Education Secretary Duncan Announces $43 Million in Grants to Improve Teaching in High-Need Schools
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U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan today announced the award of $43 million for 28 new five-year Teacher Quality Partnership grants to improve instruction in struggling schools. These grants will be used to reform traditional university teacher preparation and teacher residency programs.
“The Obama Administration is committed to giving teachers the support they need to succeed in the classroom,” Secretary Duncan said. “The Teacher Quality Partnership grants will improve student academic achievement by strengthening teacher preparation, training and effectiveness and help school districts attract potential educators from a wide-range of professional backgrounds into the teaching profession.”
The partnerships include high-need school districts, their high-need schools, institutions of higher education and their colleges or departments of education, arts and sciences. It is a unique collaboration of the key stakeholders to improve the quality of teaching in public elementary and secondary schools where children are in greatest need of support to accelerate their learning.
Research shows that teacher quality is the most important factor in improving student achievement. As part of the Administration's efforts to engage, support, and grow the pool of talented teachers, Secretary Duncan will participate in three teacher education events planned for the month of October:
- On October 9, he will speak to students studying to be teachers at the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education in Charlottesville, Va.;
- On October 20, he will host a virtual town hall meeting with teachers from throughout the nation on the Department's monthly television program “Education News You Can Use”; and
- On October 22, he will deliver a major address on teacher preparation at the Columbia University Teachers College in New York.
Through an additional $100 million provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), a second slate of Teacher Quality Partnership grants will be announced early in 2010.
Of the grants announced today, nine will focus on reforming traditional university teacher preparation programs, 12 will focus on creating teaching residency programs, and seven will focus on both. The teaching residency programs follow a medical model in which residents are placed in schools with extensive induction and support. All programs include rigorous candidate selection criteria, a commitment to recruiting candidates from diverse populations, and extensive and ongoing support for teacher candidates. Teaching residents are paid a living wage and expected to teach for three years in the partnering high-need schools.
The Improving Teacher Quality State Grants under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act offer some $2.9 billion in formula grants to states as a major source of flexible funds to help states and school districts strengthen the skills of the teaching force, meet the highly qualified teacher requirements, and ensure qualified teachers are placed in high-need, underserved classrooms.
“Highly effective teaching is crucial to student success,” Secretary Duncan said. “These grants offer an opportunity to develop new models for how teachers are prepared and supported. They will create and implement a variety of pathways, including the teaching residency model, to bring talented individuals in to the classroom. This investment will reap long-term benefits for schools and children.”
A list of grantees follows, alphabetical by state, and includes program name, director, and first-year funding amount.
Arizona State UniversityTempe, Arizona; $6,724,699.64
Project Name: Teacher Advancement Program
Project Director: Scott RidleyCalifornia State UniversityBakersfield; $2,472,170.64
Project Name: CA Partnership for Teacher Quality Programs
Project Director: Curtis GuaglianoneCalifornia State UniversityChico; $1,141,959.64
Project Name: Collaboration for Student Achievement in Rural Schools
Project Director: Phyllis FernlundCalifornia State UniversityDominquez Hills; $748,991.64
Project Name: Urban Teacher Residency Program
Project Director: Sharon RussellCalifornia State UniversityLos Angeles; $1,725,796.64
Project Name: Los Angeles Urban Teacher Residency Program
Project Director: Diane HaagarRegents of the University of CALos Angeles; $1,874,789.64
Project Name: Urban Teacher Residency Program
Project Director: Karen Hunter-QuartzGeorgia State UniversityAtlanta; $2,073,381.64
Project Name: Network for Enhancing Teaching Quality
Project Director: Gwen BensonKennesaw State UniversityMarietta, Georgia; $1,178,382.64
Project Name: Pre-Baccalaureate Program Reform
Project Director: Steve ConstantinoBoard of Trustee of the University of IllinoisChicago; $2,968,478.64
Project Name: Chicago Teacher Pipeline Partnership
Project Director: Ginger ReynoldsIllinois State UniversityNormal; $1,781,907.64
Project Name: TEACHER+PLUS Project
Project Director: Robert LeeNational Louis UniversityChicago, Illinois; $2,954,312.64
Project Name: Teaching Residency Program
Project Director: Michael WhitmoreTrustees of Indiana UniversityBloomington, Indiana; $539,349.64
Project Name: Urban Education Excellence: STEM Teaching Residency with Dual Licensure in Special Education
Project Director: Jean MercerMidAmerica Nazarene UniversityOlathe, Kansas; $1,830,803.64
Project Name: Preparing Educators for Rural Kansas
Project Director: Linda AlexanderWichita State UniversityKansas; $1,087,845.64
Project Name: Urban Teacher Preparation Program
Project Director: Sharon Hartin IorioWestern Kentucky UniversityBowling Green, Kentucky; $821,643.64
Project Name: GSKyTeach
Project Director: Roger PankratzLouisiana State University & A&M CollegeBaton Rouge; $1,054,388.14
Project Name: Central Louisiana Academic Residency For Teachers
Project Director: Gary ByerlyUniversity of MissouriKansas City; $668,870.64
Project Name: Project CAUSE
Project Director: Jennifer WaddellMontclair State UniversityNew Jersey; $674,473.64
Project Name: Teaching Residency Program
Project Director: Rosemary SteinbaumWilliam Patterson UniversityWayne, New Jersey; $1,733,003.64
Project Name: The Garden State Partnership For Teacher Quality
Project Director: AnaMaria SchuhmannBard CollegeAnnandale-on-Hudson, New York; $710,320.64
Project Name: Transforming Teaching and Learning In High-Need Rural Schools
Project Director: Ric CampbellHunter CollegeNew York; $307,701.64
Project Name: New Visions for Public Schools: Hunter College Urban Teacher Residency Program
Project Director: Robert BuckleyTeachers CollegeColumbia University-New York; $507,721.64
Project Name: Teacher Residency Program
Project Director: A. Lin GoodwinEast Carolina UniversityGreenville, North Carolina; $1,063,854.64
Project Name: Teacher Quality and Student Achievement
Project Director: Shirley CarrawayThe Ohio State UniversityColumbus; $1,957,506.64
Project Name: Apprenticeships Supported by Partnerships for Innovation and Reform in Education
Project Director: Sandra StrootWinthrop UniversityRock Hill, South Carolina; $1,429,291.64
Project Name: NetSCOPE
Project Director: Jeannie RakestrawMid-Central Education CooperativePlatte, South Dakota; $1,190,208.64
Project Name: South Dakota Partnership for Teacher Quality
Project Director: Dan GuerickeTexas State UniversitySan Marcos; $611,183.64
Project Name: The Teaching Residency Program for Shortage Areas
Project Director: Scott W. ErwinOld Dominion UniversityNorfolk, Virginia; $719,465.64
Project Name: Teacher Immersion Residency
Project Director: Sharon Judge