The 2019 Building for Tomorrow Staff Conference was held February 27–28 at the Genetti Hotel in Williamsport. The theme was “Culture & Communication.” The conference aimed to provide inspiration as well as valuable information on values, mission, and culture to Pennsylvania’s conservation districts.

Ninety-seven people representing 32 conservation districts attended the two-day event.

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 2018 Management Summit was held September 5 and 6 at the Ramada Conference Center in State College. 

Sixty-three district managers, assistant managers, and team leaders attended this free event, which included presentations on “Financial Oversight and Segregation of Duties” from Greg Hall of Smith Elliott Kearns, LLC, and “Workplace Sexual Harassment in the Era of #metoo” from Adam Long of McNees Wallace & Nurick, LLC.  Mary Kay Williams from Mindshift Consulting presented two sessions including “Time Management Strategies” and “Managing Respectful Workplaces.”

In addition to these speakers, representatives from the PA Department of Environmental Protection presented information on revenue account codes, ePermitting, and the Chesapeake Bay WIP process. The Conservation Partnership’s Leadership Development program discussed topics including strategic planning grants, web-based training and professional development resources, and topic requests for leadership development programming for 2019 and beyond.

Conservation district managers please save the date for the 2018 Management Summit, scheduled for Wednesday, September 5, and Thursday, September 6, at the Ramada Hotel and Conference Center in State College.

Registration information and an agenda are coming soon. Contact Leadership Development Coordinator Matt Miller at mmiller@pacd.org with questions about this event.

I would like to introduce myself as PACD’s Leadership Development Coordinator. I am very excited to join the PACD team and to support the vital work of the dedicated district directors and staff throughout the state. Prior to coming to PACD, I worked for a statewide association representing not-for-profit senior service providers where I coordinated educational and leadership development programming as well as corporate sponsorship, conference and event planning, and member outreach.

I look forward to exploring ways that the association can improve education delivery and increase engagement with the districts and the communities they serve. With that in mind, I plan to reach out to many of you in the coming days and weeks as part of an informal needs assessment of the “Building for Tomorrow” program. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the meantime if I can be of any assistance to you or your district.

My contact information is: Matthew Miller, 717-238-7223 x11, mmiller@pacd.org.