Orange City Schools schedules Nov. 4 professional development; paraprofessional training highlighted

Orange City Schools will hold a districtwide professional development day on Tuesday, Nov. 4 (Election Day), during which students will not attend classes and staff will engage in grade-band training focused on instructional clarity, consistency and innovation.

District presenters said staff will split into K— and 6—2 groups for half-day sessions with Dr. Chris Tranberg to continue work with the High Reliability Schools framework and to explore shared instructional practices. Afternoon sessions will offer choice-based workshops such as AI tools in Google Workspace and MTSS intervention planning.

The board also heard details about the districts work with the University of Cincinnatis Ohio Partnership for Excellence in Paraprofessional Preparation (referred to in the meeting as OPEP). A district staff member identified as Katie described OPEP as a partially grant-funded, multiyear program that provides differentiated, targeted professional development for paraprofessionals; the district expects roughly 45 to 50 paraprofessionals to participate and noted the program includes sessions on special-education law, classroom management strategies, mental-health topics and a panel to address paraprofessional questions.

Why it matters: Districtwide PD shapes classroom practice and professional alignment across schools; the paraprofessional training is intended to clarify roles and provide targeted supports that affect students receiving Tier 2/3 interventions.

What happens next: The district will conduct PD on Nov. 4; staff indicated the presenter sessions typically are not recorded because contracts often prohibit video capture.