Omaha Public Schools outlines districtwide shift to aligned professional learning, Canvas registration

Omaha Public Schools trustees heard an informational workshop Monday on the district’s plan to align professional learning, move course registration and materials into the Canvas learning management system, and build an internal Facilitator Development Network to support staff development.

The presentation, led by Dr. Chisholm (title not specified in the transcript) and Suzanne Creamer, chief school improvement officer, outlined a phased, 1-, 3- and 5-year approach to migrate offerings from separate departmental systems into a single Canvas catalog and to track participation and outcomes. "For 170 years, OPS has been providing learning and training to its employees," Creamer said. "We have now undertaken the process of digging into and implementing practice for how adults learn best."

Why it matters: District leaders tied the work to the systemwide ‘‘moonshot’’ goal of having all students reading on grade level by 2030, saying aligned adult learning and clearer registration will make it easier to deliver job-embedded, just-in-time training and to measure implementation across schools. The workshop was information-only; the board took no formal votes.

Presenters said Canvas will serve three primary purposes: a single catalog and registration point for staff, a delivery platform for in-person/online/blended learning, and an analytics source for enrollment and completion data. "It is a single place for all staff to locate, register, and then access the professional learning experiences across the district," Alex (role/title not specified in the transcript) said while demonstrating course pages used this year for…