PAS Training Opportunities

The McCormick Tribune Center for Early Childhood Leadership provides five training opportunities to enhance effectiveness in using the Program Administration Scale (PAS). All trainings can be customized to meet your needs and delivered on-site at your organization. If you would like to schedule a training event, contact Jill Bella, Director of Special Projects at (800) 443-5522, ext. 5059 or jill.bella@nl.edu.

Widening the Lens – When the goal is expanding awareness of the importance of assessing quality from a total organizational perspective

Assessment of early childhood program quality is generally associated with indicators of the classroom learning environment. Yet the management and leadership practices that promote norms of continuous improvement are critical for achieving and sustaining quality at the classroom level. This session provides a rationale for viewing quality from a broader perspective. Participants are introduced to the Program Administration Scale as a research-based instrument to measure and improve organizational practices.

Audience: Center directors, managers, technical assistance specialists, college instructors, researchers, policymakers

Scope: One to two hours

Content: A rationale for viewing quality from a broader perspective; the importance of organizational assessment; an overview of the content and scoring of the PAS; using the PAS to improve the quality of early childhood programs

Format: Theater style; maximum 200 participants

Leading the Way to Quality – When the goal is program self-improvement

Early childhood directors set the standards and expectations for others to follow. This training looks at the nature of change in early childhood organizations and the director's role as change agent. Using the PAS as a guide, participants learn a systematic process for collecting data about their centers and how that information can be turned into an action plan for center improvement.

Audience: Center directors, managers

Content: Viewing child care centers from a systems perspective; the nature of organizational change; the director's role as change agent; dealing with resistance; content and scoring of the PAS; using the PAS to measure quality; developing an action plan for program improvement

Format: Interactive workshop; maximum 100 participants

Supporting Directors as the Gatekeepers to Quality – When the goal is quality facilitation

Technical assistance specialists, mentors, consultants, and other quality facilitators play a vital role in supporting directors as the gatekeepers to quality. In this training, participants learn key coaching strategies they can use to support directors in their efforts to achieve excellence. The PAS serves as the framework for measuring and benchmarking quality improvements.

Audience: Technical assistance specialists, mentors, consultants

Content: Characteristics of effective coaches; establishing rapport and aligning goals; tailoring support to the director's developmental stage; coaching strategies that promote professional competence; content and scoring of the PAS; using the PAS to develop a program improvement plan; helping directors take charge of change

Format: Interactive workshop; maximum 50 participants

PAS Assessor Reliability Training – When the goal is research, evaluation, or monitoring quality

Organizational assessments used for quality rating systems, program evaluations, or pre/post intervention studies depend on valid and reliable data collection methodologies. The PAS Assessor Reliability Training provides an in-depth analysis of the items and quality indicators in the Program Administration Scale. This training is designed for individuals who want to ensure that the PAS assessments are valid, reliable, and administered consistently across programs.

Audience: Researchers, program evaluators, technical assistance specialists, consultants

Content: An overview of the reliability and validity of the PAS; rating indicators and scoring items; interview protocol for collecting data; verifying documentation; establishing and maintaining reliability

Format: Intensive seminar; maximum 20 participants

For individuals interested in becoming an assessor, the PAS Assessor Reliability Training is also offered several times a year at the McCormick Tribune Center for Early Childhood Leadership. The Center is located 10 miles from Chicago O'Hare International Airport. If you are interested in attending, download a registration form. For an additional fee participants may take the PAS Assessor Reliability Training for graduate credit (ECE582C, Early Childhood Program Evaluation).

Getting Ready for the PAS – Illinois Only

This training is designed for child care center administrators in Illinois who are interested in applying for Star Level 3 or 4 of Quality Counts, the Illinois Quality Rating System. The PAS is designed to measure the quality of leadership and management practices of center-based early childhood programs. After completing this 4-hour training, directors will have a basic knowledge of the PAS, be able to use the tool for program self-improvement, and know how to prepare for the Quality Counts PAS assessment.

This training is hosted by the CCR&R agencies in different locations of the state and conducted by faculty and staff of the McCormick Tribune Center for Early Childhood Leadership. Contact your local CCR&R to register or download a statewide training calendar.

What people are saying about PAS training opportunities...

You stretched our thinking in new ways; we were given much food for thought, and best of all, the training affirmed all that we value for adult learners and best practice for creating a positive environment for learning adults. The focus on technical assistance and mentoring is so pertinent to our work with providers through TECTA and CCR&R. As we move in some new directions in the next fiscal year, the participants in this week's event will be a step ahead in understanding and putting into practice skills and strategies for more effective technical assistance and mentoring.
–Evelyn Hale, Tennessee Early Childhood Training Alliance, Tennessee State University

The PAS provides a tremendous opportunity to support and sustain the quality improvements in our school readiness initiative. It will help us navigate our way and chart our technical assistance strategies more clearly. Thank you for being so responsive in customizing the training for our specific needs.
–Phyllis Mason, United Way of SEPA

The PAS is an excellent tool to help us assess the skills of our director mentor applicants. It supports our goal that the selection process be viewed as a self-study process by the applicant.
–Linda Olivenbaum, California Early Childhood Mentor Program

The PAS is an important tool that will help our CCR&R agencies better support center directors in their quest to improve the business of child care AND enhance the quality of early childhood experiences.
–Jan Terhune, Indiana Association for Child Care Resource and Referral