Pennsylvania Leadership Development Center
Intentional Connections, Infinite Leadership
Professional Development Opportunities
Courses, Programs & Mico-Courses
Our learning experiences are designed to meet leaders where they are and move them toward meaningful, lasting growth. We offer three flexible pathways:​
Courses
Courses are content-centered learning that builds deep understanding of essential leadership concepts.
Programs
Programs — action-centered experiences that help individuals or teams apply learning, practice new skills, and create measurable impact.
Micro-Courses
Micro-Courses are short, targeted learning modules that can stand alone or be combined into a customized series.
All three pathways can be customized to the outcomes you’re aiming for and can be structured to meet PIL credit requirements. Whether you prefer a single session or a multi-session series, each offering can be delivered in person, online, or in a blended format. Whether you’re diving into a focused topic or building broader organizational capacity, you’ll find flexible options that fit your goals, schedule, and context.
Courses
Total Leaders: (40 PIL Hours)
Becoming a Total Leader is about growing into the kind of leader who can see the whole system, honor the people within it, and guide meaningful improvement with clarity and purpose. It moves beyond titles or tasks and speaks to a way of being—how you think, how you show up, and how you influence learning, culture, and outcomes.
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In this course, the leadership framework becomes your roadmap. It helps you examine the mindsets, habits, and competencies that define Total Leaders: self-awareness, strategic clarity, relational intelligence, and the ability to align people, processes, and purpose. Through research, practice-based examples, and reflective tools, you learn not just what a Total Leader does but why it matters—especially in schools where complexity, human needs, and organizational demands constantly intersect.
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By working with the framework, you begin to see patterns more clearly, make decisions with greater confidence, and adapt your leadership to serve students, colleagues, and the broader mission. Ultimately, the course strengthens your professional practice by helping you cultivate the disposition of a Total Leader—one who leads with intention, integrity, and impact.
Leading District-Wide Continuous Improvement (40 PIL hours)
This course equips leaders and leadership teams with the mindsets and tools needed to drive sustainable improvement across an entire district. Drawing on the work of pioneering thinkers and practitioners in transformational change, participants deepen their understanding of how systems improve, how people grow, and how leadership behaviors influence both. Through practical frameworks, real examples, and reflective application, leaders learn to shift their thinking, align their actions, and cultivate the conditions for continuous improvement in their own contexts—ensuring meaningful, measurable progress for students, staff, and the organization as a whole.
Programs
Systemic–Strategic Organizational Assessment Program (90 PIL Hours)
We recommend implementing this program over a nine-month period to support deep learning, thoughtful diagnosis, and meaningful organizational action.
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This program equips educational leaders to examine and strengthen their organizations through a structured process that is both diagnostic and developmental. Participants assess the health and coherence of their systems—exploring leadership capacity, culture, instructional alignment, and resource use—and translate these insights into targeted, high-impact improvement strategies.
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Grounded in systems thinking, the program guides leaders through a comprehensive cycle of inquiry that blends data analysis, stakeholder input, and reflective evaluation. Using evidence-based frameworks, participants identify strengths and barriers, align actions with strategic goals, and design coherent structures that support sustained improvement.
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Districts and schools that engage in this program gain tremendous value. By the end of the experience, they receive a comprehensive set of assessment findings—clear, actionable insights that reveal patterns, highlight opportunities, and illuminate root causes. This diagnostic information becomes a powerful foundation for strategic implementation, helping organizations prioritize resources, promote innovation, strengthen coherence, and build a culture of continuous improvement.
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Learning unfolds across six sequenced modules that combine facilitated instruction, collaborative problem-solving, and job-embedded application. Between sessions, leaders complete local diagnostic tasks and receive coaching to deepen their analysis and refine their action plans. The capstone Organizational Assessment Portfolio demonstrates each participant’s ability to synthesize findings and propose actionable next steps aligned with Pennsylvania’s Leadership Standards.
Micro-Courses
Cross-Functional Teams for School Improvement Series
This three-part series is designed to help leaders bring people, systems, and ideas together in smarter, more coherent ways. Each course builds on the core principles of cross-functional teaming—collaboration, clarity, and continuous improvement—but they’re also powerful on their own. Whether you’re just beginning to explore cross-functional work or ready to deepen and scale your approach, you can choose the learning experience that best fits your role, your needs, and your improvement priorities.
Micro-Course 1 – Foundations of Cross-Functional Collaboration (10 PIL Hours)
Explore the value, structure, and dynamics of cross-functional teams. Learn how to establish shared purpose, clarify roles, and create the conditions for effective collaboration.
Micro-Course 2 – Designing and Leading Cross-Functional Teams for Impact (10 PIL Hours)
Focus on strategic team design, facilitation skills, and systems alignment to translate organizational goals into collaborative action.
Micro-Course 3 – Sustaining and Scaling Cross-Functional Team Effectiveness (10 PIL Hours)
Examine strategies for monitoring progress, refining team practices, and embedding cross-functional collaboration into the organization's culture and operations.
Additional PIL Courses
Participants can tailor their engagement to fit their goals. You can explore any micro-course informally, complete a single course for 10 hours of Act 45 credit, or continue through Micro-Courses 2 and 3 for up to 30 total hours.
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Participants may choose their level of engagement:
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No Credit Option – Participate informally in any micro-course.
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10-Hour Credit Option – Earn 10 Act 45 hours by completing one micro-course (all three micro-learnings and embedded activities).
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Extended Pathway Option – Continue through Micro-Courses 2 and/or 3 for up to 30 total hours of professional learning credit.
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Leading District-Wide Continuous Improvement (40 PIL Hours)
The Leading District-wide Continuous Improvement program equips educational leaders to build the systems, culture, and practices needed to strengthen student achievement. Grounded in research and real-world application, participants learn the mental models, core practices, and transformation levers essential to driving continuous improvement across a district. Through virtual learning, job-embedded activities, and guided coaching, leaders develop and implement an action plan that advances their organization’s mission, vision, and capacity for sustained improvement.
Total Leaders Needed (40 PIL Hours)
Total Leaders Needed prepares educational leaders to navigate the complex, rapidly changing demands of today’s schools. Grounded in research and best practices, the program helps participants understand the dispositions of a Total Leader—openness, flexibility, empowerment, and a commitment to continuous learning. Through blended instruction, collaborative dialogue, and job-embedded application, leaders explore how to move beyond managing the status quo to creating meaningful and productive change. Thirteen sequenced lessons and guided coaching support participants in developing self-directed learning habits and applying new insights to improve student and adult performance. The program culminates in an Evidence Fair demonstrating continuous improvement in action.
Contact
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