Faculty members at Appalachian State University have received a National Science Foundation grant for $1,165,039 to support a Noyce Scholarship Program. The grant, awarded by NSF's Directorate for Education & Human Resources, Division of Education, provides scholarship funding to support mathematics and science majors in acquiring high school teaching licensure. The program, titled TEAMS, or Teaching for Equity in Appalachia in Mathematics and Science, prepares prospective teachers with the content and pedagogy components needed for teaching but also focuses on the specific needs of students and schools in high need, rural areas.
TEAMS brings together faculty from The College of Arts and Sciences and The Reich College of Education to recruit outstanding mathematics and science majors into the work of teaching. The project is led by Tracie McLemore Salinas and Dean Tony Calamai of The College of Arts and Sciences and Tracy Goodson-Espy and Associate Dean David Wiley of The Reich College of Education and represents a collaboration in responding to regional needs of mathematics and science teachers. Growing quality pipelines to teaching is vital for STEM education in North Carolina, and the TEAMS program expands the ways that Appalachian State can produce effective mathematics and science teachers, both of which are in high demand in the state.
According to Dr. Deborah Crocker, Program Director for Secondary Mathematics Teaching, "Secondary mathematics and science teachers are in highest demand now. We have received numerous inquiries about graduates up to and beyond the beginning of the school year, and many positions have not been filled." TEAMS not only responds to demand for mathematics and science teachers, however; it also provides a means for growing capacity among teacher educators and K-12 partners. "It will be a privilege to be a part of TEAMS teachers' development, and I know that I will learn just as much from them – if not more – as they will from me," explains Dr. Carol Babyak, Program Director for Secondary Chemistry Teaching. "I think that we will all become better teachers through the TEAMS program."
Salinas, TEAMS Project Director, points to the scholarship money as an incentive for students to consider the Noyce-supported program, but "ultimately it is the nature of teaching that we think will grow a dedicated group of TEAMS scholars. The focus on teaching in rural and high need areas speaks to the perspective we see in many Appalachian students, that perspective of giving back and of contributing to educational sustainability in those communities."
The TEAMS program is expected to produce at least twenty mathematics and science high school teachers in its four years and will provide opportunities for Appalachian State University to expand its partnership roles with school districts in the region. TEAMS participants receive mentoring from regional teachers and administrators during the program and in turn provide teaching in high needs areas after the licensure is complete. The first cohort of TEAMS Scholars will be selected in the fall 2015 semester. More information can be found at noyce.appstate.edu.