The relationship between research and practice in education, especially in adult education (AE), has generally been tenuous with most educational research focused on K-12 contexts and structured classroom environments that do not directly translate to adult learning contexts. However, the ever-increasing pace of change in the instructional landscape over the last two years has driven the authors, in their professional development (PD) center, to rely heavily on research about how people learn in diverse environments and to respond quickly with approaches and strategies that can be immediately applied to instructional practice. COVID has reshaped the educational landscape, requiring those in the educational enterprise to be flexible and adaptable in how they view learning and the learning environment. The ever-changing demands of the pandemic has instructors and programs constantly shifting how they deliver instruction and how they design programs. As PD providers, Elizabeth Severson-Irby and Kate Rolander have worked to keep pace with these changes while focusing on quality, evidence-based offerings. This article describes how their use of educational research in developing PD has shifted, challenges they face when using and translating research, and suggests future research areas for AE. [For Par 2 of the series, see EJ1353259.]