Networking > Communities Of Practice > Professional Development Community of Practice

PEJE is delighted to be hosting the Professional Development Community of Practice (PD CoP) in cooperation with the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education at Brandeis University. We are reaching out to school-based professionals with responsibility for the ongoing development of faculty in day schools (e.g., head of school, principal, supervisor, department chair, etc.). The ultimate goal of the PD CoP is to build our capacity to make day schools a learning community not only for students, but also for professionals. Four important assumptions guide our community:

1. The quality of teacher learning in a school impacts the quality of student learning.
2. Openness to learning and collegial respect are the hallmarks of an effective community.
3. We build our capacity through an ongoing cycle of sharing, implementing, and reflecting.
4. The success of our community depends on your commitment to ongoing participation.

We offer several ways to engage with your colleagues on shared needs and interests. As a member of the CoP, you can participate in five bi-monthly conference calls by logging in to a web-based conferencing system and calling in on a toll free number. In addition, you can join one of four smaller affinity groups for more focused and intimate exploration of issues. Currently, our list of affinity groups includes one content area group focused on induction and three regional groups: West Coast, East Coast and Midwest. Our phone-based and online discussions use protocols for sharing information, solving problems, reporting on results, and exchanging resources. Between calls, members try out new practices back at their schools.

The facilitator for the PD CoP is Pearl Mattenson, a 25-year veteran in the field. As a day school principal and BJE staff member, she developed and implemented a variety of school-based PD programs. In addition, Pearl helped to create two pre-service teacher education programs for day schools and most recently served as the co-director of the Mandel Center's Induction Partnership, a project designed to enable day schools to offer comprehensive induction to novice teachers.

If you are interested in joining the PD CoP, please send an email to Pearl Mattenson, CoP Facilitator. In addition, please feel free to pass this on to other PD leaders in your school. If you have questions, please feel free to contact Pearl Mattenson, CoP Facilitator

Special Thanks

PEJE expresses its gratitude to the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education at Brandeis University for its very generous support of this CoP.

Conference Call PowerPoint Presentations

• Evaded Issues in Jewish Education
  May 18, 2009, Dr. Shira D. Epstein & Naomi Less, M.A. (Guest)
• Effective Professional Development that Supports Inclusive Practices for all Students
  March 16, 2009, Jane Taubenfeld Cohen, SASSDS, Debbie Niderberg, Hidden Sparks and Sarah Birkeland, Mandel Center (Guests)
• Leadership Styles that Support Professional Learning Communities
  January 29, 2009, Kathleen Dufford-MelŽndez, Senior Pgm. Specialist, SERVE Center at the University of North Carolina GreensboroÊÊ (Guests)
• Do Standards Bear Out as a Means to Improving Teaching?
  November 13, 2008, Pearl Mattenson, Judy Zorfass (Facilitators)
• Building a Professional Collaborative Learning Community
  September 25, 2008, Dan French, Executive Director, Center for Collaborative Education (Guests)
• Looking Back & Planning Forward
  June 17, 2008, Guests: Our CoP Members
• Sharing the Learning; Learning about Sharing: Planning, Induction and Schedules
  May 22, 2008, Peggy Kasloff, Denver Academy of Torah and Vivian Troen, Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education (Guest)
• Looking at Student Work: An Opportunity to Increase Reflective Practice
  March 25, 2008, Maureen Mintz Coordinator for PD and Coaching at South Area SSDS (Guest/CoP Member)
• From Professional Development to Teaching Excellence One School's Journey
  February 25, 2008, Rabbi Larry Scheindlin, Leslie Trask, Sinai Akiba Academy, Los Angeles, CA (Guest)
• MFE Professional Growth and Renewal: An Expanded View
  January 14, 2008, Chip Snowden, Senior Consultant, Independent School Management (ISM) (Guest)
• Implementing ISM's Meaningful Faculty Evaluation Process at Chabad Hebrew Academy
  December 17, 2007, Dr. Linda Kelley, Head of School, Chabad Hebrew Academy of San Diego (Guest)
• Developing Authentic Teacher Buy-In For a PLC- Consultancy Protocol Discussion
  November 29, 2007, Benjy Cohen, Principal of GS Bialik Hebrew Day School (Guest/CoP Member)
• Sustained Professional Development Initiatives: A Look at One School's Approach
  October 24, 2007, Karen Feller, Head of School, Donna Klein Jewish Academy (Guest)
• Professional Development CoP Inaugural Call
  Collaboration: A Building Block of Professional Learning Communities
  September 25, 2007 (No Guest)