The Professional Growth and Staff Development Program of the Mehlville School District in St. Louis, Missouri, is comprehensive in nature and has four distinct but complementary components. (1) The districtwide instructional improvement component focuses upon research-based teaching, and provides teachers and administrators with a common body of knowledge and generic skills applicable to instruction. Nationally recognized programs are used for in-house training: Instructional Theory into Practice (ITIP), Teacher Expectations and Student Achievement (TESA), Cooperative Learning, and Project IMPACT. (2) The curriculum/subject area component furnishes district teachers with opportunities to develop curriculum for district programs, to serve on textbook adoption committees, and to attend or present workshops on subject area matter. (3) The building-based component of the program gives recognition to the school as the primary unit of change that brings about educational improvement and places decision-making with the staff. (4) The individual growth component provides support for the professional activities of staff with tuition reimbursement opportunities and other incentives. The needs assessment instrument used to develop this program is appended. (JD)