The Benedum Collaborative is one of the largest nationally recognized school/university partnerships in the country. Our professional development school (PDS) work couples public schools and the university together to model and create research-based professional development and teacher preparation practices that are strong enough to enhance learning opportunities for children.
In the mid-1980s, West Virginia became one of the first states in the country to establish such a school-university partnership through the Benedum Project. The PDS concept is based on three central ideas about how public schools and universities work together for the profession:
1. They collaborate as sites of experimentation and innovation to create “best practices”.
2. They work collaboratively to be “centers of inquiry” where research and development on best practice and best professional development and preparation occur.
3. They are “empowered communities” where all stakeholders share in decision-making and participate in determining the learning needs and opportunities for students.
