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District 11 and Pikes Peak State College sign MOU to create downtown teacher academy and make a low-cost path to licensure
Summary
District 11 and Pikes Peak State College signed an MOU to create a downtown teacher academy that will let high school teacher-cadet students begin concurrent enrollment coursework that leads to paraprofessional credentials and a low-cost path to teacher licensure.
District 11 and Pikes Peak State College announced a formal partnership to establish a teacher academy at the downtown PPCC campus and to create a low-cost pathway for District 11 students who want to pursue teaching careers. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) approved by the board frames a four-year pathway: students begin with teacher-cadet programming in high school, take concurrent enrollment coursework at PPCC to earn paraprofessional credentials by high school graduation, and then continue toward a bachelor’s degree and teacher licensure with state scholarship programs such as TREP and support from the district’s Promise and concurrent enrollment offerings.
District leaders presented data from current pathways: 40 students attended a recent future teacher conference, 70 students participated in a shadow-a-teacher day, and next year roughly 100 students had already signed up for pathway programming. District staff and PPCC leaders said the program is designed to reduce cost barriers: the first two years of college-level coursework will be covered through concurrent enrollment and district/PPCC promise programs, and state TREP scholarships can cover remaining tuition needed for licensure.
What the program will do - Provide concurrent enrollment education coursework on the downtown PPCC campus during the junior/senior years. - Make students employable as paraprofessionals upon high school graduation and provide an on-ramp to finish remaining credits while employed. - Pair teacher-cadet internships (many students already participate in semester-long internships) with scholarship and Promise opportunities so graduates can pursue licensure at low cost.
Local reaction and next steps Board members praised the partnership as a “grow-your-own” pipeline amid teacher shortages. District staff said implementation steps include expanding internship placements, aligning concurrent enrollment course schedules and reporting back on enrollment and scholarship acceptance rates.
Provenance - Topic intro evidence: transcript block s=2714 — superintendent Goll introduces PPCC partnership and MOU (topicintro). - Topic finish evidence: transcript block s=3607 — board commits to a conditional letter of employment for students completing the program (topicfinish).
