Research-to-Practice Spotlight Turns to RISE at St. John’s University
I am thrilled to introduce the St. John’s University (NY) School of Education as the next featured institution in the AACTE Research-to-Practice Spotlight series. In this latest focus on exemplary models of clinical practice, we highlight the work of the Residential Internship for St. John’s Educators (RISE) program in Queens, New York. This partnership with surrounding school districts aims to develop the very best teachers for local classrooms, a mission to which both the university and the school district are committed.
The first video in the series is now posted in the Innovation Exchange, introducing the RISE program’s yearlong internships and focusing on the importance of relationship-building and a shared professional community. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be publishing additional videos and blog summaries to highlight what AACTE staff learned during our visit to the St. John’s campus and partner sites.
We met with many groups of PK-12 students, teacher candidates, veteran teachers, community members, and local principals about what they believed to be the hallmarks of these rich partnerships. It is clear that the clinical practice model resonates strongly at St. John’s, as it is practiced on a daily basis in a way that brings all participants together to envision and enact the mutual benefits.
I asked Michael Sampson, dean of the School of Education at St. John’s, to reflect on the vision for the RISE program and its success in preparing profession-ready teachers for the New York City public schools. Here’s what he said:
The RISE program was created in partnership with the New York City public schools to provide our students a clinically rich, 1-year student teaching program. By imbedding our faculty and residents into the public schools, we are preparing teachers who are ready to teach on Day 1 of their first teaching job. They have experienced a full year of school under the coaching of their school mentor and St. John’s faculty member and understand the culture of schools and the demands teachers encounter. RISE has transformed not only our residents, but our faculty as well.
Of course, you don’t have to take the dean’s word for this program’s success. See what the faculty, interns, and partners say about it in our new video series in the Innovation Exchange! You can also read more about my first visit to St. John’s and the RISE program here.
Tags: AACTE in the community, clinical preparation, content areas, school-university partnerships, workforce development
