APSU professors selected as inaugural ICBTE Faculty Fellows
By: Megan Simpson January 11, 2024
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Grow Your Own Center’s (TNGYOC) Institute for Competency-based Teacher Education (ICBTE) has named six faculty members from Austin Peay State University’s Eriksson College of Education as inaugural Faculty Fellows.
The faculty members selected include:
- Dr. Lori Allen
- Dr. Laura Barnett
- Dr. Christi Maldonado
- Dr. Allison Oliver
- Dr. Donna Short
- Dr. Bing Xiao
The Eriksson College of Education leads the way in best practices for teacher apprenticeships, and the faculty members bring a unique perspective to this work. As Faculty Fellows, they will develop open-education resources, assessments and aligned instructional materials for a new Registered Teacher Apprenticeship Program of Study.
Austin Peay’s Grow Your Own Teacher Residency launched with the Clarksville-Montgomery
County School System in 2019. Touted as a solution for persistent problems in the
teaching profession, more than 28 states have implemented similar programs in recent
years.
“We created the first registered teacher apprenticeship in the nation, so we have
already been at the forefront of curriculum development,” said Dr. Prentice Chandler,
dean of the Eriksson College of Education. “Our faculty members have adapted curriculum
for use with our CMCSS and rural school district teacher apprenticeship cohorts. Their
experience will be invaluable in creating resources that can be used throughout both
Grow Your Own programs and traditional education degree pathways.”
Once created, the Registered Apprenticeship Program of Study will be released to educator preparation programs throughout the state. The digital resources are meant to provide materials that higher education institutions and mentor teachers can use in training aspiring educators. The program will align with InTASC standards, which are incorporated into Tennessee’s teacher licensure requirements to equip teacher candidates with the necessary skills, knowledge and dispositions to succeed.
Fellows were chosen through a competitive application process assessing each candidate’s expertise in areas like curriculum development and online course creation. The selected fellows will develop a combined 48 credit hours of instructional material during the two-year project.
The fellows will also provide peer reviews and assist in piloting the digital curriculum with educator preparation programs across the state. The resulting materials will be available via Creative Commons licensing for any Tennessee institution to incorporate into their course offerings.
Austin Peay’s Grow Your Own Teacher Residency partners with Tennessee school districts and community colleges to offer a tuition-free, three-year bachelor’s degree that allows recent high school graduates, community members and classified school employees to become licensed teachers.
“Austin Peay is committed to developing programs that remove barriers to the teaching profession,” said Dr. Lisa Barron, Eriksson College of Education associate dean and director of teacher education and partnerships. “Our faculty will undoubtedly help shape the future of teacher preparation through their fellowship contributions.”
The Tennessee Grow Your Own Center selected 16 educational professionals from across the state to participate. To learn more about Austin Peay’s Grow Your Own Teacher Residency, visit www.apsu.edu/education/grow-your-own.