On March 31, Tyler Stump from PA State Archives will present a follow-up webinar to his recent Records Retention for Conservation Districts session at the 2020 Staff Conference. Tyler will share best practices and compliance for basic records management and rules for electronic document retention.

The webinar is scheduled for Tuesday March 31, from 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Click here to register. 

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission.

Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

The 2020 Building for Tomorrow Staff Conference was held on February 12-13 at the Wyndham Garden State College. There were 130 attendees from 45 counties. Keynote sessions were held on productive conflict and emotional intelligence and getting things done through time management.

Presentations from the conference will be posted at https://www.paleadership.org/events-programming/staff-conference/.

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission. Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

The Building for Tomorrow 2020 Back to Basics Regional Director Training workshop scheduled for March 10 at Berks County Conservation District has been canceled. But there’s still time to register for the March 11 workshop at Cumberland County – please click here for more information. 

For those unable to attend a regional workshop, remember to visit the Director Training page at the Building for Tomorrow website for learning resources and updates on upcoming programming.

In the meantime, mark your calendars for the July 23 Director’s Breakfast at the PACD/SCC Joint Annual Conference, where Janet McNally of Team Development Services will present on The Five Practices of Effective Boards.  Janet recently gave this presentation at a meeting of the PACD Executive Board, and everyone who participated agreed that it would be a valuable session for all Directors.  Stay tuned for more information coming in spring.

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission. Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

The 2020 Regional Director Training Workshop theme is “Back to Basics.” The half-day workshops are perfect for new and recently appointed directors, but all board members can benefit from this refresher course on effective leadership and primary roles and responsibilities. The program will review all conservation district board functions and activities, including legal, governance, and fiduciary responsibilities, as well as information on partner programs and guidance on board efficiency, understanding mission and outcomes, and important director support roles. 

Debra Thompson, President of Erie-based Strategy Solutions, Inc., will lead the workshop sessions, assisted by staff from the State Conservation Commission and DEP. Along with an extensive background of training and consulting in the areas of organizational development, strategic planning, and community leadership, Debra’s experience with conservation districts as a trainer through the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program will provide workshop attendees with valuable insights on effective board leadership. 

Workshops are scheduled for 9:30 a.m.–3:00 p.m. and will include lunch for all attendees. All conservation district directors and associate directors are encouraged to attend, and district managers are welcome to participate with their board members at these sessions.

Click on the links below to register:

Wednesday, February 26, at Clinton County Conservation District
Thursday, February 27, at Monroe County Conservation District
Wednesday, March 4, at Erie County Conservation District
Thursday, March 5, at Westmoreland Conservation District
Tuesday, March 10, at Berks County Conservation District – Cancelled
Wednesday, March 11, at Cumberland County Conservation District

Registration info and the workshop agenda can also be found at the Building for Tomorrow website. The registration deadline is one week prior to the workshop date.

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission. Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

Registration is open for the 2020 Building for Tomorrow Staff Conference, scheduled for February 12 & 13 at the Wyndham Garden State College. The conference is open to all non-management conservation district staff.

In addition to keynote sessions on Productive Conflict & Emotional Intelligence and Getting Things Done through Time Management, the 2020 Conference will include breakout and workshop sessions suitable for a variety of conservation district staff roles. Attendees will have opportunities to learn about:

• Strategy and tactics for effective conservation messaging that reaches “beyond the choir”
• The importance of paradigm shift around multifunctional and conventional riparian buffers
• Best practices and compliance for records retention and management
• Prevailing wage issues for conservation district projects
• Environmental education resources, initiatives, and opportunities for conservation districts
• Project management fundamentals proven to help deliver on time and within budget
• Showcasing district-developed content within DEP’s Clean Water Academy

Click here for more information and to register. The deadline for room block reservations is January 10, 2020.

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission. Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

Registration is open for the 2020 Building for Tomorrow Staff Conference, scheduled for February 12–13 at the Wyndham Garden State College. The conference is open to all non-management conservation district staff.

Productive Conflict & Emotional Intelligence will be the focus of the Day 1 Keynote session. Understanding what emotional intelligence is and why it’s important to develop is crucial in maintaining good relationships with your team and dealing effectively with difficult people. The presentation will introduce four attributes of emotional intelligence and a quadrant model. Participants will explore scenarios for utilizing each attribute and take a self-scored inventory to identify and better understand their individual and team behavior styles.

This session will be presented by Janet McNally, D.Ed. SPHR, of Camp Hill-based Team Development Services. Janet brings over 25 years of experience in human resources and organization development consulting and is an instructor for management and leadership courses at Penn State York.

The Day 2 Keynote session, Getting Things Done through Time Management, will provide an informative and entertaining take on navigating the productivity and time management challenges everyone faces in their daily lives. Participants will discover the secrets of effective time management and learn why it has nothing to do with cramming more into your day and to-do list. The presentation will cover powerful tools for time management that will help change your thinking about time, develop daily discipline for how you spend it, maximize your impact at work, build the foundations for professional success, and improve your peace of mind.

This session will be presented by Cindy Aronson of Cindy Aronson Workplace Training, based in Bemus Point, NY. With over 25 years of experience in the field of organizational development, Cindy has been a training partner with a variety of businesses and organizations and thousands of talented professionals in the fields of education, healthcare, human services, manufacturing, finance, entertainment, government, utilities, and not-for-profits.

Click here for more information and to register. The deadline for room block reservations is January 10, 2020.

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission. Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

Registration is now open for the 2020 Building for Tomorrow Staff Conference, scheduled for February 12 & 13 at the Wyndham Garden State College. The conference is open to all conservation district staff and will feature keynote sessions on Productive Conflict & Emotional Intelligence and Strategies for Time Management. Other sessions will include information on records retention, prevailing wage, environmental education, project management, multifunctional buffers, and agriculture/community outreach.

Click here to view the agenda and for more information.

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission. Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

Funding available to offset costs associated with strategic planning activity has been increased to $1,500 per qualifying district for 2020. Districts interested in applying for a Strategic Planning Grant have until November 20 to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) to the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program. The LOI should include information on the timeframe and process for plan development, as well as the date of board approval for the grant application.

Detailed information on the Strategic Planning Grants program, including program requirements and a list of recent facilitators, can be found at the Building for Tomorrow website. 

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission. Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

Earlier this month, the Building for Tomorrow Program, which provides leadership development training and resources to Pennsylvania’s conservation districts, announced the launch of its newly redesigned website at https://www.paleadership.org.

The new training modules page features an easy-to-navigate interface and a quiz function that allows users to save their progress. It’s an excellent tool for conservation district managers to use to onboard new staff and orient newly-appointed directors.

All conservation district personnel are encouraged to visit the new site and provide feedback and suggestions on content that can be added to support leadership development initiatives.

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission. Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.

The Building for Tomorrow Program, which provides leadership development training and resources to Pennsylvania’s Conservation Districts, is happy to announce the launch of its newly redesigned website at https://www.paleadership.org. 

The new site features: 

• a bright, modern design optimized for handheld and tablet devices
• an event portal and calendar that includes event registration, agendas, and other information, as well as session materials and handouts for Building for Tomorrow events
• a streamlined interface for self-directed learning modules with quiz functionality allowing users to save their progress – perfect for new Director orientation and on-boarding of new staff
• a blog to promote Building for Tomorrow programs, events, and other news and announcements 

All Conservation District personnel are encouraged to visit the new site and provide feedback and suggestions on content that can be added to support leadership development initiatives.

Financial and other support for the Building for Tomorrow Leadership Development Program is provided through a grant from the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission.  Guidance for the Program is provided through the Pennsylvania Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development Committee.