Join an Advisory Team and Help Guide Professional Development in MN Adult Ed!

Do you like thinking about how we grow as professional educators in ABE? Interested in helping design workshops, study circles, job-embedded cohort experiences, conferences, and other professional development (PD) events? Five statewide leadership opportunities are coming up for Minnesota ABE practitioners. Your unique expertise and interests may be just what we need! Applications for each of the teams are due by Friday, June 6, 2025.

We are currently seeking applications for ABE teachers and administrators to serve as program representatives on five different advisory teams. Each of the five teams is tasked with designing relevant, meaningful, and effective professional development (PD) for practitioners within its area of focus:

Team and area(s) of focus include:

• ATLAS Language & Literacy Advisory Team (known as LLATé) – language, reading, and writing instruction, including planning the annual January Language & Literacy Institute. (Contact: Kristine Kelly–kkelly01@hamline.edu)
• ATLAS Transitions PD Advisory Team – Transitions PD includes Adult Career Pathways (ACP), Integrated Education and Training (IET), ACES/TIF, and postsecondary partnerships. (Contact: Carly Voshell–cvoshell02@hamline.edu)
• ATLAS Administrator PD Advisory Team – administrator knowledge, skills, and dispositions for MN ABE programming, for example, orienting new staff, mentoring and observation, cultivating leadership, budgeting, and strengthening programming models. (Contact: Carly Voshell–cvoshell02@hamline.edu)
• Digital Learning (DL) Advisory Team – Digital and distance learning professional development, digital resilience and Northstar standards implementation, review and feedback on site visit assessments, DL policies and procedures, approval of DL platforms and courses, technical support for programs, curation and access to relevant resources. (Contact: Susan Wetenkamp-Brandt–swbrandt@literacymn.org)
• PANDA Disability Working Group – the focus of this group is to educate, advocate, advise, and communicate topics related to students with disabilities as a group and with ABE staff throughout each program/region. (Contact: Erin Parker–erin_parker@rdale.org)

Program representatives play a critical role in bringing local and regional PD needs to the committee and sharing PD information and resources with practitioners in their regions! They must be currently or recently employed with a Minnesota ABE program and have experience with ABE instruction or administration. Experience planning, delivering, or participating in local, regional, or statewide professional development is a plus. Representatives receive a stipend in recognition of their work on the committee and gain valuable experience collaborating with a diverse group of ABE professionals on meaningful PD work that benefits ABE practitioners and programs.

Details about stipends, expectations, and meeting dates can be found within each application. Nearly all meetings are held virtually! Some teams have kickoff meetings in person, and the sponsoring organization will reimburse any travel expenses for those coming from a distance.

• View ATLAS advisory team applications >>
• View Digital Learning advisory team application >>
• View PANDA Disability Working Group application >>

Applications for each of the teams are due by Friday, June 6, 2025. Committee members will be selected to ensure representation from diverse regions, types of programs, roles, and areas of expertise.  Applicants will be notified of selections by mid-June.

We’d also like to extend a huge thank-you to our outgoing LLATé, Administrator PD, Transitions PD, and DL Advisory Team members for their commitment and contributions to MN ABE professional development. Thank you!