Northeastern State University

PROJECT PURPOSE

NSU?s College of Education (COE), the third-largest producer of Oklahoma?s teachers, is looking to make an unprecedented investment to expand opportunities in the full pipeline of teachers-high school (Grow Your Own academies); scholarships (teacher education & alternative certification); and the first-year teaching (mentoring). Funding would provide Oklahoma schools with diverse teachers who are prepared?focusing on both quality and quantity. Recruiting and retaining teachers is critical to the economic well-being of Oklahoma. NSU?s COE funding request will provide measurable results to combat issues such as: ? 30,000 teachers left Oklahoma public schools in the preceding six years, and over 5,500 retirements from 2019 to 2021. (OSDE Teacher Supply and Demand Report 2018) ? Reduce state replacement costs to teacher turnover which averages $11,000 for each teacher, ranging between $9,000-$20,000 (Sorenson & Ladd, 2019,p.25; Learning Policy Institute 2017) Add this to the complications related to the pandemic?student learning challenges, teacher burnout, and decreased motivation to enter the profession. We are at a point where emergency certifications more than double the number of teacher education graduates from universities each year. With NSU being the third leading producer of teachers in the state (OSRHE, 2019-20), we are in a position to make a significant difference.

EVIDENCE

Research has shown that mentorship of novice teachers positively impacts student achievement and teacher retention (Sloan & Blazevski, 2018). Scholarships help recruit and retain students (Olbrecht, Romano, & Teigen, 2016). NSU-COE believes the best evidence to support the effectiveness of the Grow Your Own dual course is in the words of the students themselves: ?When I do become a teacher, I hope to inspire my future students to become teachers themselves.? ?Taking the Explorations in Teaching course has increased my comfort level in taking college courses?? ?I will be applying to NSU to get my degree in teaching.?

POPULATION DESCRIPTION

Much of the population served by NSU-COE come from rural areas where income levels fall well below the 250% poverty level (attached U.S. Census Bureau). Children in schools are the vulnerable population that has disproportionately been impacted by the disruptions to their learning that have occurred the last two years. Proficiency in math, language arts, and science have dropped overall between 5-9% since 2019, with some dips as high as 14% as in 3rd grade English Language Arts and Math. Coupled with the 6 year exodus of OK educators, districts don?t have enough educators to fill classrooms affecting the future of Oklahoma. This funding would provide the opportunity to produce a higher number of qualified P-12 educators to combat the teacher shortage that has been exacerbated by the pandemic and ensure that students are learning with prepared teachers. In 2019, the last time students took spring assessments, 31.9% overall?were proficient in math, compared to 22.1% in 2021. There was a nine-percentage-point drop in proficiency in ELA,?declining?from?33.4%?in 2019 to 24.8%?in 2021. In 2019, 34.5% of students tested proficient?in science?compared to?29.7% in 2021. Third grade English Language Arts as well as Math both dropped 14% from 2019 to 2021.

PERFORMANCE MEASURING

A timeline for completion has been established to measure outcomes ensuring successful implementation and performance (see attached document). Routine reports will be gathered from dual-enrollment status, degree completion, and through first year mentorship. All expenses will be evaluated and approved by the Dean, and expended according to ARPA funds regulations. Data will be collected and reported annually, and performance reports evaluated. Improvement recommendations will be discussed with the COE team and plans to improve made. This investment will show measurable success not only in teachers entering the workforce, but an increase in quality teachers across the state of Oklahoma.

ONGOING INVESTMENT AMOUNT

$

ONGOING INVESTMENT DESCRIPTION

None

ONGOING INVESTMENT REQUIRED

Able to continue operation without additional funding from the State of Oklahoma