On Oct. 30, 2001, the first weekend of a year-long series of statewide workshops designed to “Create a New Vision for Minnesota Staff Development,” two declarations about staff development challenged participants’ views. The first was a front-page news article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune in which then-Gov. Jesse Ventura declared statewide staff development spending was a “black hole” with no apparent results. The second was a videotaped statement by Adam Urbanski, of the Rochester (N.Y.) Teachers’ Association, who declared, “Professional development is union work.”