Educators of Change is an

alternative certification Alternative teacher certification is a process by which a person is awarded a teaching license even though that person has not completed a traditional teacher certification program. In the US, traditional teacher certification is earned through com ...

teacher-development program instituted in 2007 by

Duval County Public Schools Duval County Public Schools (DCPS) is the public school district that serves the families and children residing in the urban, suburban, and rural areas of the City of Jacksonville and Duval County, Florida. As of 2015, the district had an enrol ...

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

Purpose

Educators of Change was established to build a cohort of public school teachers consisting of professionals and other individuals who had achieved success outside of the education field. Currently in its second enrollment cycle, the program has attracted individuals from financial, business, communications, and non-profit areas. The program requires a

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

and a subject-specific test of its applicants, and those who are selected are placed into an intensive preparatory program. Individuals who join the program are either changing careers or returning to the workforce, including retirees. In addition to business experience gained from current or former jobs, candidates may exhibit a volunteer-based leadership background.

Background

The program is one of many across

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

public school districts that have been enacted to improve the quality of students' education experience. For example, the

New York City Teaching Fellows The NYC Teaching Fellows is an alternative certification program that focuses on education quality in New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip ...

program, which encourages mature professionals to enter teaching, is credited with helping to narrow the teacher-qualification gap between poor and well-to-do schools from 2000 to 2005 as documented in a 2008 study by the nonpartisan

National Bureau of Economic Research The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) is an American private nonprofit research organization "committed to undertaking and disseminating unbiased economic research among public policymakers, business professionals, and the academic co ...

."Better Qualified Teachers," New York Times, June 23, 2008
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Notes

External links

Educators of Change Web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Educators Of Change Educational organizations based in the United States