Marquette leads new national teacher training, education initiative
Released: 12/01/03

Marquette University's School of Education is recognized as a leader for its innovative online education and distance learning programs. It was the first in Wisconsin to launch an online master degree program in instructional leadership.

It is once again on the cutting-edge of teacher education. Marquette has created a first of its kind partnership with two schools — Loyola University Chicago and St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia — to develop an online accelerated teacher certification program for adults who already have a bachelor's degree and now want to become teachers. Both universities are situated in an urban setting and neither university has an online teacher certification program.

Marquette's Center for Electronic Learning, the university's hub for Internet course development and technology-based training, recently received a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Education to help address the critical teacher shortage for new and qualified K-12 grade teachers, especially in math and science, that has reached a level of national crisis. In the nation's urban schools, the situation is even worse. According to the Urban Teacher Collaborative supported by Carnegie Corp. and the Ford Foundation, 98 percent of urban school systems have an immediate need for science teachers.

“This new online program will be a model for others to follow as many states and universities develop ways to meet the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law for a quality teacher in every classroom,” says Heidi Schweizer, associate professor in the School of Education and director of the Center for Electronic Learning at Marquette. “It's a new initiative that demonstrates the importance of partnership and the commitment Loyola University Chicago, St. Joseph's University and Marquette University has to outstanding teacher education.”

Kate Geenen, a student in the program, is an example of the many people who are leaving their current careers for one in education due to the structure of this online program. Prior to deciding to teach, Geenen worked for the Milwaukee Brewers in their Minor League Department. She decided to make a career change in order to have more time with her young family. “The online format is as close to perfect a set-up I can get for being a working parent with two small children,” she says. “The program is giving me the knowledge and teaching strategies I will be able to use effectively in the classroom.”

NCLB law requires teacher certification changes
The federal NCLB law mandates that schools hire more qualified teachers and show academic improvement each year. The law is the driving force that state departments of education and universities are using to examine how licensing standards and the systems needed to ensure “highly qualified” teachers in every classroom are being implemented.

The enormous demand for new teachers has created a need to extend teacher certification and post-baccalaureate degree programs to a larger audience. Accordingly, a growing number of people are moving into certification areas via new, accelerated teacher preparation programs. By focusing on the design, development and delivery of educationally sound online courses, the three universities will provide a sustainable accelerated teacher certification program to pre-service teachers at three different locations that will extend the accessibility of high quality, rigorous teacher preparation.

Schweizer says that more and more professionals are changing careers and desire to become teachers. This online program provides adults in different states the opportunity to train to become urban secondary teachers and in particular, highly trained individuals to teach in urban settings and in subjects, such as math and science that are in great demand. Candidates interested in teaching other content areas such and English or social students are welcome into this program too, Schweizer says.

The goal is to recruit 15 teachers interested in teaching science and math from each participating campus and a combined goal of a minimum of 20 teachers of color. Courses will be ready for delivery in the spring of 2004.
Federal funds will comprise 51 percent of the total cost of the project. The U.S. Department of Education's grant is for $428,150 over a three-year period.

Marquette builds on corporate support
In 1999, the AT&T Foundation awarded a two-year, $200,000 grant to Marquette University to support the development of online courses by the Center for Electronic Learning. Because this initial grant and AT&T's renewed support totaling $150,00 over the past two years, the Center for Electronic Learning successfully completed the development of many of the online courses that will be incorporated in this program. These online courses have provided the foundation for Wisconsin's first master's degree in education available over the Internet and developed online courses for various audiences. In a unique confluence of private, public and educational interests, this U.S. Department of Education grant brings the work of the Center for Electronic Learning to greater fruition. It provides continued support to an already successful program and will help fulfill the need for highly qualified teachers, particularly in math and science, in K-12 classrooms.