Professional Development Opportunities
August Workshops
- Hands-on Inquiry based learning!
- Field work at Fort Stanwix, the Oriskany Battle Field, and the Oneida Nation!
- Feel confident in teaching our local history!
- Successful participation will receive:
- 100% funding for FREE field work for your class to Fort Stanwix and the Oneida Nation, including transportation
- Learn how to obtain a class set of text to integrate literacy
- Revolutionary War on Wednesday (Elementary)
- Sophia’s War (Middle and High School)
August 6, 2026 – 8:30 am – 11:30 am
AND
August 7, 2026 – 8:30 am – 3:30 pm
Costello Conference Room
September Workshops
Exploring NYSED’S Mental Health Briefs: A Two-Part Series
New York State Education Department recently released a series of Mental Health Briefs designed to support schools in building and sustaining comprehensive mental health systems. This two-part workshop series offers participants the opportunity to dig into the content together, reflect on current practices, and consider implications for their school communities.
Workshop 1 focuses on Briefs 2–4, examining the value of a team-based approach to school mental health, the power of partnerships between schools, families, and community organizations, and the role that school climate and culture play in student well-being.
Workshop 2 continues the exploration with Briefs 5–6, addressing Tier 1 mental health promotion and prevention strategies and the continuum of targeted and intensive interventions available to support students with greater needs. (Held on November 4th.)
Participants are encouraged to attend both sessions, though each workshop is designed to stand on its own. All briefs are available at on the NYSED website.
Workshop 1: September 17, 2026 – 8:30-3:00
Costello Center
New Teacher Training: For Teachers in Their First 4 Years of Service
Join us for three days of connection, learning, and practical strategies to support your success in the classroom. Bring your ideas, questions, and growth mindset as we explore topics to help you thrive as a newer educator. An additional benefit of is building relationships with the SCD department for ongoing support beyond these days!
September 22, 2026 – 8:30-3:30
Costello Center
This session is based on the books Mentoring Matters (Lipton & Wellman) and Tell Me So I Can Hear You (Drago Severson & Blum-DeStefano). These sessions will highlight the mentor’s role in building a supportive school culture through their expertise in: understanding new teachers, generational differences, and offering support. Participants will explore: the process of brainstorming ideas, increasing professional knowledge, and examining the four “Ways of Knowing” (how adults receive and give feedback).
September 24, 2025 – 12:00-3:00
Costello Center
Getting Your Sundays Back: An A.I. Work Session
Do you miss your Sundays? Would you like to recapture some of your “free” time?
This interactive workshop is designed to meet you where you are in your AI journey. Whether you're brand new and curious, have only dabbled with AI for emails or letters, or already feel comfortable and want to push into lesson design or student feedback, this is your space. You'll receive
personalized guidance as you explore how AI can streamline your planning, instruction, and professional tasks.
The session will be free-flowing and hands-on, with plenty of time to try tools, ask questions, and test ideas. Most importantly, bring something you want to accomplish–a unit you'd like to rework, lessons you need to plan, or student work you want to analyze–and leave with real progress made. All levels of comfort are welcome, and you'll walk away with practical skills you can immediately apply to save time and elevate your work!
September 25, 2026 – 8:30-11:30
Costello Center
Come to Instructional Coaching Professional Learning Group to connect with others in the region, learn, and share best practices around instructional coaching of teachers.
September 30, 2026 – 9:00-2:30
OHM BOCES
October Workshops
Join us for a dynamic, hands-on workshop focused on boosting student engagement through practical routines and instructional structures that work across all grade levels and subject areas. In the morning, you'll explore easy-to-implement strategies to keep students actively involved in learning. In the afternoon, you'll have dedicated time to apply these ideas directly to your own lesson plans with support from facilitators and peers. Leave with ready-to-use tools that can make an immediate impact in your classroom..
October 2, 2026 – 8:30-3:00
Costello Center
APPR Recertification
APPR Recertification is an asynchronous course for administrators in the Madison-Oneida BOCES region who were unable to attend our summer offerings and who received “Initial APPR Certification” at some point in the past. This course allows you to work at your own pace and can completed at any time between October 5, 2026 and May 31, 2027.
October 5, 2026
Asynchronous
Registration
Less Help, More Learning: Building Student Independence in the Classroom
As aides and assistants, our instinct to help students is one of our greatest strengths — but knowing when to step back is just as important as knowing when to step in. This session explores the concept of productive struggle: the idea that working through challenges is not a sign that a student needs rescuing, but a powerful part of how learning actually happens. We'll examine how our everyday interactions — a prompt, a pause, or even a well-timed silence — can either build a student's confidence or quietly undermine it. Together, we'll reflect on practical strategies for encouraging independence while still providing the meaningful support students need. You'll leave with a clearer sense of your role in fostering engaged, resilient learners who believe in their own ability to figure things out.
October 9, 2026 – 8:30-11:00
Rossetti Forum, Madison-Oneida BOCES Main Campus
Project Based Learning (PBL) is a foundational training inspired by the work of the Buck Institute for Education, New Tech Network, Edutopia, and Expeditionary Learning. Through a balanced blend of direct instruction, exploration, resource sharing, peer collaboration and feedback, and work time, attendees will learn how to develop a PBL experience by participating in many of it’s inherent structures.
By the end of the workshop participants will have the foundation for a PBL experience that can be implemented in their own classrooms!
October 14, 15, 21, 22, 2026 – 8:30-3:00
Costello Center
Unlocking Play-Based Early Learning
How can we create engaging, play-based learning experiences that support early childhood development?
Join us for an interactive training designed to deepen your understanding of early childhood education through the New York State Reflection and Resource Tool. Learn how to effectively use a Unit Planning Template to design engaging, play-based activities that support all areas of development while ensuring alignment with early learning standards. You’ll also gain hands-on experience and have time to explore the valuable kits and other resources in the M-O Media Library, available to all Madison-Oneida component districts. Best of all, you’ll have dedicated work time to bring your play-based learning plans to life!
October 29, 2026 – 8:30-3:00
Costello Center