About PADE
For more information on PADE, click on the links below.

WHO ARE WE?

Founded November 1979, the Pennsylvania Association of Developmental Educators (PADE) is a statewide professional, non-profit, educational organization addressing the needs and interests of developmental educators from every type of postsecondary institution in the state.

Affiliated with the National Association for Developmental Education, PADE is recognized for its leadership in, advocacy for, and nurturing of programs/services for academically underprepared students and other special needs populations served by institutions of higher education. PADE membership is open to anyone interested in developmental education and consists of teachers, counselors, administrators, other educators, and supporters from all types of educational institutions.

PADE is governed by a board of directors with elected representatives from public, private, two-year and four year institutions as well as elected chairpersons from each of its five designated geographic regions. In addition to scheduled meetings of the board of directors, at least one meeting of the full membership is help annually.

WHAT IS OUR MISSION?
The Pennsylvania Association of Developmental Educators is committed to the principle of equal educational opportunity for all persons who have the potential and the desire to achieve in postsecondary education. We seek to promote continuing dialog and collaboration among all persons working in developmental education programs in an effort to affect the development and improvement of support services to the increasingly diverse students enrolled in these institutions.

PADE’s mission within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is three-fold: 1) to serve as the principal voice for developmental education; 2) to enhance the status and understanding of developmental education; 3) to provide for the professional growth and development of administrators, educators, counselors, and others involved with developmental education.

In striving to carry out this mission, the Association engages in a variety of activities, including the following:

a. Research PADE conducts statewide research regarding the students, staffs, operations, and services of developmental programs and shares the data obtained from the research with its membership and other interested parties.

b. Newsletter PADE publishes at regular intervals a newsletter to communicate activities of the Association as well as information and new findings in the discipline.

c. Staff Visitation and Consultation Taking advantage of existing staff expertise, PADE members encourage and support each other through visitations and consultations among programs and institutions.

d. Annual Conference A statewide conference on developmental education, featuring national leaders in the field, is held annually to promote professional growth, to highlight program experimentation and innovation, and to encourage information sharing and discussions on issues of local, state, and national significance to developmental educators.

e. Regional Workshops/Meetings To foster networking, information exchange, and the advancement of the profession, members convene by regions to explore specific issues.

f. Strategic Planning Task forces and special committees are convened periodically for the purpose of developing and evaluating strategic directions for the advancement of developmental education.

g. Political Involvement Collectively and individually, PADE members become proactive with decision makers on issues affecting developmental education through such acts as preparing position papers, communicating directly with decision-makers/vote casters, and monitoring pending and passed legislation or policy actions.

h. Standards/Awards PADE promotes excellence in the profession through its standards for relevant operations, services, or program components; annually educators and programs are recognized based on merit.

WHAT IS DEVELOPMENTAL EDUCATION?
The Association recognizes developmental education as a process to assist underprepared students in overcoming individual barriers to academic success. To that end, PADE supports the implementation of programs and services which encompass the full range of academic and affective skills development, including tutoring, student assistance, counseling, and advising as well as preparatory/remedial classes to complement and supplement curricular instructional offerings. In its best form, developmental education enables students to use communication, mathematical, and problem solving skills across the curriculum to achieve their educational and career goals.

Although all students may benefit from developmental education, the design of these programs and services have unique benefits for certain students, e.g. the academically underprepared, educationally and/or economically disadvantaged, persons of limited English profieciency, and the learning disabled.

WHY IS DEVELOPMENTAL EDUCATION NECESSARY?
Developmental education expands and increases educational opportunities for students, and thus, helps prevent the doors of higher education from becoming revolving or closed to needy populations.

FACT: Nationwide, two-thirds of today’s graduates head directly to college and not all have taken college preparatory courses. The U.S. Department of Education predicts that the number will increase by 12 percent, to 3.1 million, by the end of the decade.

FACT: 21,806 students dropped out of PA high school in 1999-2000. If these students are to seek higher education, most will need the support of developmental services/programs to succeed.

FACT: In increasing numbers, students entering institutions of higher education require the assistance of developmental education programs. Two-thirds of institutions across the nation now assess students’ basic college skills levels. Many of our most prestigious colleges/universities now have developmental programs.

FACT: Students who complete developmental programs often display achievement, persistence, and attitude much higher than would be expected in the absence of such treatment. Graduates are attending law, medical, dental and graduate schools. They are working as accountants, engineers, social workers, military officers, etc.

FACT: Developmental programs increase educational opportunity, access to higher education, student retention, graduation, and employment opportunity for educationally and economically needy students. Higher Education = Higher Earning Potential = Higher Tax Revenues = Less Social Dependency

FACT: Developmental Education is not costly. There are no reports of programs that operate at a loss (Institute for Higher Education Policy, 1998). Retaining a student is less costly than recruiting a new one (Noel-Levitz, 2001).

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT:

Elisa Cohen, PADE President
Harrisburg Area Community College
escohen at hacc.edu