psychologically safe space where vulnerability is treasured, not feared.
