A #cyberPD Announcement: Maybe Year 10 Needs to Be Different

For a decade, #cyberPD has been an anticipated summer event to connect educators near and far in collaborative professional conversation. Through blogs, Twitter, and various digital media, participants share thinking around a common professional title featured for discussion. Though the main event is in July of each year, the conversations and connections carry across the year. Since #cyberPD's first event, we've grown from a group of less than 15 to a community of over 150 educators.

We have found this community to be powerful and the conversations have helped us grow in our journey as educators. These conversations have pushed us, made us uncomfortable, and allowed us the chance to see things from different perspectives. It’s amazing to think that #cyberPD was a pioneer for online book clubs and this community made it possible!

Yet, here we are today. When we got ready to “share our bookstacks,” COVID was in full swing and teachers were juggling remote teaching, staying healthy, and their family. Then, when we began to get back to the 2020 #cyberPD planning, we were shook by the death of George Floyd and heard the call across the country for an end to systemic racism. Educators are once again in the forefront of these discussions wanting to be part of the change. It seems this is a time to dig in to listen and learn, a time to lift the voices of BIPOC educators, and a time for each of us to pursue the learning we need to take action.

Therefore, after much reflection and conversation, we have decided to not select a book to read together as a community in what would have been our tenth year. We want to leave space for the important issues at hand. We want to be here for each other, to support and learn together -- no matter what your focus and goals are for this summer!

We want to thank each of you for your role in making #cyberPD the event that it has been since 2011. It is the community that has made it strong. We know that each member of our community is already busy pursuing opportunities to continue to grow into all that our students need from us.

We hope that you will continue to use the #cyberPD hashtag to:

• stay connected as a community
• seek support
• share professional books you are reading (maybe even make some connections with others doing the same reading)
• post resources (articles, book titles, webinars, videos, etc.) around questions you are pursuing that may be of interest to the #cyberPD community
• amplify nuggets of insights, surprises, and quotes from what you are reading and learning
• pose questions, confusions, and challenges to our community

We know that books, conversations, and this #cyberPD community can help us on that journey.  We look forward to continuing to learn alongside each of you.

We need to stay strong together. To help each other move forward. To change. To BE the change. 

Thank you for your kind understanding,
Michelle & Cathy