Coming in at conversation #35, Michael Sollitto, is the Superintendent of the Burrillville School District in Rhode Island. It was great to catch up and learn how Mike is making professional learning work through strategic fundraising and regional collaboration.

"We want to provide every student the best possible education, preparing them for whatever comes next in this rapidly changing world. That means making sure our teachers have the support and knowledge they need to do their best work. We're facing some real challenges with how schools are funded in Rhode Island. The current model simply isn't keeping pace with rising costs and the evolving needs of our student population. While overall enrollment has decreased, the number of students requiring special education services and those considered at-risk is on the rise. This financial reality forces us to make difficult decisions and often puts important initiatives, including professional learning, on the back burner a our immediate priority must be staffing our classrooms effectively.

To creatively address our professional learning needs, we have been strategically leveraging Title II and Title IV funds and pursuing various grants. We have established a Director of Strategic Initiatives position, held by Maria Quiray Lawrence, who has been instrumental in enhancing our social media presence, supporting our CTE pathways, and securing significant grant funding. Our CTE program has seen remarkable growth, expanding from five out-of-district students to 35 in the last few years and growing to nine Rhode Island Department of Education approved CTE pathways.

We have also prioritized High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) purchases and supportive professional development to roll out new curriculum, with incredible leadership from Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, Julie Mayhew. And we have embraced a more flexible, hybrid professional learning delivery approach to accommodate our staff. For instance, our recent 'Right to Read' training was conducted entirely virtually, allowing educators to complete the modules at their own pace within set deadlines.

We like to make our professional learning as relevant and impactful as possible for our educators. To better support our teachers' understanding of AI and its uses in the workforce, we hosted an AI panel featuring community members who are actively using AI in their fields, which provided a valuable opportunity for teachers to engage with real-world applications and consider AI implications for education.

We have proactively developed an AI policy that outlines acceptable use for both faculty and students across all grade levels. We aim to empower teachers to explore AI as a tool while discouraging its use for grading. We created this policy in collaboration with the Northwest Schools Consortium and our legal team. The consortium model, which I currently chair, has grown to include six school districts, and has facilitated cost savings from transportation to training opportunities for our district leaders."