Archive for June, 2024

Explore AACTE’s Webinar Library

Did you know that AACTE members have access to previously recorded webinars? AACTE offers quality professional development opportunities throughout the year and it is possible to miss one or two events. Or you may have missed a few points or topics while attending a webinar and want to watch the session again. As an AACTE member, you can watch any previously released virtual event by visiting AACTE’s Webinars On-Demand library.

AACTE’s professional development opportunities — like webinars, Lunch & Learns, and Lunch with Lynn — offer topics that include artificial intelligence (AI)/generative AI for classrooms; internationalization; disrupting injustice; diversity, equity, and inclusion; discussions featuring AACTE Award winners; and more.

AACTE invites you to continue making the most of your membership by accessing the webinar library today and find topics that best suit your interests.

Superintendent Arntzen is Accepting Applications for the Third Year of the Teacher Residency Project

Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen is accepting residency and district applications for the third year of the Montana Teacher Residency Program. The Residency program is a one-year paid student teaching experience during the final year of undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, or master’s studies for education majors. Residents will be paired with a teacher-leader, and receive a stipend, district-provided housing, and partial tuition support.

Resident teachers will also commit to teaching in a Montana school district for a minimum of three years. Those interested in becoming a resident can apply here. Districts interested in hosting a resident can apply here.

“The Residency Program is a great opportunity for Montana-made teachers to gain valuable classroom experience,” Arntzen said. “The academic success of our children depends on access to high-quality teachers who are well prepared from day one. This reflects my Montana Hope and Montana Teach initiatives by emphasizing community engagement and strong teacher leaders to put our students first.”

UW–Madison School of Education Joins Forces with School Districts, DWD to Cultivate Aspiring School Leaders 

This article was originally published on the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s website. 

To help identify and nurture future school leaders, the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Education is partnering with three Wisconsin school districts to launch the District Leadership Preparation Pipeline (DLPP) program. This innovative program aims to transform 25 current school district employees into highly effective school leaders by August 2025.  

The DLPP program is a collaborative effort, bringing together an urban, suburban, and rural school district in south-central Wisconsin. Supported by funding from the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development’s (DWD) Fast Forward Industry Sectors Worker Training grant program, the initiative leverages the School of Education’s highly regarded 14-month principal preparation curriculum. 

“Good principals and school leaders truly benefit teachers, staff, and the education students receive,” DWD Secretary Amy Pechacek said. “We are eager to partner with the UW–Madison School of Education to help prepare leaders who will support our schools, our educators, and our future workforce.” 

University of Louisville College of Education & Human Development to Create State Reading Research Center 

This article was originally published on the University of Louisville’s news website. 

The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has tapped the University of Louisville’s (UofL) College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) to create the Kentucky Reading Research Center, a new entity that will support educators in implementing reliable, replicable reading programs and promote literacy development.  

The project includes a two-year, $6 million contract — one of the largest competitive grant awards in the CEHD’s history — and is renewable for up to five years. 

Executive Vice President and University Provost Gerry Bradley and CEHD Interim Dean Amy Lingo, who will serve as executive director of the Kentucky Reading Research Center when it launches July 1, joined state officials and legislators at Bourbon Central Elementary School in Paris, KY, to announce the project on June 3. 

Human Rights Are All Our Rights: A Holmes Washington Week Reflection

Sean Hembrick, Holmes Scholar- The Pennsylvania State University

Sean Hembrick, Holmes Scholar — The Pennsylvania State University

As a first-time attendee for AACTE Washington Week, I wanted to learn more about educational policy and advocacy. Being a fourth-year higher education doctoral student, I understand the importance of pushing forth efforts that speak to our ever-increasing educational field. I know that at the height of educational change are the millions of educators who continue to push forth visibility and accessibility for all students and educators.

This week, I had the opportunity to not only be in the community with fellow Holmes Scholars but also to be an active contributor in pushing forth educational reform. Connecting with educational advocates and policymakers led me to think about what more needs to be done and ensure that future generations of students are being seen, heard, and validated.

Violence, Aggression Against Educators Grew Post-Pandemic

While threats and violence against PK-12 teachers and other school personnel in the United States declined during the pandemic after the restrictions were lifted, incidents rebounded to levels equal to or exceeding those prior to the pandemic, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.

As a result, the percentage of teachers expressing intentions to resign or transfer rose from 49% during the pandemic to 57% afterward, the researchers found.

“Aggression and violence against educators and school personnel are major concerns that affect the well-being of school personnel and the students and families they serve. This study highlights a growing crisis in our schools that needs to be addressed nationally,” said lead author Susan Dvorak McMahon, Ph.D., of DePaul University, chair of the APA Task Force on Violence Against Educators and School Personnel. The task force conducted two surveys in collaboration with national education and related organizations. The results were published in the journal American Psychologist.

UToledo Educator Leads $2.3M Initiative to Keep High-Quality Science Teachers in Classrooms

Education can be a challenging vocation.

School districts often struggle to recruit and retain high-quality teachers, who cite job satisfaction and burnout as key reasons they leave the classroom.

Natasha Johnson, Ph.D., can relate to the challenges facing today’s teachers, with roughly two decades of classroom experience in metro Atlanta preceding her transition to The University of Toledo’s Judith Herb College of Education in 2020.

It is why she’s passionate about a $2.3 million initiative she’s heading to support sixth through 12th-grade science teachers in high-need districts in Ohio and Kentucky, funded by the National Science Foundation’s Robert Noyce Scholarship Program.

Secretary Cardona Outlines Steps to Modernizing the Office of Federal Student Aid

The following message was posted today on the Education Department’s Homeroom blog.

In a letter sent to all staff today, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona outlined comprehensive steps the Department is taking to improve Federal Student Aid (FSA) for students, families, borrowers, and schools. These efforts will ensure FSA works better and addresses ongoing management and operational challenges. Specifically, the Department is taking the following steps:

New Jersey Department of Ed. Awards Grants to Help Schools Improve Climate Change Instruction

The New Jersey Department of Education today announced awards for two grant opportunities to help schools implement, improve, and expand climate-change instruction in the classroom.

The grants will approach climate-change instruction through two avenues:

  • An interdisciplinary learning and community projects grant will provide funds directly to school districts to help them partner with local organizations or their municipality to establish Interdisciplinary Learning Units and Community Resilience Projects. These projects will help schools impact their community through projects such as planting rain gardens with plants that will ease flooding; growing food using aquaponics to combat food insecurity; restoring native plant species; and planting dune grass to restore and protect native habitats.

  • The Climate Change Learning Collaboratives grant will fund programs in which colleges and universities will create Climate Change Learning Collaboratives to provide training to teachers on how to infuse climate change into the curriculum.

Q&A with AACTE Coaching’s Kandi Hill-Clarke

Kandi Hill-Clarke, Ed.D., is the former dean of the College of Education at the University of Memphis and currently serves as provost fellow for Faculty Affairs and Leadership Development. Hill-Clarke will facilitate the New Deans cohort, part of AACTE Coaching. In the following Q&A, AACTE asked Hill-Clarke for a preview of her cohort’s coursework and what members can expect from participating in this new AACTE-exclusive experience.

Who inspired you to become an educator?

From a young age, I was inspired to become a teacher by my mother, a retired educator who taught elementary school for 40 years. I vividly remember helping her decorate her educational bulletin boards, watching her grade papers, and sitting in on after-school conferences. At the age of six, I knew that I would become a classroom teacher. This realization set me on a path to turn my dream into a reality, beginning with “teaching” my imaginary students in my grandparents’ living room, with the dining room serving as the school’s cafeteria. Pursuing a career in teaching was a choice I made intentionally and strategically and a goal I am proud I accomplished. Teaching is deeply ingrained in me, and throughout my career in higher education, I have been fortunate to both teach and learn in new and different ways as an academic leader.

Deadline Extended: Call for Reviewers

The deadline for AACTE’s Call for Reviewers for the 2025 Annual Meeting has been extended to June 14, 2024. The Association is seeking member-institution representatives to volunteer to represent AACTE’s principles in evaluating content for papers and presentations at the 2025 Annual Meeting.

We highly encourage candidates interested in reviewing Strand IV: Deepening the Impact of Education Research and Research to Practice and Strand V: Prioritizing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to apply, as these strands receive the largest number of submissions.