News! U of Minnesota Ends Contract with TFA

A reader sent this announcement:

BREAKING news from MINNESOTA

CEHD Dean’s Office 

cehddean@umn.edu to CEHD-OFFICIAL 

November 7, 2016

Dear CEHD Faculty and Staff Members:

We are reaching out to you today with an important message related to one of our teacher licensure programs in our college.

The University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development’s alternative pathway to teaching program for Teach for America corps members will not be renewing the contract we have with TFA. This means that we will not admit new corps members to a 2017 cohort. Reasons for ending the partnership program include an unsustainable funding model for the program and dwindling numbers of corps members.

Corps members currently in the TFA program who are part of the 2015 and 2016 cohorts will continue in their high-quality, University preparation to enable them to be recommended for teacher licensure in May 2017 and 2018, respectively. We appreciate the opportunity we have had to learn from the corps members and this partnership.

This decision will not impact the many other teacher licensure programs and pathways at the University of Minnesota. We are committed to providing multiple pathway programs to teaching. We believe that the best use of our limited resources in moving forward is to focus on innovative curriculum development and ways to prepare teachers in partnership with our K-12 colleagues. As a land-grant research institution, we are committed to working side-by-side with K-12 educators to ensure that teachers are prepared and then supported in their early years of teaching. We will work to prepare teachers who teach in multiple school settings—including rural and high-need schools—so they can meet the needs of Minnesota’s children.

Research indicates that programs such as the Minneapolis Residency Program (MRP), developed with Minneapolis Public Schools to grow their own talent pool of teachers; the Emotional Behavioral Disorder (EBD) Program for special education teaching aides, created with K-12 colleagues across several districts; and the Dual Language and Immersion licensure program for elementary teachers across multiple school districts are the most promising routes to preparing and retaining diverse, high-quality teachers.

If you have questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to us (Deborah Dillon at dillon@umn.edu).

Sincerely,

Jean K. Quam, CEHD Dean

Deborah R. Dillon, CEHD Associate Dean

College of Education and Human Development

University of Minnesota

104 Burton Hall

Minneapolis, MN. 55455

612 626-9252