The residency is recruiting candidates for high-needs school districts throughout Colorado, including metro Denver and rural districts in the northeast, southeast and southwest parts of the state and the San Luis Valley.

Through the Boettcher Teacher Residency, aspiring teachers spend a full year in the classroom with a mentor teacher as they earn a Colorado teaching license and a stipend, and work toward a Master’s degree from Adams State University. Residents also benefit from significantly reduced costs to obtain a Master’s degree, a culturally and linguistically diverse endorsement on their teaching license, and job-placement assistance. Fully 100 percent of residency graduates obtain a professional teaching position upon earning their license. Candidates with a Bachelor’s degree and a commitment to supporting student growth in high-needs schools are eligible to apply to the residency.

Nationwide, about half of new teachers quit the profession within one to three years. This exacerbates a widespread teacher shortage that leaves Colorado school districts struggling to fill thousands of open positions each year, especially in high-poverty schools where teachers are needed most. Graduates of the Boettcher Teacher Residency are retained in the teaching profession—specifically in high-needs schools—at an average rate of 93 percent after more than eight years.

“Like the rest of the country, Colorado is in the midst of a severe teacher shortage,” said Belle Faust, executive director of the Boettcher Teacher Residency. “We are confident that our residency program gives new teachers the best chance of success during their most challenging years in the classroom. We’re committed to dramatically increasing the quality of training and support that new teachers receive as well as professional development opportunities throughout their careers.”

Aspiring teachers spend a full year in the classroom with a mentor teacher while they earn their teaching license. As they take over leadership of their own classrooms, these new teachers continue to be supported with significant professional development, one-on-one coaching and resources for an additional four years—a level of support that is unmatched in any similar teacher-training program in the state of Colorado or the nation. Independent evaluations have shown that children taught by Boettcher teachers consistently outperform their peers. In addition, principals report that resident teachers positively impact their classrooms from day one.

“I was really excited to join a program with people who are so passionate about the same thing, knowing I could take this journey with them,” said Boettcher Teacher Monica Garcia, Center Consolidated School District. “I’m having a lot of fun as a first-year teacher because of Boettcher and knowing I’m going to have those people to guide me through. It’s so helpful getting to talk to other teachers in the program in their first year, struggling with the same things and coming up with ways together to be successful.”

Since its establishment in 2004, the Boettcher Teacher Residency has prepared and retained a network of over 240 effective teachers who have been placed in school districts throughout Colorado. In 2015, the Boettcher Teacher Residency merged with the Stanley Teacher Prep program to become Colorado’s largest and most effective residency-based teacher-preparation program. This partnership enabled the residency to expand and deepen its service to aspiring teachers by increasing the number of resident teachers it accepts from around 130 to more than 180 in the first two years alone.

The residency is generously funded by the Boettcher Foundation, which has invested $15 million in the program to date. In addition, PEBC has been awarded a Federal grant exceeding $2.9 million and Colorado Department of Education grants totaling $2.5 million to expand the Boettcher Teacher Residency to rural school districts throughout Colorado. PEBC is additionally supported by corporate partners who believe in the organization’s ability to provide a well-educated workforce that is prepared for the careers of the 21st century and beyond.

About PEBC

PEBC is a Colorado-based nonprofit organization that works with teachers, schools, and districts throughout Colorado and nationwide to cultivate great teachers, improve student growth and success, and advance education. PEBC provides professional development for practicing educators, and operates the Boettcher Teacher Residency, which prepares individuals to have exceptional teaching careers through a clinical master’s degree program. For over 30 years, PEBC’s mission has been to drive cutting-edge teaching practices, and inform and provoke the public to improve education for all.

Contacts

For PEBC
Stacey Sepp, APR, 303-928-7144
[email protected]