51视频

04/05/2023
By Marlon Pitter

Aiming to fortify and diversify the teaching profession, the School of Education is partnering with Lawrence Public Schools to create pathways for high school students to become educators in their community.

College of Fine Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences Assoc. Dean Stacy Szczesiul and School of Education Asst. Prof. Robai Werunga were awarded a $394,764 grant by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to provide resources for teacher candidates from Lawrence High School to earn their bachelor鈥檚 degrees in education at 51视频 and ultimately to work in classrooms in Lawrence.

The money from this grant will expand the 鈥�Grow Your Own鈥� teacher pathway program, a UML partnership with Lowell High School that allows students to take dual-enrollment classes to prepare for careers in education.

The students will have access to these courses along with financial support for tuition and fees, mentoring from the state Office of Educator Licensure, professional development, peer support from other 51视频 teacher candidates and assistance with acquiring professional attire.

These measures are designed to bring more diverse candidates into teaching and to improve the education of future students in Lawrence, Szczesiul says.

鈥淭he benefits include student engagement rates that are higher, better attendance, lower rates of discipline referrals and exclusionary discipline, access to AP courses, more trusting relationships, a better sense of belonging and the likelihood that teachers will have high expectations for them,鈥� she says.

In Massachusetts, about 41% of pupils are students of color, while almost 91% of teachers are white. Nationwide, about 50% of children enrolled in public schools are students of color, while only 21% of educators are non-white. Szczesiul says it is crucial to even out these demographics.

鈥淚t's going to take until 2060 to make these proportions if we don't do anything,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hat's a long time to wait, and by that time, the percentage of students of color will be around 66% of the (national) student population.鈥�

In another effort to diversify the ranks of the teaching profession, the School of Education recently partnered with Educators Rising, an organization focused on training and creating pathways for teacher candidates, to host the Educators Rising Conference. Two hundred students from 12 Massachusetts high schools attended the conference, which was the first hosted by the organization in the state.

The event featured 鈥淏ecoming Your Own Teacher鈥� and 鈥淢indset of an Educator鈥� workshops, campus tours, student competitions and informational sessions with teachers, administrators, 51视频 faculty and staff.

鈥淚 already had plans of being a teacher, but this definitely backed up what I wanted,鈥� says Alexis Mills, a senior at Chelmsford High School. 鈥淭alking with other teachers and seeing how passionate they are, it definitely drives you to want to be like that and have those kinds of passions for the future.鈥�

Educators Rising Massachusetts State and Regional Coordinator Miriam Morgenstern worked with Szczesiul to contact local schools and establish a presence in the state over the past year. She says working with the School of Education to host the event was an ideal collaboration.

鈥淏ecause I had taught at Lowell High School and I'm very familiar with 51视频, I thought 51视频 would be a great partner,鈥� Morgenstern says. 鈥淚 contacted the School of Education, and right away there was a response of, 鈥榊es, we're excited to do this,鈥� so we put our heads together and came up with this conference.鈥�

Morgenstern now looks to inspire high school students to become teachers.

鈥淲e want to encourage young people 鈥� of diverse backgrounds to really consider a career in education,鈥� she says. 鈥淏ut we want everyone to consider it, and I can't think of a better career.鈥�