The Education Policy Hotlist
A conversation with the CEO of the National Center for Teacher Residencies: What their latest report means for the future of teacher training
Good morning. I am excited to share a slight deviation from my typical Hotlist content this week. I have had the opportunity to support Oregon's statewide teacher diversity reporting in the past through the Educator Advancement Council.
During that time, I learned how challenging it can be to create coherence among K-12, higher education, and community initiatives to diversify the teaching workforce. When I heard from the National Center for Teacher Residencies about their latest webinar and report, I was thrilled to find a way to unpack their recommendations for the Hotlist readers. Please read and share with your networks!
Last month, I was pleased to speak with Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell, CEO of the National Center for Teacher Residencies. The organization is dedicated to developing and building teacher residencies to address persistent school inequities.
During our conversation, she discussed the center's latest report, "Doing Better for Black Educators: Six Policy Recommendations for Improving the Recruitment and Preparation of Black Educators," and the immediate next steps lawmakers and system leaders can take.
Feel free to navigate directly to the sections that pique your interest and skip the ones that don't.
Congratulations on the successful report and webinar!
Can you start with some background information about the National Center for Teacher Residencies (NCTR) and how you define teacher residencies?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: The National Center for Teacher Residencies was founded in 2007 with the goal of preparing qualified individuals to become effective, diverse-quality teachers who can teach all students, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds.
NCTR defines teacher residencies based on core characteristics modeled after the medical residency system. These residencies are year-long placements, where residents are present from the first day of the school year to the last. This is a pivotal component of any educator's preparation.
The residency model includes a financial component, as finances are often a significant barrier for individuals seeking to become teachers. The teacher residency model offers a stipend, empowering residents to earn money while they learn.
Each resident is paired with a mentor teacher, who is their host teacher in the K-12 setting. These mentors are trained according to specific criteria, such as being skilled at teaching children and adults.
NCTR's teacher residencies are grounded in partnerships between the university system and the school district. This collaboration creates a feedback loop between what's happening in the school district and how students are being prepared in the university, combining theory and practice.
One of the benefits of the residency model is that residents spend four days a week in the classroom and dedicate the last day to coursework. This structure allows residents to immediately apply the theoretical concepts they learn in the classroom with students in real-time.
I wish my student teaching had been more like this when I was in college.
Could you elaborate on your journey to NCTR? How did you end up here at this moment?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: As a graduate of public school education, from my high school diploma all the way to my doctorate, I am proud to say that I had the privilege of being taught by excellent teachers throughout my education. This is the reason why I am driven to ensure that students receive the same quality of education that I did.
I work at NCTR because I have witnessed education at all levels of the public education system. I have been a kindergarten teacher, a professor in community and state colleges, and a university dean. Through these experiences, I have been able to observe how we prepare teachers from different angles.
As a dean, I noticed how different teacher pathways were producing varied outcomes for future teachers. I could not ignore the fact that my teacher residencies were the most diverse, with students not accruing as much debt and producing high retention rates. I remember thinking, "This is the future of teaching."
Therefore, I was compelled to join NCTR to advocate for a pathway that prepares better teachers and keeps them in the classroom because they are adequately prepared for the job.
The report suggests that we need to create pathways for recruitment while designing for retention, especially for teachers of color.
Could you tell me more about the Black Educators Initiative and the work you're doing in this area?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: In 2019, NCTR launched the Black Educators Initiative (BEI) with a goal to create 750 new Black teachers across the U.S. We brought together a community of practice consisting of 27 residencies within our broader network of 48 residencies. The 27 BEI partners receive pass-through dollars to fund direct stipends for residents to pay for tuition and other costs, as well as supplemental funds for licensure and exam expenses.
We also established a support fund for students who needed additional help during their residency. What we discovered was that a one-time payment of $400-$800 was often the deciding factor for whether students could continue in the program.
As a former dean, I wish I had access to funds that weren't necessarily tied to scholarships. This was the first opportunity where we could say, "Don't drop out of school. Don't accumulate debt and then not obtain your professional degree. We can help you, and here's a way to keep you in the program."
The report highlights a significant barrier faced by teachers of color, who often take out loans and accrue more interest than their peers, a topic that is typically under-discussed.
The report's core recommendation is that teacher preparation should be financially accessible, requiring a fundamental change in the financial model of the teacher preparation system.
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: Currently, most teacher preparation programs hold two entities responsible for finances: the university and the teacher candidate. The report advocates for spreading financial responsibility across the system, involving the university, resident, future employer (school district or school), state or federal agency, and philanthropic organizations. This approach makes the funding visible, which is another defining difference between residencies and traditional teacher preparation programs.
When people argue that teacher residencies are expensive, it's important to remember that becoming a teacher is expensive. The difference is that in traditional teacher preparation programs, the candidate pays, and expenses are not discussed. By making the system transparent, stakeholders can see the actual cost of preparing high-quality teachers, and all parties feel responsible for supporting and retaining teachers.
How are residency programs reducing barriers to increase the proportion of teachers of color across the U.S.?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: Research has shown that cost is a major barrier to becoming a teacher in the U.S., particularly for individuals from under-resourced communities. To recruit future teachers from such communities, it is essential to eliminate the burden of debt. The residency model offers a solution by providing a stipend to future teachers, thereby removing the financial barrier.
Furthermore, the residency model is proving to be more effective in recruiting teachers of color than traditional teacher preparation programs. This is because recruiters specifically target students for the residency model, connecting the value proposition of becoming a teacher with the residency program and the unique experience it offers.
The Black Educators Initiative is another important aspect of residency programs, empowering recruiters of color to engage with Black communities on diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies, as well as teaching as a service to the community. By connecting students' backgrounds to their learning experiences, these initiatives resonate with people.
Residency programs are also focused on culturally and linguistically sustaining practices, with an emphasis on racial literacy - recognizing, responding to, and countering forms of racism. These programs push against any type of harm and uplift positive stories from the community, defining communities of color by their uplifting, rich lived experiences instead of oppression.
Tacher residencies are critical for improving the entryway for teachers of color. According to your report, 62% of teacher residents in NCTR programs identify as persons of color, compared to only 20% of teacher preparation programs nationally.
How can traditional teacher preparation programs implement incremental changes to reap these benefits?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: It all begins with systems change. Traditional teacher preparation programs can start by making incremental changes to fundamental aspects of their systems. For example, programs can better understand the financial needs of their students, ensure that students see themselves represented in the teacher preparation curriculum, instructors, and recruitment offices.
It is also critical that teacher preparation programs provide opportunities and spaces for affinity groups, allowing individuals to feel supported and learn about self-advocacy and self-care.
During a recent webinar, Lindsay Hamilton from Nashville Teacher Residency shared that she asks every graduate two questions: "What helped you during our program, and if anywhere, where were you harmed?" The second question is particularly important because while positive feedback is useful, it's also essential to identify areas where improvement is necessary. By asking people where they felt harmed during the program, the program can mitigate those situations and focus on uplifting the voices of individuals who have gone through the program.
Part of the challenge in recruiting and retaining teachers of color is that this role often feels unsafe and invisible.
Do you believe that collecting data and asking these questions through a residency partnership can help stakeholders collectively push back against systemic harm?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: Absolutely. The partnership between universities, schools, or state agencies is a critical component of the residency model because it enables organizations to understand each other's needs and provide mutual support.
As a former dean, for instance, I participated in a steering committee alongside a superintendent, where we discussed preparing teachers for their district. I inquired about the residents' progress in their schools, identified areas where they needed to improve, and examined how we could map these skills into our courses. Concurrently, we were able to share the latest research on instructional strategies with the district to apply within their schools. These collaborations are a win-win situation.
The residency program became a catalyst for me and the superintendent to learn more about each other's organizations. We pieced together the puzzle. First, we established a residency program, and then we thought about how else we could positively impact students' lives.
Residency programs are unique because they offer high-touch mentorship and partnerships.
Tell me more about how leaders across the country can apply what we've learned from teacher residency models to their own programs.
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: One key recommendation is investing in supporting mentors who can cultivate Black educators. This is essential because when a resident is placed in a mentor teacher's classroom, they model everything they learn. Although it's a lot of responsibility, the rewards are significant.
Let me share a personal experience. When I was in my teacher preparation program, my professor placed me with a kindergarten teacher who was an African-American female with 25 years of teaching experience. He said, "She's going to be able to talk to you about what it's like teaching as an African-American female inside schools and model the best instructional practices that we need all of our students to see, but she's also going to have different conversations." I trusted him, and over 20 years later, she is still my mentor. I credit my entire career to her guidance and support.
We don't highlight the power of mentor teachers and long-term connections enough. Having someone to talk to, trust, and guide you through different situations is invaluable. Without my mentor, navigating the school system would have been much harder.
Oh, interesting! That is a powerful story.
Is there any research on same-race mentor-mentee relationships similar to the research on student-teacher outcomes?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: Our NCTR team has conducted research on same-race mentorship and found that teacher residents of color who share a racial or ethnic identity with their mentor teacher are reported to be better prepared and more satisfied with their overall preparation experience. However, I also believe that having mentors of color who are not individuals of color can be powerful because we all need to interact with one another and learn from each other's lived experiences in safe ways.
This brings me to the final recommendation in the report. We must include the voices of Black educators in the development of teacher education programs. Teacher education programs should convene advisory groups to ask graduates about their experiences and incorporate Black students’ perspectives. Programs can implement a gap analysis to identify where they can infuse more culturally and linguistically sustaining practices. They can fine-tune their programming to ensure that diversity goes beyond just one course, and all courses discuss equity and anti-racism.
In the webinar, Dr. Latanya Daniels from Minnesota emphasized the importance of looking at qualitative data to understand how students experience our school settings. The same applies to teacher preparation programs. We need to know not only how many students are graduating but also how they felt about going through our programs.
To address this, we should engage different individuals within our ecosystem of education to find out the culture of our schools, where we are affirming for people, where we may be causing harm, and how to stop doing that. If we want to retain teachers, especially individual teachers of color, we need to use our data to change our systems. This issue is not unique to one region of the country, and we're seeing it across the United States.
We are currently encountering distinctive challenges in our teacher workforce across various communities in our country.
In what ways do you believe teacher residency models can address some of these challenges?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: I understand that creating teacher residency programs takes time, and many superintendents are currently in need of teachers to fill classrooms. However, at NCTR, our focus is on the long-term objective of enhancing retention rates by training teachers in the appropriate manner.
Through our research, we have discovered that by taking a step back and providing individuals with a 15-18 month residency program, we can produce teachers who remain in the profession for a longer period of time. Consequently, there will be fewer vacancies to fill, and classrooms will be staffed with highly trained educators.
Although the immediate reaction today may be to quickly locate and place anyone in a classroom due to the pressing need for teachers, an unprepared individual is unlikely to stay, and they will not be able to help students in reaching their full potential since they were not adequately trained. Therefore, the real question we must ask ourselves is, "Would we be satisfied with this for our own child?" If the answer is no, then we need to consider why it is acceptable for other people's children.
It appears that we've accelerated the implementation of our education strategies.
In this context, NCTR plays a crucial role in helping system leaders to explore the best options. This report can be an invaluable resource for other teacher preparation programs. Is there anything else you'd like to add?
Dr. Kathlene Holmes Campbell: The reality is that effective teacher preparation programs require some time to establish. By investing in the early stages, we will enjoy the benefits over a more extended period and involve a more diverse group of stakeholders.
We must maintain a long-term perspective. For instance, our BEI initiative has demonstrated that we can attract and retain teachers of color. We are confident that we will surpass our goal of 750 Black educators. At NCTR, we are emphasizing that there are proven methods to expand and diversify the teaching profession for more people.
For those reading the report, please remember that implementing even one of the recommendations can bring about a significant change. While it would be great if all six were implemented, lawmakers or superintendents can advocate for a single component that can build momentum for a more extensive movement. It's like fitting puzzle pieces together, and hopefully, these recommendations will help individuals across the country who may have been struggling with the question "What else do we need to do?" gain insight into other strategies and ways to attract and diversify the teaching profession.
Dr. Christine M. T. Pitts serves as Senior Policy Fellow at the Center on Reinventing Public Education, where she oversees policy leadership and external affairs. With a background as a teacher and researcher, Christine previously led research and evaluation for Portland Public Schools and served as Policy Advisor at NWEA, where she oversaw state and federal policy to advance equity and innovation in educational assessment. Follow her on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter for updates.