In almost any industry, joining a professional association is a wonderful opportunity. In the world of education, associations not only provide support – they provide continuing education for teachers. It’s common for schools to be members of several different educational associations. Some of those associations include: NCEA, ATLIS, NAIS, FCIS, LEA, and many more.
Sycamore Education understands the positive impact these associations have on schools and teachers. In fact, we recently attended the 2022 ATLIS Conference and enjoyed learning about all the new developments and trends for technology leadership in schools.
We’ll explain how to join these associations, the benefits of becoming a member, and the associations we belong to and sponsor at Sycamore Education.
How to Become a Member
For most associations, if the school is a member, that makes each teacher at the school a member as well. This gives teachers the ability to enjoy the benefits provided by the school’s membership. If you’re unsure if your school is a member, make sure to contact your school administrators.
Many associations also require a short list of requirements in order to gain membership. In the application process, a school must demonstrate it meets the mandated requirements in order to be approved. Each association has their own set of requirements. Even if a school doesn’t meet each requirement, they can still likely join the association as a limited member. The NAIS (National Association of Independent Schools), for example, provides two levels of subscriptions for schools that do not meet NAIS membership requirements.
Benefits of Joining an Association
Here’s where the fun begins! Each association has a variety of benefits for schools and teachers to take advantage of. Networking and community are among the strongest benefits. Connecting with peers and educational leaders only helps improve the educational field. Many associations give members the ability to connect with each other across the country to share ideas, challenges, strategies, what’s worked well at their school, and so much more.
Professional development is another significant benefit to joining an association. It’s vitally important, and often mandated, for teachers to have a required number of professional development hours. These hours can be used valuably within an association through the various conferences, workshops, webinars, etc., throughout the school year. Each organization has a wide range of professional development resources. This helps ensure each member of your school’s team has the knowledge and skills they need to continue to succeed.
Sycamore Education’s Associations and Sponsorships
Currently, Sycamore Education is a proud sponsor of ATLIS (Association of Technology Leaders in Independent Schools). ATLIS empowers educators to develop strategies, build relationships, and share best practices in technology and innovation for independent schools. As aforementioned, our sponsorship with ATLIS gave us the opportunity to be a vendor at the ATLIS Conference on May 1-4, 2022. We always look forward to engaging with educational leaders and supporting ATLIS in their mission to keep independent schools connected, empowered, and informed of emerging technological issues and developments.
In addition to our sponsorship with ATLIS, we enjoy attending a multitude of conferences hosted by many associations. Some of those conferences include: NCEA, LEA, FCIS, AACS, LCS, and more. It is a privilege for us at Sycamore Education to connect with teachers, administrators, and staff members at these various conferences, and we are always open to adding additional associations to partner and sponsor in the coming years.
ABOUT SYCAMORE EDUCATION
Sycamore Education’s comprehensive online, all-in-one school management system includes more than 300 powerful, integrated features and tools that keep student data organized and secure, streamline processes, and enhance communications and reporting. With a dedicated support staff and the most affordable pricing on the market, Sycamore has become an industry leader in educational technology and the system behind schools and colleges in over 40 countries. For more information, visit https://sycamoreeducation.com/.
