About professional personnel development center (PPDC)

Director’s Statement

The Pennsylvania system for preparing and developing career and technical education (CTE) professional personnel includes three regional centers located at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, The Pennsylvania State University, and Temple University. Coordinated through the Pennsylvania Department of Education, each center utilizes a "critical mass" of appropriate resources to provide responsive and flexible services to meet the priority staff development needs of career and technical educators within their respective regions of the state.

The Penn State Center, under the Professional Personnel Development Center (PPDC), is dedicated to achieving the following goals:

• Enhancing CTE teachers’ ability to develop valid curricula, employ effective teaching techniques, manage instructional spaces safely, and utilize resources efficiently.
• Supporting CTE administrators and educators in curriculum development and revision to ensure program validity.
• Providing leadership training for CTE administrators to strengthen strategic planning in schools and districts.
• Equipping administrators with supervisory skills to support new and experienced teachers in adopting effective instructional methods.
• Advancing CTE administrators' expertise in managing personnel, budgets, and facilities within local education agencies (LEAs).
• Strengthening the preparation of future CTE educators through dynamic teacher education programs.
• Developing leaders to contribute at local, state, national, and international levels in career and technical education.
• Engaging in initiatives such as Pennsylvania's School-to-Work, Tech Prep, High Schools That Work, Cooperative Education, and Apprenticeship Programs to expand work-based learning opportunities.

About Director

Dr. Mark Threeton, Executive Director of the Professional Personnel Development Center (PPDC) and Professor of Workforce Education and Development at Penn State, is a distinguished career and technical education (CTE) leader with over two decades of experience in research, teaching, and leadership. His work focuses on experiential learning, career development, occupational safety, and instructional innovation, bridging the gap between education and workforce needs. Dr. Threeton has authored over 30 peer-reviewed publications, co-authored multiple books, and secured over $10 million in grant funding to support CTE teacher preparation, curriculum development, and leadership training. As a dedicated mentor, he has chaired over 15 Ph.D. committees and continues to guide emerging scholars in workforce education. 

His leadership extends beyond academia, having served as President of the Association for Career and Technical Education Research (ACTER) and collaborated with major labor organizations such as the United Brotherhood of Carpenters, the Electrical Training Alliance, and the National Job Corps. Through his role at PPDC, Dr. Threeton remains committed to advancing CTE by fostering industry partnerships, enhancing teacher education, and developing workforce training programs that equip professionals with essential skills for today’s dynamic labor market.