Professional Development

NAF Professional Development offers extensive opportunities to teachers and other stakeholders who want to hone skills and strengthen their position within the overall structure of the NAF Academy model.

NAF Professional Development is a key component in Career Academy National Standards of Practice, as activities enhance leadership skills and education competencies of all those charged with sustaining a NAF Academy.

While every Academy is unique in its application of the NAF Academy model, all stakeholders benefit from guided and independent practice with NAF as they improve adherence to this model. 

NAF Professional Development activities for teachers ensure that:

• teachers are equipped to deliver up-to-date instruction and content in their Academy theme;  
• course objectives are met and teachers implement NAF Curriculum with maximum effectiveness; and
• essential components of the NAF Academy model – partnerships that engage stakeholders from the business and civic sectors – are in place and generating the necessary resources to support Academy students and teachers.

NAF provides in-person training on an ongoing basis as teachers strive to improve their own and their partners’ fidelity to the NAF Academy model.

NAF conferences, leadership institutes, year round technical assistance, online resources, and national and regional representatives further ensure that teachers and business and community partners share knowledge gained in schools and draw on industry expertise and guidance from NAF.

Additional resources include:

• The NAF Collaboration Network, an online resource targeting teachers; 
• Working groups, such as the NAF Curriculum Fellows, comprised of teachers who improve curriculum implementation nationwide; 
• Electronic learning courses, Guides, and Web-based instruction.