Sanford College of Education announces Teacher Quality Partnership grant to strengthen the teaching workforce at high-need K-6 schools in southern California
SAN DIEGO, Sept. 30, 2022 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — National University, a veteran-founded nonprofit university serving more than 30,000 working adults and one of the largest providers of teacher credentials in the United States, today announced that its Sanford College of Education has been awarded a $6.5 million U.S. Department of Education Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP) grant to address teacher shortages in Chula Vista, the seventh largest city in Southern California.
Through its five-year project entitled “Advancing Student Progress through an Innovative Residency Experience (ASPIRE)”, National University will establish a teacher residency partnership that will prepare 100 residents to become multiple-subject or single-subject certified teachers in the high-need schools within Chula Vista Elementary School District (CVESD), where teacher attrition remains high.
“Addressing teacher shortages in California and nationally, starts by retaining newly prepared teachers through an adapted medical residency approach in which coursework and clinical experiences are tightly aligned and residents are supported by mentors in the schools where they will likely start their professional career,” said Dr. Robert Lee, Dean of the Sanford College of Education, an expert in educator workforce and teacher quality issues who founded the National Center for Urban Education at Illinois State University earlier in his career. “This program model is an example of how universities can intentionally partner with school districts and community-based organizations to fully immerse teacher candidates into the culture of a school, while providing contextually-situated mentoring for both professional growth and community acculturation.”
The announcement comes at a time when schools of education and teacher preparation programs across the country are working to address teacher shortages. More than two years since the COVID-19 pandemic began, schools and districts throughout the U.S. are grappling with a shortage of well-qualified teachers. California schools are among those that have been hit the hardest, with 80 percent of districts in the state experiencing teacher shortages. With this inaugural TQP program, National University will partner with CVESD, South Bay Family YMCA, and the Chula Vista Community Collaborative to help create a more equitable teacher talent pipeline that reflects the diversity of the children and families the school district serves.
“The Chula Vista Elementary School District supports National University’s mission to prepare exceptional, knowledgeable, skilled, and culturally responsive urban teachers who will be committed to our District,” said Dr. Eduardo Reyes, Superintendent. “As we have developed a new system for enhancing teacher quality through our intensive mentoring and induction, NU’s model for developing a co-teaching residency program will advance our collective work forward. We look forward to the recruitment opportunities ASPIRE will bring by filling our high-need teaching areas with a pool of highly qualified teachers who reflect our community’s diversity. We see this program enhancing our schools and making a strong connection with our community.”
Over the next five years, National University’s Sanford College of Education and the College of Letters and Sciences will collaborate with district and community partners to create an integrated, comprehensive system of teacher recruitment, preparation, and induction with two years of teacher mentoring to support teacher development and retention. By the end of the grant, the program will have prepared 100 teachers with diverse backgrounds to teach in Chula Vista, ensuring that the 2,400 students in this under-resourced district have access to high-quality teachers and inclusive learning…