Affordable, single-day rates for the 35th Annual COSA Professional Development Conference at Seaside are available for the first time this year, making it possible for attendees to significantly reduce travel and conference costs and still benefit from the professional development they want most, COSA Executive Director Kent Hunsaker has announced.   The conference is set for June 24-26 at the Seaside Convention Center.  Register for the conference.

“We know that school budgets are tight, to say the least, but we also know that school leaders need the kind of timely and relevant professional development – including sustainable best practices for IDEA and Title I, closing the achievement gap for all students, and leadership in challenging times – offered at our annual conference this June,” he said.  “That’s why the COSA Board of Directors has reduced conference rates and made single day options available.  Now school leaders can choose which one, two or three days best serve their professional development needs, and plan accordingly.”

Each day of the conference offers excellent professional development opportunities:

Day One – Wednesday, June 24
The first day of the conference offers two unique strands.  One option is the Special Education Summer Conference featuring keynote speakers Marcia Tate on "Brain Compatible Classrooms" and Andrea Hungerford on ""Hot Topics in Special Education."  It also includes breakout sessions such as “Secondary RTI: A Framework for Increasing Student Achievement,” "Using Patterns of Strengths and Weaknesses for SLD Identification," “Sustaining Change Through Adult Behavior,” “Training Instructional Assistants to Implement Behavior Supports,” “Statewide Children’s Wraparound Initiative” and “Building Capacity: An Approach to Help Staff Learn Best Practice Strategies to Support Students on the Autism Spectrum.”  A second option is a full-day Leadership Academy Workshop with Todd Whitaker, the acclaimed author of “What Great Principals Do Differently” and “What Great Teachers Do Differently.”

Day Two – Thursday, June 25
The second day of the conference features keynote speakers Todd Whitaker on “The Most Important Things in Life Are Not Things” and Marcia Tate on “Sustainable Learning Strategies for All Students.”  In addition, Oregon’s leading educators will present more than 25 breakout sessions on topics such as “Charter Schools: Working Together for Success,” “You Can Get There From Here – A Tale of Small Schools and Improving Student Achievement,” “School Improvement Through Influential Leadership,” “A District’s Courageous Conversation about Race,” “Serious about TAG – Three Cost-Effective Programs that Work,” “Effectively Managing Consistent, Standards-based Curriculum and Assessments” and “Creating Formative Assessments: Improving Instruction and Learning Using Classroom Data.”

Day Three – Friday, June 26
The third day of the conference features keynote speakers Tony Wagner, the dynamic author of “Change Leadership,” on “The Global Achievement Gap” and Nancy Hungerford on “The Latest Legal Issues for Oregon School Leaders.”  The Oregon Department of Education will present information sessions on the federal stimulus package, Title I and IDEA.  As well, districts will be able to reserve space for team planning time.

In addition to the professional development opportunities, traditional conference events are also planned, including the COSA Classic Golf Tournament (Wednesday morning), the Presidents Reception (Wednesday night) and the Family Fun Night (Thursday night).  Register for the conference.  View the conference agenda.

Single-day rates for the conference are $99.  COSA members who renew their membership for 2009-10 will receive a $99 professional development voucher that can be used for any COSA conference in 2009-10 – meaning that those who renew their membership by June 24 and apply their voucher toward the annual conference can attend any single day for free, or enjoy significantly discounted rates on two- and three-day fees.  Renew your membership.

More than 80 exhibitors will be on hand.  COSA has negotiated special rates for Seaside lodging.

CAL Credit, with big savings for COSA members, available
University graduate credit is available for administrators pursuing their Continuing Administrator License (CAL).  Administrators may include attendance at the annual conference as part of a four-credit course offered through Portland State University.  Taking this COSA/PSU course generally saves COSA members about $750 on the cost of CAL credit.  Aspiring administrators and teachers who attend this conference may earn one graduate credit through PSU.  Contact Colin Cameron at COSA or Cathie Anderson at PSU for more information.