Buffalo State IPDP cohort heads to Chile, includes partner school administrators for the first time

The SUNY Buffalo State Professional Development Partnerships (PDP) began in 1991 with one school partner. Today, Buffalo State maintains relationships with over 100 school and community partners across Western New York, New York City, Maine, and-through the Michael and Nancy Chicola International Professional Development Partnerships Consortium (IPDP)-across five continents.

Buffalo State's PDPs are innovative collaborations between teacher education programs and pre-K-12 schools. The goal of PDP is to develop mutually beneficial partnerships that leverage the resources of both the university and schools/community agencies to recruit, educate, retain, and support high quality educators and serve the needs of P-12 learners.

"When our students go into schools and work in classrooms, they're adding value to those classrooms while gaining authentic experiences working in schools with real teachers, children, and curriculum," said Pixita del Prado Hill, director of PDP and professor in the Elementary Education, Literacy, and Educational Leadership Department. "Our students are helping to support learning in the classroom and, because of that, the children and administration benefit. Our teacher education faculty go into the field with our students, which gives the faculty an understanding of the current context of education, thereby deepening the partnerships. It's valuable for everybody."

In recent years, the local interests of Buffalo and Western New York have become global as the number of newcomer children enrolling in schools has increased and the number of languages spoken has risen significantly. In 2012, Buffalo State responded to this shift with the creation of IPDP, designed to provide teacher candidates, school partners, and teacher education faculty with opportunities for short-term, faculty-led, study away programs to expand understanding, explore language learning, and compare educational systems.

"We value the opportunity for our teacher candidates to get a more global understanding of what teaching and learning looks like," said Angela Patti, professor in the Exceptional Education Department. "We talk about intercultural competency and humility, so they're aware of the different components that make up culture, think about their own culture, study that of others, and engage in intercultural conversations with openness and respect. Another goal is to expose our students to other languages, so they can examine and think about what it might be like for students they're instructing for whom English is not their first language."

Members of the 2025 Buffalo State IPDP Chile cohort pose in front of a landmark sign in Santiago.

"All of the things that are true about the local PDP-that we value partnership and are looking to recruit, educate, and retain high quality teachers-are true internationally," del Prado Hill added. "It adds a really exciting element to that."

IPDP, originally known as IPDS (International Professional Development Schools) includes short-term study away programs for teacher candidates, student teachers, and experienced educators working with children and youth, as well as virtual connections. Participants are placed in international schools or community centers to engage in immersive teaching and learning initiatives, build personal and professional relationships with colleagues from different backgrounds, and develop the knowledge, skills, and experiences necessary for effective, globally minded practice.

The IPDP Chile Program is one of IPDP's oldest programs. Originally, the program included undergraduate and graduate students, but this year, leaders from partner schools have been invited to participate. Area administrators and current student teachers and faculty members from Buffalo State and Universidad San Sebastián (USS) will have the opportunity to learn from one another, both virtually and through study and service exchange activities. Buffalo State participants will travel to Chile every other April for 10 days while Chilean teacher candidates and faculty travel to Buffalo every other February for two weeks.

"It's not just that we learn a lot by going to visit; the beautiful thing about the exchange is that they help us see our own context differently, too," Patti said. "When the Chilean visitors were here, relationships started that they can now build on."

"It was an honor to meet the teachers, school leaders, and students who so generously opened their classrooms and communities to us, welcoming us like family," said USS partner Francisco Barrales Gómez, who led the recent USS cohort to Buffalo. "Our future English teachers return to Chile with sharper pedagogy, deeper empathy, and a more socio-educationally grounded understanding of schools and the lives they serve. For me as an academic, IPDP embodies internationalization at its best: real professional learning built on shared practice, reflection, and reciprocal growth."

The 2026 USS cohort visits Niagara Falls during their recent stay.

Buffalo State will travel to Chile from April 2-12. The cohort of 9 comprises faculty, current teacher candidates, and local educators and administrators. While in Chile, the group will visit schools, explore language learning, engage with university partner USS, and participate in cultural activities to build understanding.

"I am eager to gain insights into the country's comprehensive educational landscape, from early childhood development through teacher education programs," said participant Molly Marcinelli, elementary school principal at PDP partner Como Park Elementary School. "Experiencing different cultures holds immense significance. These international experiences are crucial for fostering a more compassionate and open global community."

"This experience represents a promise I once had to pause; it's a symbol of perseverance through an unexpected season of loss," added Dottie Candelario, a senior special education and childhood education major. "I hope this experience expands my worldview, strengthens my voice, and reminds me that growth is still possible, regardless of the time that has passed."

While in Chile, participants document their experiences through online blogs, which are publicly available here.

Nancy Chicola, associate professor emeritus and IPDP benefactor, summarized: "The results of several years of planning and implementation of IPDP reveal the efficacy of these unique and varied experiences in influencing participants roles as exceptional educators with global perspectives, intercultural competencies and humility."

If you would like to support the Chile cohort or future teacher candidates looking to participate in IPDP, you can do so by visiting the website. (Choose "I want to support - School, Department, or Other" and indicate "IPDS Support Fund #312286" in the comment box.)

Top image: The 2026 Buffalo State and USS cohorts together during the February 2026 visit; Nancy Chicola in the center.

Photos courtesy USS and Buffalo State IPDP.