Posted by Saint Paul Public Schools on Nov. 30, 2017 

Updated on November, 21, 2019

 

Saint Paul Public Schools (SPPS) is working to recruit, prepare and retain highly qualified teachers from diverse backgrounds through a unique partnership with the University of St. Thomas. The SPPS Urban Teacher Residency (SUTR) program combines an affordable, accelerated Master’s degree program with a year-long co-teaching experience in an SPPS classroom.

The program is open to anyone with a Bachelor’s degree who would like to become an SPPS teacher, preference is given to current SPPS employees. Participants earn a Master’s degree and teaching license in just 15 months.

To date, 72 program graduates are teaching in SPPS schools. An additional 22 participants are currently in the program, and our 5th Cohort will begin at the end of May 2020. The application deadline for Cohort 5 is February 14, 2020.

An extraordinary aspect of the program is that “candidates can attain their master’s degree and teaching license while co-teaching with a trained SPPS mentor teacher,” said Danaya Franke, program coordinator. “SUTR is a great pathway to bring teachers into SPPS who mirror the backgrounds of our students,” she added.

Benefits of the SUTR program include tuition at $660 per credit plus scholarship opportunities at the University of St. Thomas (UST). Residents receive a $21,000.00 stipend for the school-year program. SUTR residents also receive priority hire in SPPS upon completion of the program.

“This program removes barriers for aspiring teachers, suhc as time and money,” said Franke. “Residents receive a lot of support. They have their SPPS mentor, SUTR Specialists, University teachers and Supervisor who are there to teach them and help them grow.”

The SUTR program began after SPPS was awarded a grant from the National Center of Teacher Residencies in the spring of 2016. The program has also received grant funding from the Minnesota Department of Education. Most recently, SUTR was awarded the Black Educator's Initiative (BEI) grant.

SUTR is hosting several information sessions for prospective candidates in the next few months.

Visit the SUTR website to view information session dates and to find out more: https://www.spps.org/SUTR