Highly successful effort bolsters teacher qualifications, addresses teacher shortages across the region
The Indiana University Northwest School of Education announced a newly formed partnership with the School City of Hammond (SCOH) to improve the educational outcomes of the city’s students by training K-12 teachers currently working on emergency permits. The SCOH joins the Gary Community School Corporation and the School City of East Chicago in offering IU Northwest’s Urban Teacher Preparation Program (UTEP) as a path to full licensure.
The partnership provides reimbursement to teachers for associated educational expenses, including tuition and textbooks. There are currently dozens of Gary and East Chicago teachers taking advantage of the UTEP curriculum, preparing them to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Education and become fully licensed in 18 to 24 months. Participating teachers must have earned a bachelor’s degree in another area of study and agree to remain with their school districts for a minimum of three years upon graduation.
According to Chancellor Ken Iwama, the UTEP partnership program is the only teaching excellence initiative in Northwest Indiana, now serving two of the most populous cities in the state. “With nearly 22,000 K-12 students enrolled in these three school corporations, the UTEP program has immediate potential to strengthen the quality of teaching and make a lasting impact on the quality of life in the region,” he said.
Mark Sperling, dean of the School of Education, pointed to the program’s focus on outstanding classroom preparedness, and requirement to continue teaching in local schools, as improving educational outcomes. “While the teachers certainly benefit from the professional growth provided by UTEP, it is their students who gain the most. Studies have shown that the key to high levels of student achievement is strong and competitive teacher preparation,” he said.
Most classes are offered in the evenings or online to accommodate teachers’ work schedules. Areas of licensure include:
Elementary Education
- K-6
Secondary Education
- English
- Mathematics
- Social Studies (History +)
- Science (Biology, Chemistry, Earth-Space Science)
- Visual Arts
- Spanish
- French
Teachers in all three districts are invited to apply for the spring 2022 semester. To learn more, contact the IU Northwest School of Education at 219-980-6510 or email Dr. Sperling at masperli@iun.edu.
About Indiana University Northwest
One of seven campuses of Indiana University, IU Northwest is located in metropolitan Northwest Indiana, approximately 30 miles southeast of Chicago and 10 miles from the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. The campus has a diverse student population of approximately 4,000 degree-seeking students and 1,500 dual-credit students. The campus offers Associate, Baccalaureate and Master’s degrees in a variety of undergraduate, graduate and pre-professional degree options available from the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Health and Human Services, the School of Business and Economics, the School of the Arts and the School of Education. The campus is also host to IU School of Medicine-Northwest-Gary, which actively involves students in research and local healthcare needs through its four-year medical doctorate program. IU Northwest emphasizes high-quality teaching, faculty and student research and engagement on campus and in the community. As a student-centered campus, IU Northwest is committed to academic excellence characterized by a love of ideas and achievement in learning, discovery, creativity and engagement. Indiana University Northwest is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer committed to achieving excellence through diversity. The University actively encourages applications from women, minorities, veterans, persons with disabilities, and members of other underrepresented groups.
