Educator Talent Pathways

Educator Talent Pathways

The Challenge

Many teachers report that their teacher preparation experiences didn’t prepare them for the job. What’s more, pathways into teaching aren’t bringing in or retaining enough teachers who share backgrounds with the increasingly diverse students they serve.

The Opportunity

Imagine if teacher preparation truly prepared candidates to innovate, collaboratively lead, and drive student-centered change in their schools. And imagine multiple, flexible—but still rigorous—pathways into teaching that were accessible to candidates of more diverse identities and professional backgrounds.

Our Work

We’re working to advance teacher preparation policies, programs, and pathways that recruit, prepare, and retain innovative and talented educators who reflect the communities they serve.

Featured Resources

Blog Post · February 15, 2023

Legislators look to add new options for teachers to demonstrate competency in their home language.

ResourceReport · June 23, 2020June 2020

In this paper, we explore why heritage language matters, the state and federal policies that support heritage language instruction, the learning programs leading this work, and the challenges heritage languages programs face.

ResourceMemo · June 11, 2019June 2019

Based on extensive stakeholder engagement, we identified nine areas that we recommend the Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board (PELSB) strengthen or add when drafting Minnesota's new teacher standards.

ResourceMemo · August 6, 2018August 2018

The new four-tiered teacher licensure system was created by the legislature during the 2017 legislative session. This FAQ covers the new system and the Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board.