Faculty and Staff

About the PDA

The Professional Development Academy (PDA) was organized in 2003 to assist College of the Mainland employees with all aspects of their professional development. The Academy's focus is on training, improving skills, increasing knowledge, and assisting faculty and staff with regard to teaching and learning, thus supporting and providing better services to the College's students. Through avenues such as on-campus training, webinars, workshops, external training, conferences, seminars, and College programs, the PDA continues to provide professional development opportunities to their employees.

A paramount goal of the PDA is to continue to meet staff challenges by staying current with the rich network of professional development organizations and programs in Texas and the nation. In doing so, the Academy can provide increased chances for new ideas, resources and collaborations.

For Information Contact:
PDA Office, Ext. 8670
LRC Library Mezzanine, Rm M-05

Professional Resources

PD Forms and Documents

Files are from the InfoCentral Drive. For best results use Internet Explorer to access these files. 

• Employee Professional Development Plan
• PDA Funding Application Form

Employees on-campus can access the following folders on InfoCentral (the I: drive):

• I:\VP for Instruction\Professional Development Academy

COM faculty and staff must be logged in on-campus for access to these folders.

Other Resources

• PDA Resource Library
  Books, CDs, DVDs, training manuals and a computer workstation are available in the PDA Resource Library in the Library Mezzanine, Room M-05.
• Free Course Benefit
  For more about the free course benefit for employees, consult the following policy:
  • DEB(LOCAL)
• Professional Development Organizations
  • STARLINK : Professional Development Network for Higher Education
  • Texas Collaborative for Teaching Excellence
  • The North American Council for Staff, Program and Organizational Development (NCSPOD)
  • National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD)
  • Texas Community College Teachers Association (TCCTA)
• Online Educational Journals
  • The Chronicle of Higher Education
  • The National Teaching & Learning Forum
  • THE Journal : Technological Horizons in Education
  • Community College Week

Personal Growth in Wellness

• Health and Fitness at College of the Mainland

Professional Excellence

Recent achievements by COM's faculty and staff:

Pam Millsap, College of the Mainland professor of psychology and chair of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Department, has been awarded the 2011 Association of Community College Trustees Western Regional Outstanding Faculty Member.

Vision, Mission

• Vision : Employees will embrace continual improvement and will actively build a culture of learning at College of the Mainland
• Mission : The Professional Development Academy (PDA) programs of learning will support employees' efforts to improve skills, attitudes, and concepts.

Goals, Plans and Expectations

• Leadership Development Academy Program - Ongoing
• New Employee Orientation Program - Ongoing
• AdjunctSuccess Program - Ongoing
• Distance Learning - Provide training on distance learning issues - Ongoing
• Coordinate and Facilitate In-service workshops each semester
• Identify training needs (group and one-on-one)- Ongoing
• Achieving the Dream - On Course

Instructional Professional Development (IPD) Committee

A Instructional Professional Development (IPD) Committee, whose members consist of faculty, classified and professional staff, assist the Academy in decisions regarding budget funding for professional development travel and implementation of funding guidelines. Herman Trivilino is IPD chair of this committee (x 8109)