DALLAS—December 8, 2009—The National Staff Development Council presented members with prestigious awards at its 41st Annual Conference in St. Louis, Mo. NSDC’s annual awards program recognizes individuals for their commitment to improving student achievement through effective professional learning. The School Improvement Network sponsored the 2009 awards.
NSDC honored Thomas Guskey and Shirley Hord with the Contribution to the Field Award. This award recognizes individuals for their impact on the field of professional development. Guskey, a professor of educational psychology at the University of Kentucky, has improved the effectiveness of professional development leaders across the world by bridging the gap between education research and practice. Hord’s 57-year career includes notable research efforts on the change process such as Concerns-Based Adoption Model, NSDC Standards, Innovation Configuration Maps, and Professional Learning Communities. Hord retired as Scholar Emerita from Southwest Education Development Laboratories in 1997. She served as a Fellow of the National Center for Effective Schools Research and Development and as U.S. representative to the Foundation for the International School Improvement Project.
Mistilina Sato, Ruth Chung Wei, and Linda Darling-Hammond received the Best Research Award for their research on “Improving Teachers’ Assessment Practices Through Professional Development: The Case of National Board Certification.” This three-year study examined the impact of the National Board Certification process on math and science teachers’ classroom assessment practices. Sato is an assistant professor of teacher development and science education at the University of Minnesota. Wei is a postdoctoral scholar in the School of Education at Stanford University. Darling-Hammond is the Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education at Stanford University.
The Susan Loucks-Horsley Award honors the memory of Susan Loucks-Horsley by recognizing an individual who exemplifies Susan’s commitment to instill efficacy in others, collaborate across boundaries, and sustain impact on the field of professional development. This year NSDC is delighted to present this award to Page Keeley, an individual known for her leadership and commitment to quality science teaching and learning. Keeley is the Senior Science Program Director at the Maine Mathematics and Science Alliance, a nonprofit organization working to improve science and math education for student achievement. At the Alliance she directs projects in the areas of teacher leadership, linking standards and research on learning, formative assessment, as well as mentoring and coaching.
Past President Marti Richardson received the Distinguished Service Award for her unselfish leadership and support of the Council. For 25 years Marti has served NSDC members by presiding as 2003 NSDC President, serving on the Board of Trustees, establishing the IFN Bridge Builder Award recognizing principal professional development, chairing the NSDC 1997 Annual Conference in Nashville, presenting at over 20 NSDC conferences, as well as founding and leading the Tennessee state affiliate for over ten years.
NSDC presented the Shirley Havens Support and Classified Staff Development Award to DeKalb County School System in Atlanta, Ga. This award recognizes an organization committed to the professional learning of support and classified staff members. DeKalb County School System is dedicated to providing exemplary learning opportunities for every employee to enhance student achievement. Its Classified Employees Leadership Academy strengthens individual job performance, broadens experience within the district, and positions employees for career advancement.
NSDC named Change Wars, edited by Andy Hargreaves and Michael Fullan, the Staff Development Book of the Year. This award recognizes a book that makes a significant contribution to the field of staff development. In this award-winning book published by Solution Tree, these change specialists bring together educational luminaries from around the globe to share their theories-in-action on how to achieve deep change. Hargreaves is the Thomas More Brennan Chair in Education at Boston College and founding editor-in-chief of the Journal of Educational Change. Fullan is professor emeritus at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto and heads Leadership for Change, an independent organization that develops leadership capacity in educators.
