The Charter College of Education at CSULA has received $8.8 million grant from U.S. Dept. of Ed for teacher preparation
The Charter College of Education and the College of Natural and Social Sciences at California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA) are pleased to announce that they have been awarded a five year Teacher Quality Partnership grant from the U.S. Department of Education for $8.8 million. The grant is designed to improve student academic achievement by strengthening teacher preparation, training and effectiveness and help school districts attract and actively participate in the preparation of highly trained and qualified teachers. Research shows that teacher quality is the most important factor in improving student achievement.
This five-year project, the Los Angeles Urban Teacher Residency, is a collaborative partnership of California State University, Los Angeles; the Center for Collaborative Education; Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD); the Mayor’s Partnership for Los Angeles Schools; three community organizations: Families In Schools, Alliance for a Better Community, and Central American Resource Center; the Los Angeles Pilot Schools Network; United Teachers Los Angeles; and WestEd Research. All of the partners share a social justice mission and envision preparing teachers who are responsible for equity, excellence, and innovation in their classroom as well as for their entire school culture. CSULA’s Dr. Diane Haager will serve as the Co-Principal Investigator and Dr. A.Dee Williams will serve as the Curriculum Director.
The partnership has been commissioned to establish a 15-month community and teacher residency program aligned with California state standards for teacher certification and induction, coupled with CSULA’s requirements for a master’s degree in education, to prepare teachers to enter into high-need Los Angeles public schools in math, science and special education. This program includes rigorous candidate selection criteria, a commitment to recruiting candidates from diverse populations, and extensive and ongoing support for teacher candidates. Teaching residents will be paid $21,000 in return for at least three years of teaching in the LAUSD following the completion of their Los Angeles Urban Teacher Residency Program. The residents will have already completed their undergraduate degrees in the subject matter or discipline they plan to teach (e.g., science, math, liberal arts) and they will integrate theory and practice in a blend of graduate-level coursework, project-based experiences, and collaborative professional learning through highly supported cohort communities. Residents will be full time paired with outstanding Mentor teachers (who will also be compensated) in reform-minded schools in LAUSD. The partnership will build the Los Angeles Urban Teacher Residency to become the program that produces Los Angeles’ highest quality teachers who will remain in the system well into the future, working for equitable and strong student achievement. Similar programs across the United States have demonstrated a teacher retention rate of 95% after 5 years compared to 50% of teachers who are credentialed through traditional teacher education programs.
Beginning with a first-year cohort of 25 teacher residents and growing to a fifth-year cohort of 75 teacher residents, the program will enroll 250 Resident teachers over the life of the initiative, and create a permanent pipeline of innovative, effective new teachers for the district. CSULA will immediately begin working with their grant partners to restructure the teacher education program to better prepare teachers to meet the needs of diverse, urban youth within Los Angeles.
