Events

PDC Member District $185.00 Non PDC District $200.00 (pricing includes lunch provided on site).  Participants should bring a fully charged device to this academy. The application/dissemination must be completed and submitted prior to your departure from the academy on September 16. This presentation will analyze the special education case law and recent legal guidance from both OSEP and OCR to ensure that your school organization can avoid the decisions that ultimately led schools to litigation. Each case will be discussed with a focus on the missteps or omission, including alternative options for action and legal requirements under both state and federal law. Christina Sepiol, J.D. Ed.D, currently serves as the Assistant Superintendent for Student Services at Indian Prairie School District # 204.  Dr. Sepiol also serves as the assistant director of the SWCCCASE Cooperative. Prior to her position within the cooperative, Ms. Sepiol was legal counsel for numerous school districts throughout the State of Illinois, focusing her practice in matters related to special education, student discipline and disability rights. Ms. Sepiol graduated magna cum laude from Loyola University, where she received her Bachelor's Degree in education. She received her J.D. from Loyola, and her Master's degree in Educational Leadership from DePaul University. Her educational experiences have included teaching in the field of special education at the elementary through high school levels and serving as a building principal in an alternative day school setting. Prior to representing school districts, Ms. Sepiol represented parents whose interests were averse to school districts. She is a member of the Illinois Bar Association and has served on the Illinois Council of School Attorney's Committees on Special Education and the No Child Left Behind Act.  Ms. Sepiol is the author of Section 504: A Legal Guide for Educators: Practical Applications for Essential Compliance (PESI, 2015). Registration closes 4-5 days prior to the event unless tickets are sold out.  Cancellations must be made on or before September 11, 2025 or the amount will be non-refundable. PD hours or academy credit or ceu's can be issued for this event.

Target Audience: General & Special Education Teachers, Building Administrators, Related Service Staff Providing Behavioral Consultation at the Secondary Level This free virtual training will outline easy to implement, yet highly effective, preventative strategies which increase student engagement and decrease challenging behaviors in grades 6-12. Join Amanda Wilson, a board-certified behavior analyst, nationally certified school psychologist and co-founder of Navigating Behavior Change, LLC as you will learn the core components to implement Instructional Choice, Active Student Response Methods, Behavior-Specific Praise, Active Supervision, and Precorrection with fidelity in their secondary classrooms. Examples will be utilized to assist in demonstrating how each strategy can be implemented, both individually and in combination across classroom environments, instructional activities, and with various staff members. Common implementation errors will also be discussed and recommendations to increase fidelity will be outlined. Downloadable resources to assist in implementation will be provided for each strategy. Objectives: By the end of this training, participants will be able to: 1. List five evidence-based tier 1 strategies 2. State why each strategy is effective 3. List the steps to implementing each strategy 4. Describe how to effectively incorporate strategies together within an instructional block Registration will close 4-5 days prior to the event unless tickets are sold out. A virtual link will be sent out prior to September 17, 2025.

Target Audience: General & Special Education Teachers, Building Administrators, Related Service Staff Providing Behavioral Consultation at the Elementary Level Join Amanda Wilson, a board-certified behavior analyst, nationally certified school psychologist and co-founder of Navigating Behavior Change, LLC as she facilitates this free virtual training that will outline easy to implement, yet highly effective, preventative strategies which increase student engagement and decrease challenging behaviors. Participants will learn the core components to implement Instructional Choice, Active Student Response Methods, Behavior-Specific Praise, Active Supervision, and Precorrection with fidelity in their classrooms. Examples will be utilized to assist in demonstrating how each strategy can be implemented, both individually and in combination across classroom environments, instructional activities, and with various staff members. Common implementation errors will also be discussed and recommendations to increase fidelity will be outlined. Downloadable resources to assist in implementation will be provided for each strategy. Objectives: By the end of this training, participants will be able to: A. List five evidence-based tier 1 strategies B. State why each strategy is effective C. List the steps to implementing each strategy D. Describe how to effectively incorporate strategies together within an instructional block   Registration will close 4-5 days prior to the event unless tickets are sold out. A virtual link will be sent out prior to September 18, 2025.

PDC Member District $180.00 Non PDC Member District $200.00 (lunch included on site) Registration closes Friday, September 26. 2025 at 12:00pm. Cancellations must be made by Monday, September 29, 2025 at 3:30pm or the amount will be non-refundable.  Participants will need to bring a fully charged laptop to this event. This one-day academy is designed to provide participants with the skills and knowledge necessary to effectively evaluate student growth as part of teacher performance evaluations. The course focuses on addressing implicit bias, differentiating for equity, and coaching teachers more deeply when evaluating student growth for special education, English learners, & early childhood students. Finally this course will align with the four core competencies outlined in the Part 50 Administrative Rules (50.420) for Teacher Evaluators.

Today's students are facing unprecedented levels of anxiety—more worried, more dependent, and less resilient in the face of challenges than generations before them. As anxiety continues to skyrocket among youth, how can school professionals effectively respond to this increasingly fretful generation? This workshop provides a deep dive into understanding anxiety in students, offering insight into the key red flags and exploring why it’s becoming more pervasive in our schools. We’ll explore how anxiety manifests in students and, more importantly, how we, as school counselors and social workers, can respond with strategies that truly make a difference in alleviating their distress. In the first half of this workshop, we will focus on practical, evidence-based strategies for addressing student anxiety in the classroom. From recognizing early signs to providing effective interventions, we’ll discuss approaches that foster emotional resilience and support students in building coping skills for academic and personal success. The second half of the session shifts to the critical role school professionals play in managing their own well-being. Educators, counselors, and social workers are often the first line of support for students, yet they can struggle with their own stress and burnout. In this segment, participants will learn self-care techniques and strategies to combat stress and anxiety, ensuring they remain at their best for the students they serve. Through guided reflection and discussion, attendees will develop a personalized Resilience Plan—equipping them with the tools needed to thrive, both in their professional roles and in their personal lives.

Location: Mascoutah # 19 (specific school TBD). This day is structured into four mini-sessions to ensure all PK-12 physical educators will leave with a wealth of information, strategies and resources to return back to your buildings and best support your programs and students. Session 1: Current Trends and Future Possibilities in PE Implications for Fitness, Health, and Wellbeing - This presentation will cover current efforts, expectations and activities associated with physical education. An educational approach connecting the physical to the physiological aspects of movement along with discussion of examples and options as to how we can easily provide a broader well-being perspective in PE. Session 2: Enhanced PE: What it means and why it’s important. Recent legislative efforts in Illinois recommend that schools deliver a health-related fitness approach in PE. This session will provide options and approaches to meet a health-related fitness approach in PE. Session 3: Fitness Testing: Is it Even Useful Anymore?  - This year re-establishes the Illinois fitness testing legislative data submission requirement with fitness testing data being submitted to the Illinois State Board of Education. While fitness testing is a routine part of PE programs, test administration, protocols, and results are often considered to suspect. Learn how to get more out of this process and make it meaningful. Session 4: The Relevance and Data Analysis of Fitness Testing While physical fitness tests are an important assessment component in PE, little is done with the data obtained from those assessments. There is a wealth of information that can be obtained from those fitness testing. Learn how to manage fitness data and the health-related applications of physical fitness assessments. Registration for this event will CLOSE on Tuesday, October 6, 2025 at 3:00pm, we will not be able to accommodate additional registrations after October 6.

PDC Member District $350.00, Non PDC Member $375.00 (lunch is included on site)

To be eligible to attend, each participant (initial or retraining) must complete and submit ISBE-required pre-work at least 72 hours (December 5, 2025 3:00pm) before the training. Registrants will receive handouts and detailed instructions for the pre-work at least one week prior to the workshop. 

Participants will need to bring a fully charged laptop to this academy.  Attendees will synthesize the School Leader Paradigm to understand the personal intelligences, knowledge, and skills necessary for school leaders to effectively lead a learning organization; evaluate the research base to communicate the impact that effective school leaders have on a learning organization; analyze the School Leader Evaluation Plan to discern how the process grows school leaders' personal intelligences and leadership skills that actualize school improvement and student growth goals; and critique Professional Practice and Student Growth Cycles of Inquiry to assess the approaches of each to a school's Problems of Practice.

The Illinois Performance Evaluation Advisory Council (PEAC) selected the School Leader Evaluation Plan as the state’s new default principal and assistant principal evaluation plan beginning July 1, 2024. Developed by the Illinois Principals Association in collaboration with 13 other state principals’ associations from across the United States, the School Leader Evaluation Plan (based on the School Leader Paradigm) was developed to assist school districts with the implementation of a school leader evaluation system that is relevant and useful. While Illinois school districts have the opportunity to choose whether to adopt the School Leader Evaluation Plan to evaluate their principals and assistant principals, the state-required principal and assistant principal evaluator training has been rewritten and will focus on the School Leader Evaluation Plan.

Starting on July 1, 2024, this two-day, in-person academy (AA#4050) will serve as the official training for educators seeking initial training qualification or retraining to be legally qualified to conduct evaluations of principals and assistant principals. The previous principal evaluator training (#2000, #1865, and #3000) will be discontinued as of June 30, 2024.

Registration closes Friday, November 28, 2025. Cancellations must be made on or before Tuesday, December 2, 2025 or the amount will be non-refundable.