The Education Service Agencies began in South Dakota as a vehicle to better deliver services to schools. In the spring of 2004, seven regional agencies were selected from proposals submitted to the Department of Education. Each agency is responsible for providing services to regional school districts, and serving as a resource for schools. ESA2 Consists of 34 school districts in Southeastern South Dakota. ESA2 stands for Education Service Agency, an organization dedicated to providing school districts with services such as professional development, data analysis, curriculum/standards alignment, and school health. Education Service Agencies also provide assistance in the school improvement process. ESA2 services schools in the southeastern region of South Dakota. ESA2 also manages state funded grants such as Math Counts, and Technology & Assessment. ESA2 Provides professional development for teachers, school administrators and paraprofessionals. ESA2 work collaboratively with their school districts and local businesses to host cutting edge educational lectures and workshops with nationally renowned speakers such as Ed Porthan and Sue Beers. This summer ESA2 will also be offering a New Teacher Bootcamp, which will provide first year teachers (or teachers new to a district) the opportunity to gain the necessary skills and training to make their first years a success. The 2009 training schedule includes workshops such as Instructional Strategies, 6+1 Writing Skills, Curriculum Mapping, Achievement Series, Positive Behavior Interventions and Support (PBIS), Long Range PD Planning, Progress Monitoring and Assessment. By attending a ESA2 regional training event, teachers and school administrators have the unique opportunity to collaborate with their collogues at other districts. Regional training also allows for long term planning of professional development events.