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ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ highlighted for addressing teacher shortages

The ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ School of Education was one of nine teacher-preparation programs highlighted in the most recent Department of Education Fact Sheet for its efforts to increase the number of ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ-prepared teachers in rural ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ communities. Those efforts include focusing on recruitment of local residents to the teaching profession, incorporating local and Indigenous knowledge into curriculum, and providing locally offered courses formatted for working students to help them successfully complete their degree.

Last month President Biden and U.S. Education Secretary Cardona called on state policymakers, school districts and higher education leaders to address the shortage of teachers nationwide and construct pathways to increase the number of teachers graduating from certificate programs. They encouraged the use of different COVID federal funding resources to ramp up the effort, including establishing teaching as a registered apprenticeship, creating residency programs for teachers, building loan forgiveness and scholarship programs, and increasing teacher compensation.

ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ School of Education Director Amy Vinlove also serves as the chair of the ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ College of Education Consortium, representing ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ, UAA, and UAS education programs. She recently spoke in Juneau to the Senate Education Committee in support of a proposed bill to increase funding opportunities to support high-quality teacher preparation.

The School of Education has been working collaboratively with ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ school districts and external organizations since 1970 to pursue the goal of preparing effective Indigenous teachers for ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ’s schools since. Most recently, the SILKAT grant (Sustaining Indigenous Local Knowledge Arts and Teaching) has been used to bring local cultural knowledge to the forefront of curriculum. SILKAT is also used to help new teachers competently and confidently teach in and through local arts and culture in ÓÐÁϺÐ×ÓÊÓƵ's schools.

The School of Education also provides stipends for interns demonstrating financial need and is engaged in collaboration with school districts and government entities to establish sustainable funding support for teacher candidates. For more information on the SILKAT grant, visit the . To learn more about our teacher licensure programs visit .

For more information, contact Diane Wallace at dkwallace@alaska.edu.