UH System Community for the Advancement of Teacher-Scholars
| Initiative: | UH System Community for the Advancement of Teacher-Scholars |
| University: | UH System universities |
| Focus: | Teacher Education |
Program Description
Nationally, approximately 40 percent of new teachers leave the profession within their first five years of employment. In Texas, the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) estimates that approximately 50 percent of new teachers leave within their first five years. Moreover, SBEC notes that 19 percent of beginning teachers leave at the end of their first year, resulting in teacher-turnover costs of $216 million annually. Barriers to teacher retention are especially great in urban schools, where limited resources, cultural and language differences, inadequate student family support, and high mobility and dropout rates present special challenges not found in other schools. The UH System Community for the Advancement of Teacher Scholars (CATS) is a two-year program designed to help new teachers in urban schools during their early years in the classroom. By providing them with support to more successfully manage their classrooms, adapt to school culture and climate, and fulfill administrative responsibilities, the CATS program will facilitate the retention of more highly qualified teachers in the classroom.
Priorities Addressed
The quality of our public schools is critical to the economic future of Texas and the United States. Key to ensuring excellence in public education is the creation and retention of a highly skilled teacher workforce. In accordance with the No Child Left Behind Act, the CATS program will: help retain and increase the number of highly qualified teachers working in urban public school districts; provide new teachers with the professional development support they need to be successful in the classroom and remain in the teaching profession; enhance the pedagogical and research skills of new teachers, so that they may improve the quality of the classroom experience for students; and produce scholarly research that advances the current understanding of teacher preparation and success, especially in relation to diverse urban school districts and in areas of greatest challenge such as, math and science instruction, bilingual education, special education, middle school education, etc.
Background and Qualifications
The CATS program is being implemented by the colleges of education at the four UH System universities in partnership with school districts throughout the Houston metropolitan area. The UH System's relationship with Houston public schools runs deep. Through the four colleges of education, approximately 5,800 teachers have been recommended for certification in Texas since 1999, according to the State Board for Educator Certification, most of whom have accepted positions in the Houston public school system. The UH System also has active partnerships with 38 regional school districts, through which the universities provide professional development support for teachers, work to improve the quality of the curriculum and student performance, and provide on-campus learning opportunities to students throughout the Houston area. In addition, these districts serve as the training ground for our preservice student teachers as they complete their classroom internships. Critical to the success of the public school partnership is the long-standing experience and expertise of faculty working in inner-city schools-especially those in the Houston Independent School District.
Funding Request
The Community for the Advancement of Teacher-Scholars is a two-year program that accommodates cohorts of 240 new teachers during the first phase of the program and 120 teachers during the second phase of the program. Anticipated resources will fund two cohorts over the next three years. To expand the phase two cohort size from 120 to 240 new teachers, the UH System requests $1.5 million in federal funds. In addition, $1 million is requested to fund three years of research into the impact of the program interventions on teacher success and academic quality so that the program may serve as a model for new teacher support programs nationwide.
