Rural Centered
A Quarterly Newsletter from the Colorado Center for Rural Education
| |
|
Rural Student Teacher Stipends Are Changing Lives
Stipend recipients are expected to apply to and work in a rural school district after completing their student teaching. Three of the fall 2021 recipients shared their thoughts about how the award will help them achieve their goals in the upcoming year.
| |
Tori Esperanza
Tori Esperanza teaches sixth-grade math at Ignacio Middle School in Ignacio School District No. 11-JT.
She said, "I am a first-generation college student and couldn’t be more proud of myself for completing my degree in December 2021, with the help of CCRE. This stipend helped me fund supplies for my classroom and allowed me the chance to focus on teaching wholeheartedly. My students can thrive in a comfortable space with everything they need to be successful. Thank you CCRE for selecting me as a Rural Teaching Scholar!”
| |
Brianna Clarke
Brianna Clarke teaches Spanish and English as a second language to sixth, seventh, and eighth graders at Summit Middle School in Frisco, Colorado, in Summit School District.
She said, "The stipend helped alleviate the stress of needing a second job. It gave me the opportunity to take the time to successfully apply what I learned at college in the classroom. With the help of the stipend, I was able to focus on learning all the tips and tricks of teaching. I am immensely grateful for the Colorado Center for Rural Education and everything they do for future educators!”
| |
Melissa Lopez
Melissa Lopez teaches fourth-grade math at Highland Elementary School in Rifle, Colorado, in Garfield School District No. Re-2. She is in her final year of college at Colorado Mountain College and will graduate with a bachelor's degree in elementary education in May.
She said, “Since I was a child, my dream was to become a teacher, even though I didn't have much knowledge about what teachers did or experienced. Even though this has been the most challenging time of my life, every second has been worth it. When I come into my classroom each morning, I reconnect with why I do what I do. A huge thank you to the Colorado Center for Rural Education for awarding me a scholarship to help me complete my student teaching assignment.”
| |
Click here for more information about the Colorado Rural Teaching stipend.
| |
|
UPCOMING APPLICATION TIMELINES
For financial aid available to in-service and aspiring educators, plus recruitment strategies and resources for school districts, BOCES, and charter schools, download the Colorado Department of Education's Educator Recruitment and District Supports flyer.
.
| |
Spotlight: Special Services Provider Stipend
If you're a special services provider, such as a school counselor, audiologist, or nurse, who is interested in working in a rural Colorado school, we encourage you to apply for the Special Services Provider Stipend (SSPS). The SSPS provides recipients with up to $6,000 to pay for a variety of program-related costs during their final clinical experience (e.g., application fees, official transcripts, evaluation, tuition and fees, exams, fingerprinting, licensing, technology and travel costs).
Criteria are as follows:
1) Be enrolled in an approved program at an institution of higher education.
2) Be committed to full-time employment in one of Colorado's 146 rural or small rural school districts for a period of three years after receiving a Special Services Provider license from the Colorado Department of Education.
3) Be working in one of the following roles:
- School audiologist
- School counselor
- School nurse
- School occupational therapist
- School orientation and mobility specialist
- School physical therapist
- School psychologist
- School social worker
- School speech-language pathologist
| |
Survey to Help Improve Stipend Program
If you received a stipend from the Colorado Center for Rural Education, check your email inbox for your opportunity to make your voice heard. The Colorado Center for Rural Education has partnered with Marzano Research to administer a survey to its stipend recipients.
We are collecting information about recipients’ current teaching assignments, perceptions of the program, and perceptions of the impact of the stipend on their career and school. The data will help us improve and continue the stipend program for future rural educators across the state of Colorado. The survey response deadline is February 21, 2022.
If you received a stipend but have not received the survey, please email Steven Tedeschi. If you have questions about the survey, please email Caitlin Scott.
| |
Universities, Are You Interested in Hosting Your Own Future Rural Teacher Summit?
We can help! Our model is replicable, and we are ready and willing to help you design your own rural teacher outreach event.
Contact Robert Fulton, State Coordinator at the Colorado Center for Rural Education.
| |
Our Featured Partners
The Foundation for Impact on Literacy and Learning (now known as FILL) brings learning resources and programming to educators and students nationally, including Earth Day teaching resources that help students work through an environmental problem in their community.
TEACH Colorado links potential teachers with jobs in their districts and provides licensure support to paraprofessionals and high-school students who are interested in teaching.
| |
Contact Us
The Colorado Center for Rural Education supports educators by providing financial support to pre- and in-service teachers and special services providers. Visit our website for more information about our mission and available stipends.
| |
|
If this email was forwarded to you, please subscribe to receive future emails.
| |
|
|
|
|
