The University of Memphis is collaborating with Memphis City Schools to create a new center aimed at increasing the retention of first-time teachers in city schools.
The U of M, in collaboration with the College of Education, announced Thursday the creation of a New Teacher Center to promote professional development and mentoring to increase new-teacher retention rates and improve student achievement in Memphis City Schools.
“The program will use integrated support and assessment to create an atmosphere that encourages teachers to develop the skills necessary to stay in the field and perform at their highest levels,” City School Superintendent Johnnie B. Watson said.
The NTC is being established with an $863,000 grant from the Plough Foundation and will be operational at the start of the school year this fall. It will be modeled after and affiliated with the New Teacher Center at the University of California, Santa Cruz. The NTC at Santa Cruz has a new-teacher five-year retention rate of 94 percent, while the national average is 50 percent.
“We are looking forward to that kind of success in our program as well,” U of M President Shirley Raines said in a press conference Thursday. “At The University of Memphis we try to learn from good programs and make them better.”
The primary goal of the NTC is to provide a program of support and assessment in which the advancement of skills and knowledge is a continuous flow from pre-service through the first two years of teaching and beyond, according to Ric Hovda, dean of The U of M College of Education.
“The NTC will provide a unique opportunity for The U of M and the Memphis City School system to recruit new teachers with the promise of support from veteran teachers who know the challenges of teaching,” Watson said.
Research by the U.S. Department of Education has shown the benefit of intensive support received by new teachers during the first two years of service. Benefits include higher levels of professional competence and greater success in working with culturally diverse students.
Under The U of M program, new teachers work with veteran teachers to develop professional goals and strategies to guide their collaborative work. The plan is revised and modified throughout the year to ensure the use of the most current and most effective strategies.
The NTC will be composed of staff development coordinators, new and veteran teachers, Memphis Education Association representatives, Memphis City School central administration, building principals and community members.
Seventy-five new teachers from Memphis City Schools will be enrolled at the NTC during each year of the two-year pilot program. Their involvement, Hovda said, will provide valuable insight into the impact of teacher mentoring on student achievement in impoverished urban schools, as well as information The University can use to refine its academic teacher-preparation program.
In addition to the mentoring provided by the program, U of M faculty members will develop and present seminars to give new teachers networking opportunities and offer supplemental instruction and problem-solving forums.
Watson said Memphis City Schools will provide $350,000 in salary support for the mentor teachers over the two-year grant period and release time for new teachers to participate in program activities.
“I am very proud of this partnership with The University of Memphis,” Watson said. “It is a partnership of common goals for a common good: the education of our children.”
