UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State and the State College Area School District have earned the Exemplary PDS Achievement award from the National Association for Professional Development Schools and will be honored March 17 at the NAPDS conference in Jacksonville, Florida.
Penn State's collaboration with the State College Area Schools received the same award in 2009. The university's Professional Development School program is celebrating its 20th anniversary this spring.
The College of Education sends between 70 and 80 prospective teachers each academic year to State College's various schools and a few other central Pennsylvania school districts. The student teachers are with their mentors and in their respective classrooms from mid-August to mid-June and leave with a complete sense of what an entire academic year entails.
The PDS conducts its annual Inquiry Conference in late April at Mount Nittany Middle School in Boalsburg, and each teacher presents his or her inquiry topic/research question and then fields questions from guests in their classrooms.
NAPDS is a national organization supporting and advancing school-university collaboration. The vision of the Association is to serve as an advocate for the educational community in promoting the continuous development of PreK-12/higher education/community relationships.
SUNY-Buffalo State, Baylor University and Ohio University are also receiving Exemplary PDS Achievement awards this year.