When her husband recently retired after 22 years, Andujar began to rethink her own career path and recalled her years volunteering in her children鈥檚 schools. She became an educational assistant in a Spanish dual-immersion program in the Clarksville-Montgomery schools, northwest of Nashville.

鈥淚 wasn’t planning to become a teacher, but I noticed how a teacher could transform a student’s life,鈥� she said.

Now she鈥檚 part of an effort to transform educator preparation with the nation鈥檚 first apprenticeship in teaching approved by the U.S. Department of Labor. A partnership between the school district and Austin-Peay State University, the is a 鈥済row-your-own鈥� model in which districts recruit candidates from within their communities and give them extensive on-the-job experience before they take over their own classrooms. With the nation鈥檚 teachers far less racially diverse than the public school students they instruct, many consider the approach an effective way to recruit more Black and Hispanic educators. 

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona highlighted grow-your-own programs in a visit to Tennessee State University last week. He was instrumental in getting Labor Secretary Martin Walsh鈥檚 support for the apprenticeship, according to Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn.

He visited Tennessee State University to learn more about its own with Metro Nashville Public Schools and told that it’s important to “make sure that teachers aren’t working three jobs to make ends meet.”

With the nation currently fixed on staffing shortages and the persistent challenges of hard-to-fill positions, efforts to strengthen the teacher 鈥減ipeline鈥� are among policymakers. Over 20 years ago, a major study of a grow-your-own program for paraprofessionals showed that participants were more likely than new teachers to still be teaching after three years. But the model lacks long-term evidence of effectiveness. Experts say the federal government鈥檚 support 鈥� and potential funding 鈥� should help spread the concept.

鈥淟et鈥檚 get rid of this idea of a first-year teacher,鈥� Schwinn told 社区黑料 last month when she announced the new Teacher Occupation Apprenticeship. 

By the time candidates finish the three-year program, she said they鈥檒l not only have a bachelor鈥檚 degree and teacher certification but also experience working under the supervision of a master educator. While the concept isn鈥檛 new, funding for such programs has been inconsistent, according to a from New America, a center-left think tank. The American Rescue Plan offers a new source of support for the model, but that too will run out, Schwinn said.

Access to state and federal funding for apprenticeships, however 鈥渋s a game changer,鈥� Schwinn said. 鈥淚t is that permanent, recurring source of funding.鈥�

Putting 鈥榙reams on hold鈥�

The awarded more than $130 million in grants to 15 states last year for apprenticeships to meet workforce needs across multiple industries. Becoming a with the labor department 鈥� which requires programs to meet specific quality standards 鈥� puts Tennessee鈥檚 program in position to receive funding that would cover both pay and the cost of education for participants, removing a barrier that often keeps lower-income and non-white candidates from pursuing teaching. 

For now, the state is using $20 million in federal relief funds to support 65 grow-your-own programs across the state, including the one in Clarksville-Montgomery, where Scottie Bonecutter is working in a first-grade classroom while earning a degree and certification in special education. 

She grew up in Clarksville, graduated from the district in 2006 and was doing the 鈥渨hole traditional college thing鈥� she said. Just as she began taking core courses to become a teacher, she got pregnant and had her first son.

鈥淚 ended up putting my dreams on hold,鈥� she said. 

She became an educational assistant in the district in 2018. By the time she applied for the residency program last year, she felt more equipped to take advantage of her mentors鈥� expertise.

鈥淣ow that I鈥檓 an adult, I’m not scared to raise my hand and say, 鈥業 have a struggle with this,鈥欌�� she said, adding that the supervising teachers 鈥渁re willing to literally walk us through every single step of every single decision they make. They are willing to explain every single standard that we use in class.鈥�

Sean Impeartice, the district鈥檚 chief academic officer, said sending candidates to college without the support to balance work, education and family life responsibilities is 鈥渆ducational malpractice.鈥� He hires staff members to work as 鈥渇acilitators,鈥� who Bonecutter said, provide 鈥渆motional support, if you have a lot going on at home, at school or in any aspect of life.鈥�

鈥業mproving practice鈥�

But it鈥檚 a challenging time to become a teacher. Entering the field during the pandemic has been a 鈥渂aptism by fire,鈥� said Impeartice.

Because of staff shortages, some residents have already led classes on their own. Learning to teach for the first time in a remote arrangement was an additional hurdle. Andujar spent much of her first year in the program teaching Spanish grammar remotely.

鈥淚 highly dislike Zoom,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 not a techie person.鈥�

Growing efforts among conservative lawmakers to restrict curriculum also feel out of 鈥渢ouch with the realities of being a teacher,鈥� said Amaya Garcia, the deputy director of New America鈥檚 Pre-K to 12 program. 

That鈥檚 why incentives, such as full tuition and mentoring support, are important for addressing teacher shortages, she said, adding that recruiting paraprofessionals, like Andujar and Bonecutter, is a 鈥渓ogical and sound investment鈥� for policymakers because many already have some college credit, classroom experience and often hail from the communities they鈥檙e serving. 

Apprenticeships generally receive . Governors of both parties have highlighted the model during this year.

But researchers don鈥檛 know enough about whether participants in grow-your-own programs stay in teaching or improve student learning, Garcia said. In 2001, the Wallace Foundation its $50 million Pathways to Teaching Careers program for paraprofessionals and other non-certified staff and found that 81 percent of participants remained in teaching for at least three years after completing the program, compared to 71 percent for new teachers in general.

There鈥檚 even less data on whether students in high school pathway programs ultimately enter and stay in teaching, even though such programs are growing in popularity.

Just last week, the Chicago Public Schools announced that it wants to expand the number of graduates it hires through its program from about 140 annually to over 500. 

One program that Garcia considers 鈥溾�� is the two-year Bilingual Teacher Fellow program in the Highline Public Schools, near Seattle 鈥� a partnership that began in 2016 with Western Washington University to address a specific need for bilingual teachers.

Sandra Ruiz Kim, formerly a manager in a dental office, was among the first to finish the program in 2018. Now a sixth-grade Spanish teacher at Glacier Middle School, she noticed a difference between those who completed the fellowship and those without such experience. 

鈥淲e were able 鈥� even as first-year teachers 鈥� to have meaningful conversations about improving practice,鈥� she said, adding that the experience also gave her access to a network of colleagues, 鈥渨hich can be vital for career progression in an industry that often depends on professional relationships and word-of-mouth reputation.鈥�

A recent showed that 鈥渉omegrown鈥� teachers 鈥� those who teach in the districts where they graduated 鈥� contribute to small improvements in student performance in English language arts.

That confirms why recruiting teachers from the community can be 鈥渁n impactful strategy,鈥� Garcia said, adding, 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to be getting more proof points because we鈥檙e going to have more districts like Highline that have been doing this for several years.鈥�