Strengthening Teacher Preparation & Development in Dallas County Convening

Please join us at Pegasus Park on Tuesday, January 14th from 9-12:30 pm as we convene school district leaders and Educator Preparation Program (EPP) providers to identify collective action we can take to strengthen the preparation, development, and retention of great teacher candidates in Dallas County classrooms.

Convening Background

In the years following COVID, school districts across Texas are facing significant challenges when it comes to hiring, placing, and retaining qualified teacher candidates, particularly in high-need subject areas. To address these challenges, program deans and directors from 10 EPPs placing teacher candidates across Dallas County formed a working group with Commit this summer, where we analyzed regional teacher workforce data, identified a shared problem of focus, and drafted a theory of action to improve teacher quality and outcomes for students across the region. To ensure this theory of action is aligned to district needs, we are hosting this event to get input from district leaders and identify action EPPs and districts can take to strengthen the support of teachers across the region.

EPP Working Group Participants: City Teaching Alliance, Dallas College, Region 10 ESC, Relay Graduate School of Education, Southern Methodist University, Texas A&M University - Commerce, Texas Tech, Texas Women's University, University of North Texas, & University of North Texas - Dallas

Convening Objectives

During this convening, participants will...

• Reflect on the currect challenges our early career teachers are facing and the impact of under-prepared teachers on Pk-12 students
• Discuss recently released educator workforce data and research
• Review and share feedback on the Dallas County EPP Working Group's draft theory of action
• Identify goals and high-impact collective action that EPPs can take in partnership with Dallas County school districts to strengthen teacher preparation, development, and retention

Convening Logistics

Pastries and coffee will be available in the morning, and lunch will be served at noon. We will share building instructions for Pegasus Park with participants by early January. We encourage you to share this registration form with others in your organization you believe should attend.

ABOUT THE COMMIT PARTNERSHIP

The Commit Partnership is a collective impact organization composed of hundreds of partners across Dallas County and the state of Texas supported by a dedicated 'backbone' staff of 60+ professionals.

Together, the Partnership cultivates a collaborative educational ecosystem across school systems, higher education institutions, city, county, and state governments, foundations, non-profits, employers and workforce agencies.

Commit Partnership's 'true north' goal is that by 2040, at least half of all 25-34 year old residents, irrespective of race, will earn a living wage. To increase living wage attainment, we must equitably increase educational success aligned with high demand jobs, maximizing the cumulative impact from providing a quality early education to ensuring that every student graduates high school ready for college, career, and/or military and able to accesses and completes a strong postsecondary education

Host or Publisher The Commit Partnership