ExCEL Monthly Professional Development Offerings
The ExCEL team works in collaboration with SFUSD staff and community partners to offer a menu of Professional Development opportunities for After School program staff and volunteers.
ExCEL Professional Development SY25-26 Link to this section
ExCEL PDs At-A-Glance: Fall 2025 / January 2026
ExCEL PD Calendar for SY25-26 - with links to RSVP forms & agendas.
Date & Time | Title | Location | Presenter(s) |
| August 7, 2025 9A-12P | Mandated Reporter Training | Zoom | Brianna Green Safe & Sound |
| September 5, 2025 9A-12P | Title IX, Adult/Student Boundaries, Bullying and Harassment Training | Zoom | Eva Kellogg, SFUSD Office of Equity & Stephanie Bealby, SFUSD Employee Relations |
| By September 30, 2025 | Incident Protocol Training Staff must complete the asynchronous training & test by September 30th. | Asynchronous and Virtual | Find the training materials and online test in the ExCEL PD Calendar. |
| October 2, 2025 9A-4P | Youth Mental Health First Aid Training Pre-work required. | 1515 Quintara St. SF, CA 94116 | Verma Zapanta, Mental Health First Aid Instructor |
| October 9, 2025 10A-12P | Building Sanctuary | 1515 Quintara St. SF, CA 94116 | Angelina Romano, SFUSD Refugee and Immigrant Solidarity in Education (RISE-SF) |
| November 6, 2025 10A-12P | Activating the SFUSD Wellness Policy After School | 1515 Quintara St. SF, CA 94116 | Saeeda Hafiz, SFUSD Wellness & Health Education |
| November 7, 2025 9A-4P | Youth Mental Health First Aid Training Pre-work required. | 1515 Quintara St. SF, CA 94116 | Verma Zapanta, Mental Health First Aid Instructor |
| December 4, 2025 10A-12P | Bridging the Gap: Nurturing TK Students in our ExCEL Programs | 1515 Quintara St. SF, CA 94116 | Barbara Johnck & Deborah Li, SFUSD Early Education |
| January 8, 2026 10A-12P | Special Education: Supporting Diverse Needs | 1515 Quintara St. SF, CA 94116 | Amanda Barnett, SFUSD Special Education |
| January 9, 2026 9A-4P | Youth Mental Health First Aid Training Pre-work required. | 1515 Quintara St. SF, CA 94116 | Verma Zapanta, Mental Health First Aid Instructor |
ExCEL STEAM Sessions SY25-26 Link to this section
STEAM Series At-A-Glance
All sessions are facilitated by Vanessa Carter, SFUSD / ExCEL's STEAM Program Administrator & Carolyn Gencarella, SF State University Graduate School of Education. For any questions, contact carterv@sfusd.edu.
New this year: STEAM Office Hours & Lesson Development Support! Link to this section
See the full ExCEL PD Calendar to find more details & RSVP for these offerings.
IN PERSON STEAM SESSIONS
Date & Time | Title | Location |
| September 11, 2025 10A-12P | Session 1 - Exploring Outside: Seeds & Cycles | College Hill Learning Garden RSVP closed |
| October 23, 2025 10A-12P | Session 2 - Watersheds: Where does the water go? | College Hill Learning Garden |
| December 4, 2025 10A-12P | Session 3 - Managing Waste: Worm Bins & More | Crissy Field Center |
| January 22, 2026 10A-12P | Session 4 - Energy Conservation: Engineering 101 | Exploratorium |
| February 12, 2026 10A-12P | Session 5 - Schoolyard Mapping with Digital Tools | Exploratorium |
| March 12, 2026 10A-12P | Session 6 - Solar Ovens & Food Webs | Heron's Head |
| April 23, 2026 10A-12P | Session 7 - Welcoming Spring: Birds, Bubbles, & More | Heron's Head |
| May 14, 2026 10A-12P | Session 8 - Wind Energy: Kites revisited! | Crissy Field Center |
VIRTUAL STEAM SESSIONS
Date & Time | Title | Location |
| September 25, 2025 10A-12P | Session A - Exploring Online STEAM Curriculum Resources | RSVP closed |
| October 2, 2025 10A-12P | Session B - Cornell Lab of Ornithology | RSVP closed |
| November 6, 2025 10A-12P | Session C - Cornell Lab of Ornithology | |
| January 8, 2026 10A-12P | Session D - EcoRise Lesson and Unit Planning | |
| February 5, 2026 10A-12P | Session E - Lesson and Unit Planning | |
| March 5, 2026 10A-12P | Session F - Climate Action Youth Summit Preparation & Lesson Planning | |
| April 9, 2026 10A-12P | Session G - Planning for Climate Week & Lesson Planning | |
| May 7, 2026 10A-12P | Session H - Planning for Summer Sessions |
Region 4 Expanded Learning Resources
Link to this section
San Francisco is served by CDE's Region 4.
Coming soon: Optional, additional professional development opportunities during school year 2025-26!
Region 4 Resources during SY24-25
Join the Region 4 STEAM Hub Community of Practice
- Join Region 4 expanded learning site coordinators in a community-of-practice for improving the quality and quantity of STEAM learning opportunities addressing ethnic and gender gaps in the STEAM field.
New and Emerging Site Coordinator Series for Expanded Learning
- New and emerging expanded learning site coordinators interested in building supervisory, managerial and coaching skills can register for this 4-part Level-A series designed to improve high-quality programming through leadership basics.
Site Coordinator Network
- Expanded learning site coordinators are invited to attend the Region 4 Expanded Learning Programs Site Coordinator Network. This is an opportunity to build your professional capacity and discuss issues that are specific to the role of the site coordinator.
This page was last updated on December 2, 2025