Professional Development Initiative

Modesto City Schools (MCS) is proud to offer Professional Development (PD) opportunities for all full-time employees.(This is not available for substitute employee groups.) The goal of the PD is to improve student learning. Depending on specific job classifications, employees may be offered different PD opportunities. PD is offered during work hours as part of ongoing job development and voluntary training is provided after hours. All courses that count towards the PD Initiative compensation need to be taken outside of your normal working hours.

Employees can register for most PD opportunities through the PD Catalog. Options are filtered based on specific employee job classifications. Opportunities for PD include in-person, live video conferencing, and self-paced options.

Classified, Certificated, and Management groups can all participate in the MCS PD Initiative. Employees are compensated for up to 12 hours a year, based on bargaining unit agreements. Read more below for details. All employees can keep track of their individual PD completions through the use of their transcript in the PD Catalog. Learn more about your transcript here.

Instructional Core

Instructional Core Logo

All PD opportunities will focus on the Instructional Core. PD opportunities that do not align with the Instructional Core will not count towards the PD Initiative.

  • CORE BELIEF: Every student deserves a guaranteed instructional program, not by chance, but by design, including Board-adopted curriculum, researched-based best practices, and authentic relationships and assessments that guide instruction.

  • Supporting All Learners:

    Intentionally planning lessons with consideration for strategies, scaffolds, and interventions that create equitable learning opportunities for all students.

  • Engaging Students using Language and Literacy:

    Designing lessons that engage and support all learners by providing daily opportunities to interact with content through reading, writing, listening, and speaking.

  • Board-adopted Curriculum:

    Intentionally utilizing the currently adopted curriculum to ensure equitable access for all students to rigorous content standards. Understanding how the curriculum design supports students’ progression over time.

  • Professional Learning Communities: PLCs are the vehicle we use to guarantee the success of the Instructional Core. Fully engaging in the process of identifying what students need to learn, how it is to be taught, what to do if they don’t reach mastery, and what to do if they excel, with regular review of student formative data to guide instruction.

ALL LEARNERS: All learners means every student regardless of gender, socioeconomic level, at-promise status, racial, ethnic, or cultural background, exceptional ability, disability, or Limited English Proficiency.

Click the classification below to see Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)