Our B.E.S.T. training provides essential knowledge and practical skills to support safe, confident travel. An online module must be completed before the in‑person session, where participants apply key concepts through guided practice.

This training meets the requirement for all licensed childcare and foster care providers who must complete a child passenger safety training program to transport children under age nine. The Basic Education for Safe Travel (B.E.S.T.) Program replaces the former C.A.R.S. Program as the state’s required training. Providers must complete this program every five years to remain compliant with state requirements.

Register below:

Becker County (registration closed)

Cass County (registration closed)

Crow Wing County (registration closed)

Douglas County (registration closed)

Hubbard County >

Morrison County (registration closed)

Todd County (registration closed)

Wadena County (registration closed)

This day of professional development including, a keynote presentation, breakouts, and networking, is dedicated to current topics in the field of early childhood education. Topics presented are relevant for individuals, partners, and teams.

The event will also feature a walkabout session with agencies, partners, and local organizations offering opportunities for early childhood professionals.

The Paraprofessional Conference is a regional conference designed to celebrate and strengthen the essential role of paraprofessionals in today’s schools. This year's conference, with the theme The Power of You, features a NEW interactive format with an inspiring keynote and three breakout sessions that allow participants to personalize their learning. Join us for a day of connection, learning, and empowerment focused on the power and impact of you.

Join us for our annual Sourcewell Family Child Care Conference! This conference offers a valuable opportunity to connect with fellow child care professionals while earning meaningful professional development. Don’t miss this chance to learn and grow in your child care career.

Beyond NTA is designed to support teachers in years 2, 3, and beyond. The sessions will be structured around standards, procedures, and fostering collaboration with other regional teachers. There will be 4 professional development days at Sourcewell and 3 individual coaching days in their classroom. Content will be presented, collaboratively discussed and applied to lesson planning for use in their classrooms. Attendees will have the opportunity to take Catalyst Whole Group Classroom Leadership Day 1 and attend Catalyst Live.

The Beyond Special Education New Teacher Academy is designed to enhance the fundamental classroom practices of novice special education teachers. The Beyond Special Education New Teacher Academy includes four professional development sessions focused on classroom practices. Session topics include High Leverage Practices, Catalyst Foundations, and classroom management strategies. In addition to professional development, support throughout the year includes four individual in-classroom coaching sessions.

This cohort is for districts who are participating in the Career Consultant program. District identified career committees will attend to engage in professional learning, collaboration, and program planning. Development of career pathways is based on the nationally recognized Redefining Ready metrics and professional learning will include outside expertise and exemplars to guide district teams in design.

The New Teacher Academy is designed to increase confidence and capacity in novice educators by combining relevant training with growth-focused coaching support. Support throughout the year includes five full-day trainings at Sourcewell, four individual in-classroom coaching sessions, Catalyst Whole Group Leadership, and Catalyst Live.

The Special Education New Teacher Academy is designed to enhance the fundamental due process skills of novice special education teachers. Sessions will include collaborative, interactive content, opportunities to network, and include due process application time within each session. Support throughout the year includes six full day trainings at Sourcewell.

Sourcewell will offer a Special Education Licensure via Portfolio Cohort for the 2026–2027 school year, beginning with a kickoff event on October 7, 2026.

Licensure via portfolio provides a non-traditional pathway to teacher licensure in Minnesota. Through this process, educators may obtain a Tier 3 license or add an additional licensure area by successfully demonstrating competency in the Minnesota Teaching Standards. Participants develop a curated collection of professional evidence, or artifacts, that reflect their instructional knowledge and practice. Each artifact is paired with written reasoning statements that clearly explain how the evidence meets the depth and breadth of the applicable teaching standards.

This cohort is designed to guide participants through the portfolio process by offering structured support, clarity around requirements, and opportunities for reflection and feedback. Educators will leave with stronger portfolios and increased confidence navigating the licensure pathway.

View Special Education Licensure via Portfolio Cohort flyer >

The Special Education Academy Plus-New Teacher Academy is designed to enhance the fundamental classroom practices of novice special education teachers. The Special Education Academy Plus includes two professional development sessions focused on application of due process and classroom practices. In addition to professional development sessions, support throughout the year includes eight individual in-classroom coaching sessions. The Special Education Academy Plus focuses on the individual participant’s needs.

Day one, we discuss the legal and liability issues inherent to this subject, including negligent hiring, discrimination issues under state and federal law, Minnesota statutes, and related topics.

Day two focuses on use of the background questionnaire, releases and authorizations, writing the report and using the data practices act and other sources to conduct a sound and legally defensible background process.

This course is designed for any person who hires, manages, or supports law enforcement personnel, whether, full-time, part-time or volunteer. This class is very appropriate for LE, HR, County Administration, or County Attorneys. 

Register directly on the MSA website. View event flyer >

This event is offered in partnership with the Initiative Foundation.

Strong nonprofit organizations are supported by engaged and effective boards. Organizational leadership & board members play critical roles in ensuring boards provide strategic leadership, ensure financial stewardship, strengthen community relationships, and support the organization’s mission.

This training is designed to help organizational leadership & board members better understand their leadership roles and provide practical tools that strengthen board engagement, governance, and organizational impact.

The session will be interactive and discussion-based, allowing organizational leadership & board members to reflect on their responsibilities, share perspectives, and identify specific actions that will strengthen the effectiveness of their board moving forward.

The training will focus on helping nonprofit leadership & board members:

• Understand the core roles and responsibilities of nonprofit board leadership


• Clarify the difference between governance and management


• Strengthen board engagement and accountability


• Understand the board’s role in fundraising and community advocacy


• Improve the board’s ability to think strategically about the future of the organization


• Identify practical steps to strengthen board effectiveness

This session is supported in part through funding from ServeMinnesota and AmeriCorps.

Sourcewell strives to bring the highest-quality resources, information, and training opportunities to our members. We’re honored to team up with the Initiative Foundation to bring this opportunity to our central Minnesota region. 

This two-day training integrates FEMA's foundational principles with procurement compliance, explicitly designed for local government staff responsible for purchasing or working with suppliers, as well as their local emergency managers. Participants will learn best practices on how to establish, operate, and manage an Emergency Operations Center (EOC), ensuring alignment with FEMA’s Incident Command System (ICS) and federal procurement standards. This training will provide hands-on experience and actionable strategies to strengthen emergency preparedness while maintaining compliance with FEMA’s procurement requirements.

This Catalyst Coaching professional development is geared for instructional coaches, mentors and administrators. The session will provide strategies for effective coaching and communication when working with adults.

Learn key strategies for keeping more students in the room more of the time. There are times when students have needs or behaviors that make it tricky to keep them in the general education setting, while keeping them and the rest of the class focused on learning.

At the core of strong classroom management is how the adults manage themselves. In this class, participants learn strategies (based on observations and field-testing in more than 50,000 classrooms) that allow them to strengthen relationships, increase equity, reduce frustration, and foster independence in the classroom.

From one-time efforts to year-round momentum, too many organizations rely on bursts of energy like giving days, year-end pushes, last-minute appeals without the systems to support them.

It is important to shift the focus from urgency to sustainability. This session emphasizes practical systems, clear goal-setting, and repeatable processes that reduce burnout and increase consistency.

This training is provided in partnership with the Initiative Foundation.

This dynamic workshop prepares 911 call-takers and dispatchers to recognize, respond to, and refer callers experiencing suicidal ideation, depression, domestic violence, hostage situations, barricaded suspect events, and other crisis scenarios. Participants will learn practical communication strategies, terms to use or avoid with volatile callers, and techniques that support responder safety and successful outcomes. The course also addresses suicide-by-cop indicators, the dispatcher’s critical role in gathering information, and the unique needs of vulnerable populations, including veterans. Through role-playing and realistic call-taking scenarios, attendees will build confidence using the AEP Crisis Communications Toolbox to transition effectively between caregiver, information gatherer, and tactical response dispatcher.

The Minnesota Service Cooperatives have collaborated to bring you a virtual, asynchronous option to meeting your Cultural Competency licensure requirement. This course provides video learning, personal reflection time, an opportunity to hear from educators in the field, and many additional resources to explore as you continue your journey to be an even more culturally competent educator.

Educator Networks offer a space for educators to celebrate their successes, engage in meaningful connections, and foster camaraderie. By actively collaborating across districts and engaging in intentional reflection, participants strengthen their skills, share innovative ideas, and problem-solve together. This community empowers educators to thrive in their unique roles, build lasting professional relationships, and support student success.

Available networks: 

• Activities Directors


• Arts (Visual and Music)


• Career and Technical Education


• Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources (AFNR)


• Business and Marketing (B&M)


• Family and Consumer Science (FCS)


• Work-Based Learning (WBL)


• Climate and Culture


• Community Education


• Data and Assessment Coordination (DAC)


• Dean of Students/AP


• Early Childhood Leader


• Early Childhood Teacher


• Early Childhood Partnership


• English Language Arts


• Instructional Coaching


• Language Access


• Library Media


• Math (+ COMPASS)


• Multilingual Learners/English Learners (ML/EL)


• NextPath


• Physical Education and Health


• School Counselor and Student Support Professionals


• School Nurse's Community of Practice


• Science


• Social Studies


• Speech-Language Pathology and Assistants (SLP/SLPA)


• STEM


• Teaching and Learning


• Title I


• World Language

This on-demand course will define formative assessment and explore the benefits of utilization. Participants will learn about various formative assessment techniques for both virtual and in-person learning, and will leave the session ready to implement and achieve some formative assessment quick wins.

Using formative assessments regularly and consistently can give both educators and learners an even clearer picture around what learners know. Formative assessments also provide educators with a guide to developing learning experiences and lesson planning that can meet the needs of all learners. By using formative assessments with purpose, educators can maximize student learning and increase the effectiveness of their lesson design and delivery.

The Foundational Skills (for short-call subs): Learn the most impactful strategies to successfully engage students while also helping the adults save their energy. Based on the ongoing applied research in over 50,000 classrooms and school settings, The Catalyst Approach is committed to finding relevant and practical solutions to the most common school challenges. This course introduces the roots of The Catalyst Approach and the 12 Foundational Skills to help every adult working with students know where to focus their efforts. Hopefully you’ll finish the course with a renewed sense of hope, joy, and confidence in your work.

The Foundational Skills (for student teachers): Learn the most impactful strategies to successfully engage students while also helping the adults save their energy. Based on the ongoing applied research in over 50,000 classrooms and school settings, The Catalyst Approach is committed to finding relevant and practical solutions to the most common school challenges. This course introduces the roots of The Catalyst Approach and the 12 Foundational Skills to help every adult working with students know where to focus their efforts. Hopefully you’ll finish the course with a renewed sense of hope, joy, and confidence in your work.

Quick Start to Coaching Adult Learners (for those mentoring teachers): Gain insights about the important role of mentoring adult learners. Whether you’re working with a student teacher, a new colleague, or a school leader who supports ongoing professional development for teachers, the strategies in this brief learning experience will sharpen your mentoring skills. Even if you have previous experience in this kind of role, you’ll get to reflect and refine your skills to gain confidence and make your work even more effective!

This webinar will identify elements of differentiation and explore differentiation strategies such as questioning, grouping, and choice. Use these strategies to meet both support and challenge needs of your diverse students.

Led by a mental health professional and educator, this webinar will cover key facts about children's mental health, early warning signs of mental health disorders, and signs and symptoms of childhood suicide. Discussion will include strategies for how to respond and how to access help for students.