One of PREL's core beliefs is the value of convening professional educators from the Pacific region to provide advice and feedback. This belief is reflected in all of PREL's proposals and programs of work.
In order to inform the quality and rigor of PREL's work, many of PREL's programs utilize Advisory Councils. Advisory Councils are established in accordance with the bylaws of PREL, under the direction of the President and CEO with the consent of the Board of Directors. The Advisory Councils are comprised of regionally, nationally and often internationally renowned experts in their respective fields. The Advisory Council members typically convene with PREL staff to discuss the designated work, and provide critical guidance and review.
PREL's longest standing Advisory Council, the Pacific Curriculum and Instruction Council (PCIC) consists of the Curriculum and Instruction Chiefs from each of the 10 entities PREL serves and from the Federated States of Micronesia national government. These are senior positions, usually directly serving the chief state school officer. The PCIC members are in critically important positions to help coordinate and integrate PREL's programs to maximize their effectiveness and impact. The PCIC is not affiliated with one PREL program, but serves to advise all of PREL. Members are as follows:
The Pacific Higher Education Council (PHEC) was established in 2003 as a way to increase communication between institutions of higher education (IHEs) and PREL. PHEC advises PREL on teacher preparation and professional development. Members consist of presidents, or deans of college of education, from key Pacific IHEs with a teacher education program and are responsible for coordinating and integrating the work of PREL where feasible and appropriate within their institution and community. PHEC typically meets with PREL once each year.
The Regional Educational Laboratory-Pacific (REL-P) has three advisory councils:
(1) The REL-P Reading Advisory Panel (RAP) offers advice to REL-P staff on the planning and implementation of the Pacific Communities with High-performance In Literacy Development (Pacific CHILD), research study in reading comprehension.
Pacific CHILD is 2-year, high-quality initiative that uses researched-based practices appropriate for schools across the Pacific region and beyond to improve the reading achievement of striving readers in upper elementary classrooms, including those who are learning English at the same time as they are learning to read in English. Members are as follows:
Past REL-P RAP Advisory Panel Member
(2) The REL-P Technical Working Group (TWG) is comprised of six nationally renowned experts from throughout the United States who assist in the design and implementation of the Pacific CHILD randomized, experimental design research study. Members are as follows:
(3) REL-P also convenes research and evaluation staff from the Pacific region to participate in a learning and working group called the Research and Evaluation (R&E) Cadre. The Cadre's two main purposes are to: (1) share information on ways to better use data collection and reporting systems to meet each jurisdiction's accountability needs, and (2) provide an efficient and effective way to collect data to support the REL-P's applied research and development projects. The members of the R&E Cadre are data specialists and database administrators from each of the REL-P service areas. Members are as follows:
The Pacific Comprehensive Center's (PCC) Regional Advisory Board (RAB) is charged with advising the PCC Director concerning the activities of the PCC on: (a) strategies for monitoring and addressing the educational needs of the region on an ongoing basis, (b) maintaining a high standard of quality, and (c) carrying out its activities in a manner that promotes progress toward improving student academic achievement. The RAB is made up chief state school officers (CSSOs) in the Pacific region, as well as constituent members, who are nominated by the CSSOs and approved by the respective chief executive, who represent educational interests in the region. The RAB holds its annual meeting in conjunction with the Pacific Educational Conference (PEC) in July and receives regular updates through an electronic newsletter, as well as through discussions in conjunction with the meetings of PREL's Board of Directors. Members are as follows:
Chief State School Officers
Constituent Representatives
JUMP Into Reading for Meaning (JUMP) is a 5-year U.S. Department of Education's Star Schools Program from the Office of Innovation and Improvement that explores the impact of a vocabulary instructional program delivered on the handheld Nintendo DS to struggling readers in grade 4. The project's focus is on the development, delivery, and evaluation of a game-based educational learning environment using emerging mobile technology. Advisory Panel members are as follows:
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