In 2023, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools got state approval to launch a teacher residency program.
The initiative provides an alternative route for teacher assistants, substitutes and those changing careers to earn their educator’s license.
Surprise Patrol
In January, teacher residency program staff members began delivering acceptance letters to early applicants joining the fourth cohort. They call this "Surprise Patrol."
As they made their way through the halls of Morgan Elementary School, Karen Morris, the program director, held silver and blue star balloons in one hand and her phone in the other, recording a video.
She was ready to capture the moment that Christine Ditmars, a third-grade teacher, got the news she had been accepted.
When they entered her classroom and made the announcement, Ditmars and all of her students began to cheer.
Ditmars is currently teaching with a temporary license, which expires after a year. To continue, the state requires her to join an educator preparation program, like this one.
“I've been wanting to be a teacher my whole life. Right out of college, everyone told me not to do it, so my path kind of led me to office management," Ditmars said. "And I just kept having this, in the back of my head, this moment of like, this just isn't for me.”
Path to the classroom
She has three kids of her own. When her youngest went to kindergarten, that urge to be in the classroom came back. And Ditmars ended up becoming a teacher assistant for that age group.
“And right then and there, I knew I was in the right spot," she said. "So here I've been ever since.
Roughly 63% of those who have participated in the district’s residency program have been teachers like her, working with temporary licenses.
Morris says they’ve also admitted lots of teacher assistants looking to grow, as well as long-term substitutes and career changers.
“We've had folks that were retired engineers, for example, that are teaching math. Pastors who are teaching in middle school and high school at this point," Morris said. "Stay-at-home parents who decided that they wanted to be a part of the solution of public education.”
Alternative licensure programs grow
Until recently, the only way to become a licensed teacher in North Carolina was to complete an educator preparation program through a university.
Legislation changed that in 2017, allowing private organizations, community colleges and school districts to offer pathways to licensure too. The latest data from the state shows that more than half of all candidates currently enrolled in educator prep programs are taking these non-traditional routes.
“We know that fewer people are going into education in their undergraduate pathways. Period. Across the nation," Morris said. "And then in North Carolina, it's even worse.”
She says alternative programs, like Winston-Salem/Forsyth County’s, provide more options for those who might not be in a position to return to school to get their license.
Participants teach for a year, while completing their coursework. They also take state-required tests and a performance assessment.
“You film yourself teaching the lessons and reflecting on those. You turn in assessment data, and you show how you can analyze student assessment," Morris said. "And all of that is a portfolio that takes like 75 to 90 hours.”
The state pass rate for that assessment is 85%. Last year, the district’s was 100%.
Morris is also proud of the program’s retention rate.
“Ninety-three percent of the people that have been in our program are still teaching here in the district," Morris said. "We do have a few that have left to go do other things or to teach in other districts, but that 93% retention rate right now is something to really shout.”
She suspects that's due to the structured guidance they provide throughout the complicated licensure process. Without it, Morris says it can be a daunting task.
“Programs like ours that are trying to reduce barriers and increase support can really help identify those folks that would be interested in teaching," she said. "And then help them be able to be successful and join one of the best professions in the world.”
So far, the program has served 104 teachers in the district. They’ll accept 60 people in the upcoming cohort. The deadline to apply is March 1.