Cleveland State University Receives $1 Million from the Ohio Department of Education

News Release #14063August 4, 2006Contact: Brian Johnston216.687.2290 pr@csuohio.edu

Cleveland State University Receives $1 Million from the Ohio Department of Education
New program will train high school teachers in high-need subjects

The Ohio Department of Education has awarded Cleveland State University $1 million to provide fast-track training to future teachers of life sciences, chemistry, physics, mathematics, Spanish, Chinese and Arabic. Funding for the award comes from the Ohio Core Initiative.
In the State of Ohio, significant emphasis has been placed on preparing high school graduates for life beyond the K-12 classroom. The emphasis is on better preparing students for success in the work force or college through statewide adoption of a more rigorous high school curriculum that will require all students to complete four years of mathematics, including Algebra II; three years of laboratory-based science, including biology, chemistry and physics; and two years of a foreign language. Through Ohio House Bill 115, $13.2 million has been appropriated to support this focus on the Ohio Core, with the expectation that through a rigorous high school curriculum, more students will be prepared for post-secondary education, technical training, apprenticeships, military, or the work force.
As part of the Ohio Core Initiative, HB 115 set aside $2.6 million to support the participation of teachers licensed in Ohio, as well as mid-career professionals, in a 12-month intensive training program that culminates in teacher licensure in advanced mathematics, laboratory-based science, or a foreign language at the secondary education level and employment with an Ohio school district.
In response to this State need, Cleveland State’s College of Education and Human Services, College of Science, and College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences worked together to develop a fast-track, 12-month program aimed at helping qualified individuals acquire licensure to teach math, science or foreign languages in the secondary school. This new program — the Accelerated Post-baccalaureate Program in Secondary Education — prepares individuals to become classroom teachers in the life sciences, chemistry, physics, mathematics, Spanish, Chinese and Arabic.
“The State and Federal governments have consistently recognized Cleveland State’s national prominence in literacy, math and science education, as evidenced by more than $10 million in grants received over the last few years. This is another excellent example of Cleveland State’s leadership in this area,” noted Dr. Mark Tumeo, Vice Provost for Research and Dean of the College of Graduate Studies.
Working with various school districts in Northeast Ohio, including the Cleveland Municipal School District, Euclid City Schools and Shaker Heights School District, a cohort-based training program will offer both common experiences (field experiences, bi-weekly seminar) as well as content and/or pedagogy coursework targeted toward the needs of each individual participant.
This program targets teachers already licensed in Ohio who want to expand their credentials in order to teach in one of the high-need areas and mid-career professionals who have a high degree of competence or training in a given content area and who wish to teach but are not currently licensed to do so. Supplementing required coursework will be field experiences that are arranged around the current work schedule of each participant, with experiences ranging from the teaching of first-year university students to the direction of summer science fair projects. In addition, these cohorts will participate in Praxis preparation activities and a bi-weekly seminar focused on conflict resolution and other professional matters.
The cohort-based training program will begin on August 26, 2006, and end on August 15, 2007, with individuals ready to enter the secondary classroom in Fall 2007 as fully licensed teachers.
While this 12-month program does not replace the traditional route to high school teaching, it does enable those individuals with significant content expertise to finalize their studies in preparation for high school teaching.
For more information, please contact Dr. Jane Zaharias, College of Education and Human Services, 216.687.4585.