PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Public Schools officially launched a new program that serves as a bold, new approach to addressing the ongoing teacher shortage.
It’s putting students on an earlier path toward becoming the educators of the future.
A ribbon-cutting inside Brashear High School officially launched the Pittsburgh Public Schools’ Emerging Educators Career and Technical Education Program.
Today marks the beginning of something truly special."
The mission is simple: give the next generation of teachers a head start.
“We are opening doors. doors of opportunity, doors of hope, doors of legacy,” said Pittsburgh Public Schools superintendent Dr. Wayne N. Walters.
The program and its students already drawing national attention profiled by NBC News just last week.
High schoolers work alongside elementary school teachers and in the process, earn college credits from Point Park University.
The students who gathered on Friday morning, sporting custom blazers, represent a potential pipeline of new educators at a time when they’re desperately needed.
According to an analysis by the Learning Policy Institute, there are more than 411,000 empty teaching positions in the U.S.
“We need you,” Walters said.
This is about more than filling job openings. It’s about giving local students another path to future success.
“We’re investing in our young people and uplifting the profession that creates all other professions,” Walters said.
The students earn a minimum of 15 college credits in the program.
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