The $2,920,477 grant is funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Augustus F. Hawkins Center of Excellence Program (Hawkins Program). Over the next five years, the BSE will work to:
- Develop an undergraduate credential pathway;
- Recruit candidates from underrepresented groups including community college transfer students, paraprofessionals and other community-based candidates;
- Increase and integrate student support systems;
- Add a World Languages Spanish credential pathway;
- Extend Bilingual Authorization program to teachers currently holding a credential;
- Review and revise courses to increase integration of best practices to support bilingual/dual language literacy instruction, integration of translanguaging practices, infusion of ethnic studies principles, and family/community engagement beyond the elementary years; and
- Strengthen its systems of new teacher support through expansion of the BTEP Induction Program into local, high-needs school districts as well as development of a BTEP Alumni Network with further education and engagement to support the needs of our graduates.
The Berkeley School of Education (BSE) has been awarded a nearly $3 million federal grant that will support efforts to build a pipeline of credentialed bilingual/multilingual teachers, especially teachers of color, and support them through the critical first three years of their classroom teaching.
BSE’s goal is to increase recruitment, support, and retention of bilingual/multilingual and other credentialed teachers of color to work in BSE’s urban partner districts where many schools are under-resourced and have difficulty attracting credential teachers; and support teacher education students to enact rigorous linguistically and culturally sustaining instruction and authentic family engagement.
“The teacher shortage across our country is even more pronounced when we look at the urgent need for bilingual and multilingual teachers, and teachers of color,” said Elisa Salasin, director of teacher education of the BSE’s Berkeley Teacher Education Program (BTEP), which offers a master’s degree plus teaching credential.
“This federal grant is an important step in developing and retaining highly qualified teachers who reflect the student populations they serve and have those teachers in schools where credentialed teachers are most needed,” Salasin said.
The five-year funding supports a collaboration between BTEP and the BSE’s new undergraduate program for students seeking a bachelor’s degree in Educational Sciences, and includes offering the undergraduates a credential pathway. Prospective students will be recruited from the Educational Sciences major, as well as post-baccalaureate prospective teachers from underrepresented backgrounds, such as first-generation college students, community-college transfer students, teachers of color, and bilingual or multilingual teachers in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Students will receive support starting with the application process, and it will continue through their first three years in the classroom, which are known to be the most challenging for new teachers, supported by robust induction and alumni engagement.
“BSE programs have a reputation for developing educational professionals who `educate like democracy depends on it,’” said BSE Dean Michelle D. Young. “Our graduates are committed to co-creating powerful and enriching classrooms and schools that embody the values, relationships, and experiences of a more just world. This federal grant provides an exciting opportunity to grow and extend the reach of our teacher education program, at both the graduate and undergraduate level.”
BSE was able to apply for this grant due to UC Berkeley's Minority-Serving Institution (MSI) status. This MSI status makes UC Berkeley eligible for competitive grant funding to better serve historically underrepresented student populations and expand innovative research endeavors.
Editor's note
For more information about BTEP, contact Elisa Salasin, salasin@berkeley.edu.
For more information about BSE’s undergraduate major in Educational Sciences, contact bse-ugrad@berkeley.edu.
News media professionals seeking an interview with Dean Michelle D. Young or BTEP Director of Teacher Education Elisa Salasin may contact BSE’s Director of Communications Michael Broder, mbroder@berkeley.edu.