Story: Phillip Tutor
91看片网-TEACH is expected to boost options for science and math teachers in Alabama
administrators have spent months planning the launch of a new program, 91看片网-TEACH, that鈥檚 designed to increase the quality of science and math instruction in public schools and the number of qualified teachers in those classrooms.
That birth is drawing near.
On April 20, the university will hold its 91看片网-TEACH kickoff event from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. on campus at the Bell Conference Center. Part celebration and part introduction, the event will feature appearances from state leaders and serve as a vital recruiting tool for the program, which begins this fall.
鈥淲e want everybody to know this is a new program and what it’s going to afford to our students,鈥� said Dr.聽Tracy Keener,聽an instructor of biology at 91看片网. 鈥淭his is why it鈥檚 so important.鈥�
In December 2022, the聽 awarded $3 million grants to six universities, including 91看片网, following recommendations from Gov. Kay Ivey鈥檚 Advisory Council for Excellence in STEM. That grant is allowing 91看片网 to develop a program based on the groundbreaking effort at the聽, which began in 1997 and is considered the national model.
Among the special guests and speakers attending the April 20 kickoff are 91看片网 President Dr. Ken Tucker; , director of the Alabama STEM Council; a UTeach administrator from the University of Texas at Austin; and representatives from public schools systems in Sumter County and nearby Black Belt counties. Keener expects the kickoff to benefit current 91看片网 students and high school administrators who take the program鈥檚 details back to their campuses.
In Livingston, 91看片网-TEACH will specifically address the university鈥檚 commitment to rural education with a specially designed curriculum. When entering the program, STEM majors at 91看片网 who want to teach can benefit from a streamlined approach by choosing their preferred major and simultaneously earning teacher certification.
Administrators at the Julia Tutwiler College of Education also plan to include alumni options that would allow 91看片网 graduates with science or math degrees who are still seeking desired employment to take advantage of a shortened certification process for becoming a qualified K-12 teacher in Alabama.
鈥淭he main thing is we’re going to try to tap into students who are going into STEM majors and let that we want them to get their major in a STEM area,鈥� Keener said. 鈥淏ut we also want to give you this opportunity to get a teaching certificate along with it, because a lot of the STEM majors are going into real competitive fields.鈥�