How does a local become an ER&D site?

Local president (whose local has at least 200 members) or IFT Field Service Director who is interested in having their locals become ER&D Sites should contact IFT Educational Issues Director, Ava Harston or IFT Union Professional Development Center Director, Sue Walter.

1. A group of small locals can combine to reach the 200-member requirement.
2. The IFT and the AFT Regional Director will be contacted to request a recommendation for participation.
3. The local president is required to attend an AFT-sponsored local leader orientation conference to learn about the program.
4. Local President selects two individuals to serve as Local Site Coordinator (LSC) and an Individual Strand Coordinator (ISC). (Suggested criteria for selection are listed in "Resources" at the end of this section.)
5. The prospective LSC and ISC work with the president to complete a program application and attends the AFT ER&D Summer and Winter Institutes.

What are the costs of the program?

The local shares the expense of Summer Institute and Winter Institute with the AFT (approximately $900 per person is the local share for the Summer and Winter Institute combined.) Once classes begin, there will be costs for the manuals ($30), stipends, and any other incidental expenses of the class. Manuals can be printed locally. Possible funding sources include locals, districts, foundations, grants, participants, or donations from community.

What credits can participants obtain?

• ER&D classes consisting of 30 hours have been approved by the Illinois State Board of Education for 30 Continuing Professional Development Units (CPDUs).
• CPDUs will be awarded for workshops and seminars as one CPDU for each contact hour.
• Two hours of graduate credit from Governors' State University can be received for the cost of tuition.

What are the selection criteria for a Local Site Coordinator (LSC)?

The Local Site Coordinator(s) should:

• be a union member in good standing;
• be knowledgeable about school and union issues;
• be recognized as an effective teacher, paraprofessional, or other school staff;
• be trusted by peers;
• exhibit leadership skills;
• exhibit good program coordination/management skills;
• be able and willing to devote the time needed to be trained and to coordinate the local program;
• be willing to open his/her classroom to colleagues, as a "demonstration site;"
• be willing to work with the local union leadership to design the overall Local Action Plan; and,
• be willing to bear full responsibility for implementing that plan, which includes:
  • training Research Dissemination Coaches and disseminating research information to others;
  • preparing Research Dissemination Coaches for participation in ER&D strand training;
  • working with Individual Strand Coordinators to integrate their strand training into the overall local ER&D program; and,
  • being able to explain and discuss the ER&D program and its local operation to outside audiences, including school administrators, school board members, parents, the media, and the public.

What are the selection criteria for an Individual Strand Coordinator (ISC)?

The Individual Strand Coordinator(s) are required to have the same qualifications as the Local Site Coordinator(s). In addition, they should:

• be trained preferably (either at the AFT Summer Institute or locally) in Foundations of Effective Teaching: Organizing the Classroom Environment for Teaching and Learning as a Local Site Coordinator or Research Coach;
• be specifically adept in the subject area, if the strand is content-based;
• be trained by the AFT as an Individual Strand Coordinator;
• be willing to assume responsibility for coordinating the local training program in that strand in coordination with the Local Site Coordinator and for disseminating the research information;
• be willing and able to devote the time to carry out these responsibilities; and
• be willing to open his/her classroom to colleagues as a "demonstration site."