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Note: All open conference registrations will be found on the home page as teal buttons under the slideshow.

NDCEL Conference Descriptions

NDCEL Fall Conference

NDCEL's largest conference invites school leaders, administrators, teachers, instructional staff, counselors, social workers, Title1, or special education personnel. We are striving to provide national quality professional development tailored to North Dakota's educators.

Attendees experience engaging breakout sessions, exhilarating keynotes, grad credit opportunity, relevant discussion and information of the education field, and career-advancing networking.

NDCEL Summer Conference

Professional Development brought to our members at a time when life isn't as hectic, Summer! It is a great get-together after the school year to learn and unwind with fellow educational leaders. This conference is filled with professional development and fun. This conference holds a well-attended golf tournament for the attendees with exhibitors at each golf hole and a steak fry to follow.

NDASA Affiliate Conference - Mid-Winter

A conference tailored for North Dakota's school administrators. This event provides a deep dive into their job description, an opportunity for attendees to network, receive professional development specifically for their career track, solve issues as a collective, and have community in their work. Many of the decision-makers in a school will be together to help navigate the waters of what it means to be a school leader.

NDAESP Affiliate Conference - Mid-Winter

A conference tailored for North Dakota's elementary school principals. This event provides a deep dive into their job description, an opportunity for attendees to network, receive professional development specifically for their career track, solve issues as a collective, and have community in their work. Elementary principals take pride in contests and personalization of their conference. Theme days are encouraged by the region that plans the conference activities for the year.

NDASSP Affiliate Conference - Mid-Winter

A conference tailored for North Dakota's secondary school principals. This event provides a deep dive into their job description, an opportunity for attendees to network, receive professional development specifically for their career track, solve issues as a collective, and have community in their work. Secondary principals know that it takes a team to accomplish goals. They take networking and strategic planning seriously with their conferences.

NDATL (Formerly Face-2-Face)

North Dakota Association of Technology Leaders is committed to the improvement of education through the use of technology. With membership totaling over 250 and conference attendance over 200, NDATL invites you to join us as we push the boundaries of education by harnessing the power of technology to advance learning and teaching!

NDIAAA Spring Conference

This event includes a strong lineup of Leadership Training Courses, breakout sessions, general meetings, conference social, awards banquet dinner. 

The NDIAAA is committed to providing professional growth opportunities to its membership. We do this through the NIAAA Leadership Training Program which can lead to NIAAA Certification as an athletic administrator. This program provides the opportunity to attain certification as an RAA, CAA or/and CMAA if you complete the course work and meet other criteria. By earning this certification, $1,000,000 of additional personal liability insurance will be available to you through the NIAAA at no charge. You may also have the opportunity for increased salary, depending on your school district policy. As of the spring of 2012, the NDIAAA/NIAAA workshops and conferences, if you take at least one LTI course and attend the workshop or conference, will qualify to count as a workshop as part of the administrative credential renewal process through DPI. For more information on the Leadership Training Program please contact Jason Wiberg or Chad Berger

NDCEL Superintendent Mastery Roundtable

This training is for every superintendent – not just new(er)! Get the information you need and the conversations you need MORE! Still, all the information you need on budget, but now in-depth small group conversations on some of the most critical components of your job. ALL superintendents will want to ensure their attendance!

NDCEL Principal Boot Camp

Breakouts, EdCamp discussions, learning from experienced Principals. We heard from MANY that being out of the building at that time in early August is so difficult for all principals. Also – if you are new…sometimes you just don’t know what you don’t know yet…getting a couple of weeks under your belt and THEN coming together to learn is a better fit. Taking on a more conversational and collegial feel – the networking and knowledge provided on this day is exactly what the doctor ordered!

PLC Summit

Professional Learning Community Summit. Facilitated by Solution Tree Associate and PLC Master Coach Dr. Jason Andrews, day one will focus on providing teams with tools to produce highly effective collaborative teams engaged deeply in the PLC at WorkⓇ process. Special attention will be paid to meaningful collaboration for small schools and singletons.

Innovation Academy

The training is impactful and sustained over a seven-day curriculum focused on four “Big Shifts” that deeper learning schools make: Higher Level Thinking; Student Agency; Authentic Work; and Technology Infusion.”  

The North Dakota Innovation Academy curriculum will be tailored to the needs of North Dakota educators and will equip participants to access resources and begin immediately making small steps that can lead to big change, as well as planning for long-term system change.  Examples of immediate, usable resources include the Innovation Playlist, and The Cutting Ed blogs, or learning from schools across the country through study of Ted Dintersmith’s book, What Schools Could Be.  In depth study of ten building blocks for achieving the four major shifts will include project and inquiry-based learning, competency-based and standards-based grading, expansion of digital and online information resources as well as 1:1 computing initiatives.

Each district can register teams made of up to 5 participants

Crucial Conversations

Crucial Conversations is a 2-day workshop that has been very popular for school and district administrators. In this workshop participants will be given some more tools for their toolbox on how to have conversations when the stakes are high. Having these tools will improve dialogue and engagement, create behavior changes, and help build high performance and culture.

Crucial Accountability

Just like Crucial Conversations, Crucial Accountability is a 2-day workshop that has been extremely popular with school and district administrators. This workshop builds on the topics from Crucial Conversations and takes them to the next level. However, you do not have to attend Crucial Conversations before you take Crucial Accountability. Participants will learn skills that can be utilized in a step-by-step process to hold others accountable, improve performance, and ensure execution. Learn how to have those difficult conversations when someone does not do what is expected on them and have them change their behavior.

Aspiring Principal's Conference

Have you ever thought about becoming a principal? Come to the NDCEL Aspiring Principal's Conference for networking and to have all your questions answered. This conference will begin your journey and point you in the right direction! Prior NDCEL membership is not required for this conference. Attendance also comes with a 1 year “aspiring leader” membership to NDCEL which entitles you to an additional broad range of benefits. Go here for benefits.

At this one-day seminar, we will be discussing great topics such as:

  • Characteristics of quality schools and effective school leaders

  • What it’s like to be a principal

  • Participate in panel sessions specific to the Elementary/Middle/or Secondary Schools

  • Preparing for school leadership

  • The professional and credential requirements

  • Educational Leadership Degree program options

  • Magnetic Leadership

Instructional Leadership

This 6 day program (now revamped into a 3 day program) was established by Dr. Ed Porthan and updated by Dr. Marv Erhardt and Dr. Jim Stenehjem. We are now on the 4th edition that contains numerous updates on brain research. This program has been utilized by numerous North Dakota administrators over the years. We were at a point when most of all the administrators had taken the course, so we did not offer it for a few years. Now we are at a point with a lot of new administrators who have not had the option of taking this valuable course, so we have put it back into the lineup. If you are interested or if you know someone who would be interested in getting the best of what we currently know about effective instruction, effective learning, and effective school leadership this is the course for you! This program consists of 3 two day training sessions. This is the course that takes the theory that was learned in graduate school and helps you APPLY it in your current role as an administrator.

Title IX Training

NDCEL brings in a lawyer to educate on the basis and updates of Title IX to ensure that “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”

Student Conferences:

Honor Society Conference

NDSAA - North Dakota Student Activities Association - Honor Society Conference for the high school students (approximately 9-12 grades). At this engaging event, students campaign to be state council representatives, participate in leadership breakouts, and are inspired by quality keynotes.

NDSAA-Middle Level Student Council Conference

NDSAA - North Dakota Student Activities Association - Student Council Conference for the junior high students (approximately 6-8 grades). At this engaging event, students campaign to be state council representatives and participate in leadership breakouts, and are inspired by quality keynotes.

Student Council Conference

NDSAA - North Dakota Student Activities Association - Student Council Conference for the high school students (approximately 9-12 grades). At this engaging event, students campaign to be state council representatives, participate in leadership breakouts, and are inspired by quality keynotes.

Here's to life-long learning and growing every step of the way.

NDCEL & Affiliates Conference Dates and Locations

NDCEL Fall Conference
Oct. 16-18, 2024 - Event Center, Bismarck
Oct. 15-17, 2025 - Event Center, Bismarck

NDCEL Summer Conference
June 18-20, 2024 - Legacy High School, Bismarck
June 17-19, 2025
June 16-18 or 23-25, 2026

NDASA Affiliate Conference (https://www.ndcel.us/page/ndasa)
January 26-28, 2025 - Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck
January 25-27, 2026 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck
January 24-26, 2027 - Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck
January 23-25, 2028 - Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck
January 28-30, 2029 - Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck
January 27-29, 2030 - Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck

NDAESP Affiliate Conference (https://www.ndcel.us/page/ndaesp)
February 5-7, 2025 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck - Joint with NDASSP
February 4-6, 2026 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck
February 3-5, 2027 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck
February 2-4, 2028 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck
February 7-9, 2029 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck
February 6-8, 2030 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck

NDASSP Affiliate Conference (https://www.ndcel.us/page/ndassp)
February 5-7, 2025 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck -
Joint with NDAESP
March 25-27, 2023 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck


NDATL (Formerly Face-2-Face) (www.ndatl.k12.nd.us)
October 14-15, 2024 - Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck
October 13-14, 2025 - Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck

NDCEL Superintendent Mastery Roundtable
August 13, 2024 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck
August 5-7, 2025 - Radisson Hotel, Bismarck

Honor Society Conference
April 21-22, 2024 - 
Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck
April 27-28, 2025 - 
Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck

Middle-Level Student Council Conference
April 22-23, 2024 - 
Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck
April 28-29, 2025 - 
Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck

Student Council State Conference
December 8-10, 2024 - 
Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck
December 7-9, 2025 - 
Bismarck Hotel and Conference Center, Bismarck

PLC Summit
No scheduled dates

Innovation Academy
November 1, 2023 - Career Academy, Bismarck
November 29, 2023 - Career Academy, Bismarck
January 10, 2024 - Career Academy, Bismarck
February 14, 2024 - Career Academy, Bismarck
March 13, 2024 - Career Academy, Bismarck
April 3, 2024 - Career Academy, Bismarck
April 24, 2024 - Career Academy, Bismarck

AASA Convention (www.aasa.org)

NASSP Convention (www.nassp.org)

NAESP Convention (www.naesp.org)