Drexel program gets $1.2 million grant to tackle city’s ‘desperate’ need for STEM teachers

A program called Dragons Teach Middle Years led by Drexel University will aim to certify 40 undergraduate students as science and math teachers every year by 2022, thanks to a $1.2 million grant from the Philadelphia School Partnership.

The program, based out of Drexel’s School of Education, was founded in partnership with TNTP (a nonprofit focusing on practice-based teacher preparation) to “address the decline in certified teachers, particularly in urban settings,” per a press release published Monday.

At first, the program will seek to enroll undergraduates from Drexel’s College of Arts and Sciences who show high academic achievement, a commitment to social justice and experience working with low-income communities. Undergraduate students will spend 30 weeks embedded in Philly classrooms as part of their training.

“Thanks to this partnership, we have a rare opportunity to help meet the city’s desperate need for middle-school math and science teachers, launch Drexel graduates on rewarding careers, and develop an intensive teacher training program that will serve as a national model,” said Drexel University President John Fry. “I am profoundly grateful to the Philadelphia School Partnership for their confidence in Drexel’s School of Education.”

The program reminds us of Drexel’s other training program for teachers, the federally-backed REThink, which is focused on computer science training for high school teachers. Drexel is really doubling down on developing the STEM pipeline through teacher training, which feels like one actually tangible way to increase diversity in tech. Penn also did the federal RET program last summer. Any other local universities training middle and high school teachers?

(Btw, Drexel’s REthink is now accepting applications for its 2017-2018 program.)