The following initiatives targeted at personnel recruitment and retention are examples of those that have demonstrated successful efforts to recruit and retain high quality special educators and related service providers.National Initiatives:
Established in 1986, Recruiting New Teachers, Inc. works to raise esteem for teaching, expand the pool of qualified teachers, and promote strategies for effective teacher recruitment, development, and retention.
The Teaching Commission is a diverse, bipartisan group comprising 19 leaders in government, business, philanthropy, and education.
NCIPP is an OSEP-funded Center which aims to inform special education policy and practice by examining and recommending those policies and practices that improve the retention and quality of beginning special education teachers.
Featured State Sites:
In California, a state-wide collaborative effort among the California Department of Education, the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC), and the California Association of Professors of Special Education (CAPSE) has resulted in the distribution of more than 2000 recruitment tool kits to local school districts, personnel preparation programs and county administrative offices, among others, who strive to attract persons to the special education professions. Using California’s (SIG) funds from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, the recruitment brochures, public service announcements, and recruitment video being distributed by the Personnel Center, are available statewide to school districts, regional resource centers and personnel preparation programs.
This report contains the latest available data and analysis of California's teaching workforce and examines the preparation, induction and professional development of teachers. The report also examines the preparation of those assigned to teach special education and English language learning students, and the shortage of qualified teachers in the fields of mathematics and science. The new report concludes that while the supply of teachers is increasing, there are significant shortages in all geographic regions as well as key subject matter and special program areas such as special education, and also finds that California's least prepared teachers continue to be unfairly distributed among low achieving schools serving poor, minority and English language learning students. Further, the report finds that California continues to face serious challenges in how it prepares, ushers into the profession, and supports its teaching workforce.
A nonprofit teacher recruiting and credentialing program that is authorized and supported by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. Read the report entitled "Seeking Out Special Educators: An In-Depth Look at California's Special Education Teacher Shortage"
This professional development program is an initiative of The Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, a public, not-for-profit organization dedicated to strengthening teacher development policy and practice. A variety of publications and research reports are available from The Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning's publication page.
Information and resources to serve the unique needs of individuals with disabilities so that each person will meet or exceed high standards of achievement in academic and non-academic skills.
Designs for Learning presents ten design elements for high quality professional development based on the California Standards for the Teaching Profession
This site provides statistics and information on a variety of subjects concerning education in California.
This site provides you with the information you need in order to become a credentialed teacher in California.
Other State Initiatives:
Hawaii Recruitment and Retention Support Center
The Recruitment and Retention Support Center sponsors programs dealing with alternative teacher certification, educational assistant training, and professional development training for special education.
The Recruitment and Retention Support Center sponsors programs dealing with alternative teacher certification, educational assistant training, and professional development training for special education.
Mississippi Teacher Fellowship Program
The Mississippi Teacher Fellowship Program is designed as an innovative partnership to address Mississippi's teacher shortage.
The Mississippi Teacher Fellowship Program is designed as an innovative partnership to address Mississippi's teacher shortage.
The goals of Oregon's Recruitment and Retention Project are twofold: increase the number of qualified special education and related services professionals in Oregon and increase the amount of time special education personnel stay within the field in Oregon. Findings from their recruitment and retention surveys are also available.
The purpose of the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention, & Advancement (CERRA) is to provide leadership in identifying, attracting, placing and retaining well-qualified individuals for the teaching profession in our state. In doing so, CERRA will respond to changing needs for teachers from underrepresented populations, in critical subject fields and in under-served geographical areas in South Carolina. The Center will work cooperatively with other organizations to promote the teaching profession.
Preparation Programs:
IRIS Center for Faculty Enhancement
Online Learning Modules and Related Materials, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
The IRIS Center for Faculty Enhancement has been designed in response to a request from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs for a national effort to ensure that general education teachers, school administrators, school nurses, and school counselors are well prepared to work with students who have disabilities and with their families.
The IRIS Center is placing special education content into interactive web-based learning modules. IRIS modules incorporate the award winning StarLegacy model which integrates a problem solving approach that is initiated with a challenge for students to resolve. Case studies, activities, information briefs, an online dictionary, and other resources are also offered. All materials are freely available at the website.
Although developed for preservice preparation, these materials are in use in various States for professional development of general and special educators, administrators, and related service personnel.
Star Legacy modules
Case studies
Other materials and browse by discipline or topic
Online Learning Modules and Related Materials, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
The IRIS Center for Faculty Enhancement has been designed in response to a request from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs for a national effort to ensure that general education teachers, school administrators, school nurses, and school counselors are well prepared to work with students who have disabilities and with their families.
The IRIS Center is placing special education content into interactive web-based learning modules. IRIS modules incorporate the award winning StarLegacy model which integrates a problem solving approach that is initiated with a challenge for students to resolve. Case studies, activities, information briefs, an online dictionary, and other resources are also offered. All materials are freely available at the website.
Although developed for preservice preparation, these materials are in use in various States for professional development of general and special educators, administrators, and related service personnel.
Star Legacy modules
Case studies
Other materials and browse by discipline or topic
Other Successful Recruitment and Retention Initiatives:
Project ReSpecT is a three-year, federally funded project conducted by the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of South Carolina. The purpose of the project is to increase special education teacher retention through the development and implementation of a mentoring model to support early career special education teachers.
The goals of the Mentoring Induction Project (MIP) are to develop a model of support for special education teachers, improve existing teaching conditions, strengthen the induction experiences of new teachers, and establish and pilot national mentoring guidelines for first year special education teachers.
The New Teacher Center is a national resource dedicated to teacher development and new teacher training and the support of programs and practices that promote excellence and diversity in America's teaching force. Its work with new teachers results in strong retention trends.
Publications Related to Successful Recruitment and Retention Practices:
Eliminating the Barriers to Improving Teaching, (pdf version) Terry Dozier and Candance Bertotti, U.S. Department of Education Teacher Quality Initiative.
This document examines a wide range of policies and practices that are all too frequent barriers to quality teaching. While your community may not face each of these barriers, you can use this guide to identify those that it does face and to begin finding ways to address them. The guide also includes examples of programs and activities designed to eliminate specific barriers to quality teaching.
Keeping the Committed; The Importance of Induction and Support Programs for New Special Educators (pdf), Lynn Boyer and Phoebe Gillespie, Teaching Exceptional Children vol.33 no.1, Sept/Oct 2000 p.10-15 (Available from CEC 1-888-232-7733, Order number EC 625699)
Special Educators new to the classroom face unique challenges that can only be met through a multi-level system of supports. These supports include activities coordinated through state, higher education and local participants. Some of the most critical supports are mentoring and induction programs, administrative involvement and university/local district training and supervision through out the first year. References and contact information are included.
Learning the Ropes: Urban Teacher Induction Programs and Practices in the United States, a publication of Recruiting New Teachers, Inc.
Presents findings of RNT's national study of how large urban school districts - many dealing with issues of teacher shortage, inadequate training, and high turnover - are meeting the needs of teachers during the first three years in the classroom.
