Addressing the Need for Licensed STEM Educators via a Masters of Arts Teaching Program Through Partnership, Needs Assessment, and Recruitment.

Guilford College aims to serve the national need to prepare high-quality secondary science teachers by conducting a capacity-building project to develop a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) secondary science licensure program. Selection of prospective high-school teacher candidates will include scholars with undergraduate degrees in biology or chemistry. The strategies employed by the MAT program will address the preparation and retention of qualified science teachers in North Carolina and offer a model to strengthen the content knowledge of secondary science teacher candidates and increase the scientific literacy of high school students throughout the state. This project at Guilford College includes partnerships with local high-need school districts, including Guilford County Schools and South Davidson High School, as well as higher education institutions with STEM MAT programs, including Christopher Newport University, University of South Carolina, and Maryville College. Project goals include the development of an implementation plan for a STEM MAT licensure program targeting students with undergraduate degrees in biology and chemistry. A MAT Task Force will be established, composing Guilford faculty and administrators, local education agency (LEA) partners, and other stakeholders to provide input into the project. The Task Force will also develop recruitment and marketing capacity to attract diverse teacher candidates reflective of the school districts served. The STEM MAT program will model efforts to create a diverse, highly qualified STEM teacher workforce with a curricular focus on secondary student academic achievement and STEM skills readiness. The project team will disseminate evaluation findings through listservs, conferences, and other forums to small, private universities preparing STEM teachers to serve high-need LEAs. This Capacity Building project is supported through the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (Noyce). The Noyce program supports talented STEM undergraduate majors and professionals to become effective K-12 STEM teachers and experienced, exemplary K-12 teachers to become STEM master teachers in high-need school districts. It also supports research on the effectiveness and retention of K-12 STEM teachers in high-need school districts. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.