WFF Grant to Expand, Strengthen ATC Program
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The Arkansas Teacher Corps recently received a $3.6 million Walton Family Foundation grant that will help expand and strengthen the program. The Arkansas Teacher Corps—a partnership between the U of A College of Education and Health Professions, Walton Family Foundation, Arkansas Department of Education and Arkansas K-12 school districts—provides an accelerated path to teaching at a time when many Arkansas schools are facing severe teacher shortages. The grant will support 105 new teaching fellows through 2025, an 84% increase over the 57 fellows that ATC has supported for the past three years.
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"Thanks to the program, I am fulfilling my life's purpose as an educator. I honestly feel as if I'm the teacher I needed when I was in school — firm, but caring. I am always concerned about the things that go on with my students in and out of the classroom." ~Freda Calloway, 2020 ATC Fellow and ELA teacher in McGehee
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Five Join 2023 Cohort After 2nd Deadline
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ATC staff recently completed the selection process for our second application deadline of the year. For the January 1 early deadline, we received 21 applications, interviewed 10 applicants, and accepted 5 fellows for the 2023 cohort. These fellows are working on certification in elementary education; middle school science, ELA, and social studies; and high school social studies.
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Teachers Needed for Recruitment/Retention Survey
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A team of graduate students is seeking input from non-ATC teachers across the state in order to better understand the factors that influence teacher recruitment and retention in Arkansas. Feedback from Arkansas teachers is particularly valuable as the research team will compile current best practices and make recommendations regarding recruitment and retention efforts.
Scan the QR code above or click the link below to take the survey. Survey participants will be entered into a raffle for a chance to win $250 in supplies for their classroom. All survey responses are anonymous. The survey closes 3/10.
Arkansas Teacher Corps is partnering with the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service (UACS) to host a team of first-year students in the school’s Master of Public Service degree program during the 2022-23 school year. The ATC/UACS Practicum Team is researching teacher recruitment, retention, and attrition factors in Arkansas through a combination of online surveys, in-person focus groups, and individual interviews. Read more about the 22-23 practicum projects here.
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ATC to Assess Fellows' Impact on Learning
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Learning and growth for all students is paramount to us at ATC. One of our long-standing traditions is an annual program evaluation to assess the impact that our fellows have on their students' learning and growth throughout the school year. Although we've been unable to conduct our annual evaluation for the past three years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are excited to re-start the process this spring. Through a combination of classroom observations, student surveys, and analysis of ACT Aspire data, our evaluation seeks to identify the additional impact that an ATC fellow has on student achievement compared to their peers. This data is used exclusively to evaluate our own program and report to stakeholders about the effectiveness of ATC teachers overall and is in no way reflective of any individual school or district. Furthermore, as a program of the U of A, ATC adheres to all university policies regarding the confidentiality and privacy of student data. This will be a similar process to the evaluation last conducted in spring 2019; click here to read the 2019 final report. Contact us at atc@uark.edu with any questions or concerns about the evaluation process. |
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Fellows Take Moment for Mindfulness at 3rd PD
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On Saturday, February 11, Arkansas Teacher Corps fellows and staff met at Chicot Elementary in Little Rock for the third All Corps professional development of the 2022-23 year. The all-day event began with a mindfulness session led by a guest facilitator from the social-emotional learning non-profit Breathe For Change in the morning, followed by content-specific development and equity after lunch. Overall, 90% of fellows reported both experiencing a moment of mindfulness during the morning and growing as a facilitator of their content.
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Cade Vallee, Teacher Development Manager
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Cade coaches and supports teachers through classroom observations and debriefs, in addition to coordinating and facilitating professional development. A native of southwest Arkansas, he attended DeQueen High School where he was a member of the National Honor Society. Cade graduated from Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, AR in 2017 with a B.F.A. in Studio Art where he was also a tutor, ceramics studio assistant, curator intern, and four-time participant in the HSU Student Competitive. He joined ATC as a 2019 fellow teaching 4-9 art at Maddux Elementary and East Junior High in West Memphis, AR. Since then, Cade has served in a variety of leadership roles including soccer coach, ATC Summer Mentor, and Teach Plus Arkansas Policy Fellow. As a full-time teacher coach, he draws upon the experiences he had with his own ATC coach to empower new teaching fellows through collective problem-solving, resource-sharing, and personal growth.
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Final Application Deadline is March 1
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The final deadline for 2023 ATC Fellowships is March 1. Interested individuals must submit an application online through our new portal that will now allow applicants to save their progress and request up to three recommendations. Final interviews are tentatively scheduled for March 14-16 on Zoom, and successful applicants will begin training in summer 2023.
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STEM Equity Leaders Program
Join a 30-min info session to learn more!
Apply here!
Are you an emerging STEM teacher leader who wants to lead transformative change in your school district? Join our international network of STEM Ed Equity Leaders and create meaningful change in STEM education with us. The STEM Equity Leaders program is designed to provide emerging leaders with the curriculum and practices needed to create transformative learning communities within their school or district. The program launches with a 3-day Leadership Institute during one of the following sessions: April 11-13 (Session 1); April 29, May 6, May 13 (Session 2); June 27-29 (Session 3); or August 8-10 (Session 4). Participants receive a small stipend.
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Upcoming Events & Important Dates
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Mar 1 -- Third Application Deadline
Mar 27-Apr 28 -- Spring Fellow TESS Evaluation Window
April 3-7 -- Fellow Monthly Workshops (April)
April 15 -- Fellow All Corps PD #4
May 1-5 -- Fellow Monthly Workshops (May)
May 20 -- End-of-Year Celebration
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