Supporting Educators, Workforce, Students New National Guidance On School Discipline Practices

TEACH Connecticut: Statewide Initiative Committed To Supporting Educators, Workforce, Students

By SHannon HickS

There are many reasons people decide to become an educator. Whether there is a passion for working with children and/or young adults, turning a personal interest into a career of guiding generations in that field, or a natural talent for sharing knowledge, it is an essential field.

TEACH Connecticut is a program of the Talent Office of the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) and The Peter and Carmen Lucia Buck Foundation (The PCLB Foundation). It is a nonprofit partnership between TEACH. org, CSDE, and Connecticut schools, districts, and educator preparation programs.

The first program of its kind in the country, TEACH Connecticut is committed to supporting anyone who is considering teaching in this state and building the strongest possible educator workforce to ensure that all students have access to great teachers.

Lauren Danner is a TEACH Connecticut advisor and pathway coach.

A STEM instructional coach for the Wallingford School District and former research scientist, Danner said recently that the pandemic “exacerbated” a shortage of teachers that was already evident in the state prior to 2020.

“Unfortunately we are graduating in our country roughly 100,000 fewer teachers right now, that are actually needed to fill all of our full-time teaching positions,” she said. “In Connecticut we have very high need areas in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), as well as special education as well as bilingual education.”

The COVID-19 pandemic, she said, led to early retirement for many who were already approaching that milestone. Others could not continue teaching due to health or safety concerns, she said.

“We’re also facing a shortage of substitute teachers and after school teachers,” Danner noted. “There is a lot of teachers stepping in to cover classes, to fulfill all of those needs.”

The website for TEACH Connecticut, says Danner, “is really a one-stop shop for any resources that are needed to help people who are considering becoming a teacher” in the Nutmeg State.

Among the products and services to help future teachers get started on their careers are: *Up-to-date teacher certification guides; *Teacher prep program database; *One-on-one coaching and advice with expert teachers from across the state; *Real teacher stories; *Financial aid, salary, and benefits information; *Personalized application checklists; and *Scholarships and fee reimbursement information.

Those who register at connecticut.teach. org get access to those products and tools free of charge.

The services are available offline in addition to the website. Services are also available through phone chats, video calls, and e-mail, Danner said.

“If you want to read just a little bit more about elevating voices in the profession, we have various articles and stories from teachers about what it’s like to teach, as well as some of the current news in the field of education,” she said.

TEACH Connecticut also pledges to cover up to $100 of related expenses when an applicant applies to one of its partner programs. That includes expenses like application fees, transcript fees, testing fees, test prep materials, program deposits, and more.

According to its website, CSDE is committed to ensuring that all students regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, family wealth, zip code, or disability status have access to excellent teachers and leaders.

The mission of the CSDE Talent Office is to develop and deploy talent management and human capital development strategies to districts and schools statewide so that the most effective educators are in every school and classroom, and all students are prepared for college, career, and life.

The talent office is also committed to supporting Connecticut’s teachers and leaders at every step of the career continuum: attracting, recruiting, preparing, inducting, supporting, retaining, advancing, and elevating effective teachers and leaders who represent the racial, ethnic, and linguistic diversity of Connecticut’s students

Managing Editor Shannon Hicks can be reached at shannon@thebee.com.

A nonprofit partnership between multiple agencies, TEACH Connecticut offers a one-stop resource center for those who are thinking about becoming a teacher in the Nutmeg State. Its resources are all offered free of charge. —photo courtesy TEACH Connecticut