30 May2023
By AACTE
There is still time to nominate a book for the AACTE 2024 Gloria J. Ladson-Billings Outstanding Book Award. This national award recognizes exemplary books that make a significant contribution to the knowledge base of educator preparation or of teaching and learning with implications for educator preparation. The deadline to submit entries is June 9.
This award is named after renowned scholar, Gloria J. Ladson-Billings, whose work has shaped the field in many ways, and her research in cultural pedagogy and equity in educator and student instruction, including critical race theory, has transcended beyond educator preparation. The award-winning book and its author/editor(s) will be recognized at AACTE’s 2024 Annual Meeting, February 16 -18 at the Gaylord Rockies in Aurora/Denver, CO.
30 May2023
By Kaitlyn Brennan
The “In the States” feature by Kaitlyn Brennan is a weekly update to keep members informed on state-level activities impacting the education and educator preparation community.
Last week, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency for public education for the state of North Carolina in a video address to constituents. The Governor pointed to teacher salary, respect of the profession, and the expansion of private school vouchers as key issues that are “aiming to choke the life out of public education.”
North Carolina’s state legislature is led by a Republican majority. In the Senate’s budget proposal, teachers across the state would see a 4.5% raise over the next two years while the House had suggested a 10.2% raise for teachers. The Governor for his part had pushed for an 18% salary increase for educators.
“The Senate has given veteran teachers a $250 raise spread over two years…that’s a slap in the face and will make our teacher shortage worse,” said Governor Cooper.
Additional concerns presented by the Governor throughout his video address include:
- 5,000 teacher vacancies that need to be breached, which is where he said the average pay raises exacerbated the problem. Senators have touted raising the starting pay level significantly to address the need to recruit and an investment in educational programs for teachers.
- The need to invest in early childhood education, about which he said lawmakers were “turning their backs on children, parents, and the businesses that want to hire those parents.” Lawmakers have included some funding for childcare assistance in their budgets.
- The “political culture wars” that he said would put “politicians in charge of curriculum-setting, micromanage what teachers can teach, and target LGBTQ+ students.” He mentioned the elimination of some science classes and the restructuring of history curricula.
All of this comes as Congress left town for the holiday weekend without having struck a deal surrounding the debt limit. As you will recall, last month, House Republicans passed a bill that ties the debt limit to appropriations by raising the debt ceiling by $1.5 trillion or through the end of next March, whichever happens first, in exchange for a wide range of proposals to decrease government funding. The cuts to federal funding would include capping federal funding at fiscal year (FY) 2022 levels — a nearly 22% cut to non-defense discretionary programs (i.e. education) — while also limiting spending growth to 1% every year over the next decade. According the Department of Education, under the proposal the potential cuts would mean the following for North Carolina’s students and teachers:
- Gut Funding for Low-Income Students. The proposal would cut approximately $12 million in Title I funding for North Dakota schools serving low-income children, impacting an estimated 40,000 students and reducing program funding to its lowest level in almost a decade — a cut equivalent to removing nearly 200 teachers and specialized instructional support personnel from classrooms.
- Cut Support for Students with Disabilities. Under the proposal, as many as 17,000 children in North Dakota with disabilities would face reduced supports — a cut in IDEA funding equivalent to removing approximately 100 teachers and related services providers from the classroom.
- Slash Mental Health Support for Students. The House Republican proposal would limit educators’ abilities to address student mental health issues, including through violence, suicide, and drug abuse prevention, by cutting Title IV, Part A funding for North Dakota schools by about $1.5 million.
30 May2023
By AACTE
Educator preparation advocates play a vital role in advancing the advocacy agenda and supporting those who will teach future generations. Don’t miss this final opportunity to join teacher educators, scholars, and other members from colleges and institutions on June 4 to 7 for AACTE’s 2023 Washington Week, emphasizing the crucial theme of “Investing in Education.”
Registration for AACTE’s leading legislative conference ends on May 31 — secure your spot today to join forces with change-makers in the educator preparation field.
29 May2023
By Tony Pals and Marla Koenigsknecht
Leslie T. Fenwick, dean emerita of the Howard University School of Education, where she is a professor of educational policy and leadership, and dean in residence at AACTE, has been selected by the American Educational Research Association (AERA) to present the 2023 Brown Lecture in Education Research. This public lecture will take place on Thursday, October 19, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. ET, at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C.
Fenwick is a nationally known scholar with deep expertise in public policy, educational equity, and leadership and leadership studies. She is author of the award-winning book Jim Crow’s Pink Slip: The Untold Story of Black Principal and Teacher Leadership (Harvard Education Press), which was released in 2022 and has been referenced by The New York Times, NPR, the Washington Post, Politico, and Education Week. Fenwick is also a section editor of the Handbook of Research on Teachers of Color and Indigenous Teachers (AERA) and a contributor to the bestselling book The Last Word: The Best Commentary and Controversy in American Education (Education Week Press).
29 May2023
By Kelly Coash Johnson
We know the educator shortage is a national crisis. To promote conversations across traditional silos, the American Association of School Personnel Administrators (AASPA) convened PK-20 stakeholders, including AACTE, to discuss educator workforce and pipeline shortages at the annual National Educator Shortage Summit. The results of this gathering are represented in a whitepaper entitled 5 Shifts for Addressing the Educators Shortage.
This white paper moves beyond surface-level responses to examine deeper, systemic issues that contribute to mismatches between educator supply and demand. Five comprehensive shifts are presented in contrast to traditional calls to action. A discussion of each shift contains high-level recommendations, along with examples of actions that different stakeholder groups can take to address the educator shortage.
29 May2023
By Nicole Dunn
May is Jewish American Heritage Month. AACTE joins the nation in celebrating the values, culture, and contributions of Jewish people by encouraging all educators to think broadly and critically about how to teach the diverse and complex history and experience of Jewish people. This is more critical than ever, as noted by Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine Lhamon in Dear Colleague Letter issued in conjunction with the Biden-Harris administration’s national strategy to counter antisemitism; in which Lhamon reminds us of the nationwide rise in reports of antisemitic harassment, including in schools.
29 May2023
By Nicole Dunn
Since its designation by Congress in 1999, National Military Appreciation Month in May, is the nation’s opportunity to honor the service and sacrifice of servicemembers and their families. Part of honoring that service is to ensure active and veteran military have access to educator preparation for those seeking to be teachers or administrators in the nation’s PK–12 schools.
24 May2023
By Weade James
The Call for Proposals for AACTE’s 2024 Annual Meeting is now open. The conference theme, “Ascending New Heights: Propelling the Profession into the Future” aligns the AACTE 2024 Annual Meeting with the association’s vision and mission to revolutionize education for all learners by elevating education and educator preparation through research, professional practice, advocacy, and collaboration. AACTE’s Annual Meeting brings together professionals from the preponderance of higher education institutions and their affiliates who are preparing educators for the workforce and influencing the field. This year’s conference will disseminate the latest research on educator recruitment, preparation and retention, illuminate new ideas for innovation, and elevate research and evidence-based practices to enhance teaching and learning.
23 May2023
By Kaitlyn Brennan
The “In the States” feature by Kaitlyn Brennan is a weekly update to keep members informed on state-level activities impacting the education and educator preparation community.
For the first time in Pennsylvania’s history, the number of emergency teaching certifications issued across the state outpaced the number of newly fully certified teachers entering the field. The shift comes as the Commonwealth faces its most significant staffing challenges in well over a decade. During the 2021-22 school year, 6,366 people received emergency permits — compared to 4,220 students who received teaching certificates. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, more than 15,000 in-state certifications were issued during the 2010-11 school year. By 2021-22, that number dropped to more than 4,200 — a decrease of 10,800 certifications. As you may recall, those prepared through alternate pathways that require less coursework and student teaching experiences are 25% more likely to leave their teaching positions and the profession than those who are well prepared.
23 May2023
By Kaitlyn Brennan
This weekly Washington Update is intended to keep members informed on Capitol Hill activities impacting the educator preparation community. The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of AACTE.
Conversations surrounding the debt limit continue to dominate the Washington, DC news cycle this week. High stakes talks surrounding an agreement between the GOP and White House paused on Friday after Republican negotiators walked out of the room — ultimately blaming the Biden Administration for holding up discussions. As you will recall, last month House Republicans passed a bill that ties the debt limit to appropriations by raising the debt ceiling by $1.5 trillion or through the end of next March, whichever happens first, in exchange for a wide range of proposals to decrease government funding. The cuts to federal funding would include capping federal funding at fiscal year (FY) 2022 levels — a nearly 22% cut to non-defense discretionary programs (i.e., education) — while also limiting spending growth to 1% every year over the next decade. Under the proposal, as many as 7.5 million children with disabilities would face reduced supports — a cut equivalent to removing more than 48,000 teachers and related services providers from the classroom.
23 May2023
A Q&A with Susan Kemper Patrick and Karen Escalante
By Brooke Evans
Susan Kemper Patrick Ph.D. and Karen Escalante, Ed.D. are presenting a session at AACTE’s 2023 Washington Week, June 4-7, “An Increased Number of Teachers?! What Has California Done to Address the Teacher Shortage and Why has it Worked?” Below Patrick and Escalante answer a few questions about the topics they will discuss at the session and tools attendees can take back to their organizations.
23 May2023
By Stephanie Barrette
MTSU’s College of Education continues to strengthen its relationship with Murfreesboro City Schools, this time through math literacy training for K-5 teachers who will return to their district and share their new knowledge with teacher colleagues.
“We love the teachers teaching teachers model,” said Katie Schrodt, assistant professor of education and one of three faculty running the professional development. “Teachers want to hear from other teachers like them who are in the classroom, so it’s a really effective professional development model.”
23 May2023
By Northern State University
Northern State University is helping South Dakota solve the teacher shortage by creating a flexible, low-cost pathway for educational assistants (para-educators) who are working in schools to become teachers.
The South Dakota Department of Education opened applications for the Teacher Apprenticeship Pathway to thousands of para-educators working in accredited school districts across the state. The program will help para-educators pursue certification to become licensed teachers.
16 May2023
By Kaitlyn Brennan
The “In the States” feature by Kaitlyn Brennan is a weekly update to keep members informed on state-level activities impacting the education and educator preparation community.
Last week, the Ohio State Senate Workforce and Higher Education Committee voted to accept a substitute version of Senate Bill 83. The original version of the bill, also known as the Ohio Higher Education Enhancement Act, was first introduced in April and proposed a slew of wide-ranging changes, including ending mandated diversity trainings, bans on partnerships with Chinese institutions, restrictions on faculty unions striking during contract negotiations, and new evaluations for students to rate professors on how well they have removed bias from their classrooms.
16 May2023
By Tim Neubert
The American Association for Employment in Education (AAEE) is pleased to announce the release of its 2022-2023 Educator Supply and Demand Report, and wishes to thank the many colleges, universities, and school systems responding to the survey that served as the basis for this report.
The Educator Supply and Demand Report is conducted in conjunction with the Center for Marketing & Opinion Research, LLC (CMOR). With data and perceptions gathered from educational organizations over several decades, the report generated will provide education professionals and institutions with valuable regional and national insights and trends in PK-12 educator supply and demand.
