What you should know
- Nationally, the number of people completing teacher education programs fell by 25% in the last nine years, according to federal data.
- Not only are fewer young people are going into teaching, but too few are Black or Hispanic.
- A new āgrow your ownā program at West Chester University in Pennsylvania hopes to change that, allowing local high school students to attend classes in teacher education at no charge.
- Today, 31 states around the country are funding āgrow you ownā programs.
- Georgia and some local school districts have similar programs. The Georgia Department of Education has career education āpathwaysā to help guide students to teaching. And Gov. Brian Kempās 2023 proposed budget contains $15 million to help paraprofessionals become certified teachers.
Imere Williams wanted to be a teacher at least since the fourth grade.
His mother saved a class assignment where he penned his career aspiration. And it never changed.
āThe thought that Iām gonna be a teacher in four years is something that really ignites this huge, blazing fire inside of me, and I canāt wait to start,ā Williams wrote in 2020, the year he graduated from Boys Latin, a Philadelphia charter school.
Now, Williams, 21, is in the teacher preparation program at West Chester University in Pennsylvania.
Heās part of West Chesterās newly launched PRIZE (Partnering in Raising Inclusive, Zealous Educators), which aims to help school districts āgrow their ownā teachers, while boosting the profile of a profession thatās taken hits in recent years, said Desha Williams (no relation to Imere), dean of West Chesterās College of Education and Social Work.
āWe donāt do a good enough job telling our stories,ā Desha Williams said. āWe do the work, we celebrate studentsā accomplishments, and then we just get up and do it again the next year.ā
Across the country, fewer young people are going into teaching, and too few are Black, like Imere Williams.
There are reasons, educators say, that teaching is now seen as less attractive: an emphasis on standardized testing thatās taken the joy out of the profession and created distrust of the education system; classrooms that are targets for political attacks; less-than-stellar pay; and tough working conditions that have only gotten worse with the pandemic.
Teachers themselves often arenāt encouraging young people to follow in their footsteps.
Thatās why Jennifer Johnson, an assistant professor in Temple Universityās College of Education and Human Development sees the need for a national campaign to boost interest, similar to that of the U.S. Marines.
Only in this case, she said, it would be āthe few, the proud, the teachers.ā
Recruiting locally
While the percentage of students of color in teacher preparation programs nationally has grown, in Pennsylvania, classes have remained overwhelmingly white. In 2018-19, for example, just 5% were Black and 4% Hispanic.
West Chesterās PRIZE program aims to change that.
High school students will take dual-enrollment classes in teacher education through West Chester at no charge.
Theyāll get internship opportunities and have mentors. The cost of the classes will be covered by West Chester and the host school district. They will be offered in person or online, removing transportation as a barrier.
If students maintain a minimum of a 3.0 high school GPA and get a C or better in the classes, West Chester automatically will admit them.
During college, they will return to their host district for observations and student teaching and hopefully a job after graduation.
Pam Grossman, dean of the University of Pennsylvaniaās Graduate School of Education, said āgrow your ownā programs have been successful.
āMost people teach within 30 miles of where they went to high school,ā she said. āIf you recruit locally, people are more likely to stay.ā
Hitting the ground ārunningā
Interest in āgrow your ownā programs began in 2005 when Illinois adopted a statewide effort. The big growth came about a decade later when Washington instituted a competitive grant program, followed by similar efforts in Texas and Minnesota.
Today, said Amaya Garcia, deputy director of the PreK-12 program at New America ā a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank based in Washington, D.C. ā 31 states are funding some type of āgrow your ownā programs.
While Pennsylvania is not among those states, one school district in the state was the first to sign up to partner with West Chester.
Like other school districts, Kennett Consolidated School District in Chester County, which serves 4,000 students, has seen the number of applicants for teaching positions decline.
Some jobs, particularly in special education, have become harder to fill, said Superintendent Dusty Blakey.
West Chesterās program, he said, fits with the districtās larger mission of helping high school students see career relevance in their classes and try out a potential job path before college.
At the same time, the students will grow and learn in Kennettās culture and āhit the ground runningā when they are hired, he said. The district has agreed to employ at least three program graduates per year.
āWalk in my greatnessā
Kennett High School senior Cecelia Perrotti, 17, of Landenberg, had already eyed a teaching career and West Chester, but got even more excited when she heard the dean and Imere Williams speak about the program.
āThe goal is to raise inclusive and zealous educators,ā Perrotti said. āThatās just like my dream job right there.ā
Itās been Williamsā dream, too. His fourth-grade assignment on a poster board was titled Read All About Me, answering questions like his favorite colors and animal, as well as what heād like to be when he grows up.
āA teacher.ā
āI kept it because thatās when he started showing his identity and passion and what he wanted to do,ā said Denise Curry, 55, Williamsā mother.
That Williams wanted to be a teacher that young is unusual, given his own experience at James Rhoads Elementary in his West Philadelphia neighborhood.
He said he was bullied and still has a bump on his head from where another student hit him.
But then he went on to Boys Latin for middle and high school. Not only did he feel safe, but the school gave him opportunities, he said, that set him up for success. He became a member of student government, joined the Latin Club and was named one of two student representatives on the Philadelphia Board of Education, sitting next to former Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. at meetings.
Boys Latin is also where he encountered his first Black male educator, Mikal Anderson, his sixth-grade history teacher, who had a profound effect on him.
āHe told me to walk in my greatness,ā recalled Williams, the first in his family to go to college.
When he graduates, he intends to teach in Philadelphia, ideally at Boys Latin.
About the Solutions Journalism Network
Each week, we partner with the Solutions Journalism Network, a nonprofit organization dedicated to rigorous reporting about social issues. This weekās stories come from other sources.
About the Author
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured