Professional Development Supports Lifelong Learning

Lower School Coordinator Jackie Clark P ’38 occupies a unique position at Poly. Not faculty or in a teaching-focused role, Jackie is the only staff member in the Lower School in an exclusively administrative position. When Lower School Director Theresa Tran encouraged Jackie to attend “Support for Supporters,” a professional development program for administrative assistants, she couldn’t have predicted the impact it would have on her growth. 

The ongoing program took place across three sessions, bringing together other administrative professionals in independent schools across the region. The group shared organization strategies, technological tools, and workplace systems, and Jackie gained practical strategies she could immediately implement at Poly.

“Going to a conference, you just come back full of energy and wakefulness,” said Jackie. “You learn ideas from different people, and I came back to Poly with knowledge I was excited to share with others.”

Jackie’s conference was supported by Poly’s Professional Development program, led by Director of Poly Summer and Extended Day Programs Jon Fay ’81, P ’18 ’22. Annually, Poly sends more than 90 employees to professional development opportunities across the country, and even internationally, to fuel their career advancement and present their findings to peers.

Under Jon’s leadership, he emphasizes that anyone can benefit from professional development—that means faculty, staff, and employees in non-teaching roles. “The main part of professional growth is providing an opportunity for everybody at Poly to learn,” said Jon. “We have helped people get a more advanced degree or credential, and just to really improve their skills, provide them with the ability to increase their knowledge within their particular area that supports their job function.”

Across campus, professional development takes many forms. Some initiatives are highly structured and collaborative, shaping curriculum and pedagogy at a divisional level. In recent years, Lower School faculty have engaged in Artful Belonging training and Responsive Classroom workshops—both of which are designed to create shared philosophies that extend beyond individual classrooms.

Professional Development connects employees with resources to perform at their best, such as Director of Health Services Hazel Diaz attending a conference specifically for school nurses, or Assistant Director of Auxiliary Programs and Emergency Preparedness Kevin Austin attending the FEMA Emergency Management Institute. Director of Annual Giving Alexin Tenefrancia, Director of Individual Giving Cameron Pickney, and Director of Advancement Services Peter Johnston presented earlier this year at the CASE-NAIS conference in Seattle about their creation of a new annual fund model, sharing best practices with other independent schools. Lower School faculty Raleigh Young ’80, P ’13 ’16 and Julia Zapata both went to Phoenix for a conference on school gardens, illustrating that there really is a professional development opportunity for everyone. 

Upper School Film/Media Studies Teacher Adam Feldmeth ’04 offers a compelling example of how this learning extends beyond Poly’s campus and affects other educators. This spring, he returned to the Bay Area to present at the Transformative Teaching Conference, where the theme “Human in the Loop” explored the intersection of artificial intelligence and DEI in education. His workshop, “What is Called Thinking Out Loud?,” drew on a model developed in a two-year study group at Poly with Science Teacher Will Mason and College Counselor Garine Zeitlian, inviting educators to think out loud on a timely question: during a moment in which abilities long held to be distinctly human are being offset by intelligence of another kind, what does it mean to teach turbulent times?

Adam’s talk emphasized the importance of sustained inquiry as AI rapidly impacts the role of the educator. Through the session, attendees explored the meaning of human intelligence against the backdrop of this groundbreaking technological moment. The workshop supported a dynamic discussion that bookended the conference’s proceedings, ultimately asking if and how the incorporation of AI in education allows critical thinking for teachers and students alike.

“Presenting for the second year in a row at the Transformative Teaching Conference and representing not only my personal pedagogy, but the work of my study group colleagues and Poly as a K-12 community, invited me to consider how and where transformation takes place in the learning we are all engaged in while we strive to teach in this moment,” said Adam. “Through the basic yet profound engagement in Thinking Out Loud together, we begin to realize that Transformative Teaching is just a phrase, if invoked. It is in what we learn from it through each other that makes it matter."

There are two exciting developments on the horizon related to professional development. Thanks to generous grants, Poly is launching a backpacking trip in Alaska through the National Outdoor Leadership School, connected to the Outdoor Education program. Additionally, Poly hopes to launch its first such international professional development trip to Nairobi, Kenya, bringing together a cohort of faculty and staff for a shared learning experience abroad.

Unlike traditional conferences, these programs prioritize cultural immersion, leadership skills, and relationship-building. By traveling together, participants will not only expand their understanding of the world but also of each other.

Jon sees this as a key step in the evolution of professional development at Poly. “It’s about building relationships and camaraderie across the school,” he explains. “Oftentimes with the three divisions, folks in one division may not know others or staff members, so this trip will allow the building of new connections.”

Jon encourages all faculty and staff at Poly to reach out to him if they are interested in professional development. He shares that even if a program seems lofty or out-there, he would love to find a way for everyone to access personal growth. As he puts it, the goal is simple: to ensure that employees at Poly “feel that there’s a place they can go to explore things that will improve their professional life.”