Upcoming Professional Education Opportunities

Are you new to school business or recently taken on new responsibilities in your school?

The School Operations Academy (SOA) is a must attend for you! SOA offers foundational information on key areas of school management including:

• Business
• Facilities
• Food Service
• Transportation
• Human Resources
• Payroll – New this year!

Participants will gain valuable information:

• Proven techniques from experienced practitioners
• Ideas to create efficiencies and reduce costs
• Time to exchange challenges and solutions with your peers
• An opportunity to build a network of contacts across the state

SOA is the conference to attend if you are:

• New school operations staff
• School operations staff about to take on a new area of responsibility
• Established managers looking for a refresher on the basics
• Education support professionals
• New Superintendents seeking a basic understanding on school business issues

COSTS

Hotel:

PASBO has a room block at the Best Western Premier, the Central Hotel for Sunday, July 20 and Monday, July 21 for $126.95 + 11% tax. The room block closes on June 20, or when filled. A link to the room block will be sent out with your registration confirmation.

Elements courses are a broad overview of a School Business area offered at least one time during the year and conducted in a format much like a college course with class time, assignments, quizzes, etc.  The typical Elements courses are online, 4 week asynchronous courses with 1 unit per week. Students will complete 1 quiz and 2-3 discussion questions per unit. Students will also have the opportunity to join 3 calls with the instructor, including the initial kick off call. The in-person courses are run as a 1 day workshop where the concepts are reviewed and the discussions happen in person, with the quizzes being taken online after the in-person portion. For the in-person courses, all 4 units are covered in 1 day. The in-person courses are labeled in the event title.

Is Solar a Good Fit for your District? Exploring Opportunities, Challenges, and Solar Incentives Part 2
Tuesday, May 13, 2025 | 1:00 – 2:30 PM
At the 70th Annual PASBO Conference, school business officials and facilities directors expressed strong interest in exploring solar energy for their districts. In Part One, attendees heard directly from their peers at Bethlehem Area and Midd-West School Districts about their real-world experiences with going solar.

Now in Part Two, we’re diving deeper. Join Generation180—a nonprofit advancing clean energy in schools—alongside experts from Raymond James & Associates to explore available funding opportunities, tax credits, project planning steps, and technical assistance resources. This session is designed to help you evaluate the financial and operational feasibility of solar for your district.
Whether you’re just starting to explore solar or ready to take the next step, this webinar will equip you with the knowledge and tools to make informed, strategic decisions about your district’s energy future.

SPEAKER:
Shannon Crooker, Pennsylvania Director, Generation180
Ryan Brockman, Vice President, Raymond James & Associates
Mike McCaig, Managing Director, Raymond James & Associates

CREDITS:
2 General CEUs
1.5 CPE – Specialized knowledge

COSTS: 
Members: $75 | Non-Members: $115

First Things First
Registration is closed in the PASBO Portal, but if you are interested in attending, please contact Rebecca at rodotei@pasbo.org.
May 6, 2025 | 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
PASBO Headquarters
This program is designed for in-person, small-group, with hands on work, deep dives and lively discussions. Designed for new members or more tenured members moving in to new business office roles. Tell us what your issues are, or topical areas you desire to be addressed; or describe the issues you face and we’ll look to connect to expertise and resources. The limited enrollment will allow for presenter preparation and to address specific needs, it will allow for cross-over learning on several topics even as we address specific needs and requests of days participants. For those so new their topic or job, who are not sure what specifically to ask for…just tell us that too….the sessions will cover general and overarching school business learning while connecting to resources, networking, and finding the expertise you may need.

SPEAKER: 
Tim Shrom, Ph.D., PCSBA, Director of Research, PASBO

CREDITS:
General Certification – 4 CEUs
COSTS:
Members: $125
Non-Members: $185

Construction Project Management Symposium – New Date
May 14 – 15, 2025 | Day 1: 8 AM-4:15 PM, Day 2 8 AM-2:30 PM
PASBO Headquarters
Attendees may register to attend the full Symposium or only 1 day (either day 1 or day 2)

The PASBO Facilities Committee has developed a Construction Project Management Guide to assist LEA professionals understand the process. This comprehensive symposium will lead you through the construction project cycle and will provide in-depth discussions of the seven project phases: Concept, Schematic Design, Design Development, Contract Documents, Bidding Phase, Construction and Close Out.

This course will teach you about project scalability, which will allow you to apply its concepts from minor renovations to full scale renovation or construction. Participating LEA design team members will understand their roles and responsibilities and those of design professionals, jurisdiction authority, contractors, and testing agencies.

The Construction Project Management Guide will be provided as part of the Symposium so you may share these concepts with your LEA that can be used on future projects.

The Construction Project Management Symposium has now been expanded for an optional second day to educate attendees in project specification books and drawings (prints).

Attendees may elect to attend both days or either day for LEAs members to understand the processes, procedures and best practices in construction management.

Day 1:

8:00 – 8:30                  Registration & Light Breakfast
8:30 – 9:00                   Introduction & Overview
9:00 – 9:45                   Phase I Concept
9:45 – 10:30                Phase II Schematic Design
10:30 -10:45                Break
10:45 – 11:30             Phase III Design Development
11:30 – 12:15             Phase IV Contract Documents
12:15 – 1:00                Lunch
1:00 – 1:45                  Phase V Bidding Phase
1:45 – 2:30                  Phase VI Construction Phase
2:30 – 2:45                 Break
2:45 – 3:30                  Phase VII Closeout
3:30 – 4:15                 Summary Q & A

Day 2:

8:00 – 8:30                   Registration & Light Breakfast
 8:30 – 8:45                 Introduction & Overview
8:45 – 9:30                 Civil Site Plans
9:30 – 10:15               Architectural Floor Plans, Elevations &   Section Views
10:15 -10:30                Break
10:30 – 11:00              Schedules, Interiors & Food Service & Structural Plans
11:00 – 12:15              Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing Plans
12:15 – 1:00                Lunch
1:00 – 2:15                   Specification Books 1-3 Review
2:15 – 2:30                 Questions & Feedback
2:30                            Conclusion

SPEAKER: 
William T. Meiser, PCSBO, PCSFM, Director of Operations, Middletown Area School District
Bradly Reist, Assistant to the Superintendent
Northern Lebanon SD

COSTS:
Full Event
Early bird before 3/25 Member:  $220 Non-Member $300
After 3/25 Member: $240 Non-Member $320
Email rodotei@Pasbo.org on pricing for 1-day registration.

First Things First
June 2, 2025 |10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
In-Person – PASBO Headquarters
This program is designed for in-person, small-group, with hands on work, deep dives and lively discussions. Designed for new members or more tenured members moving in to new business office roles. Tell us what your issues are, or topical areas you desire to be addressed; or describe the issues you face and we’ll look to connect to expertise and resources. The limited enrollment will allow for presenter preparation and to address specific needs, it will allow for cross-over learning on several topics even as we address specific needs and requests of days participants. For those so new their topic or job, who are not sure what specifically to ask for…just tell us that too….the sessions will cover general and overarching school business learning while connecting to resources, networking, and finding the expertise you may need.

SPEAKER: 
Tim Shrom, Ph.D., PCSBA, Director of Research, PASBO

CREDITS:
General Certification – 4 CEUs
COSTS:
Members: $125
Non-Members: $185

There is no Series scheduled at this time. Watch your Learn and Lead newsletter for upcoming workshops.