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CMCSS officials highlight teacher residency gains, recruitment and improved Praxis results
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Summary
District staff told the school board at the March 10 study session that recruitment efforts and an expanded teacher residency program helped hire about 400 new teachers this year, raised retention, and produced a jump in Praxis pass rates for the 2024–25 residency cohort.
Patty Koloski, a district staff member, and Lisa Baker, who oversees the teacher residency program, told the CMCSS school board at its March 10 study session that recruitment efforts and expanded residency supports are driving better hiring and certification outcomes.
Koloski described a multi-pronged recruitment strategy that includes traditional university job fairs across Tennessee and Southern Kentucky, monthly outreach at Fort Campbell for transitioning soldiers, two-to-three CMCSS job fairs per year, and information sessions on alternative licensure. "We have hired about 400 new teachers," Koloski said, noting that the district has seen improved retention compared with prior years and is tracking conversions from alternative licenses to full licensure.
Why it matters: school districts nationwide are competing for certified teachers; CMCSS presented these results as evidence the district’s talent-pipeline investments are reducing vacancies and improving classroom stability.
Baker summarized the residency pathways and university partners—Nashville State, Austin Peay State University and Lipscomb—and described an accelerated three-year track in which residents are placed in schools while completing university coursework. Baker said the district has 104 current residents (88 in three-year pathways) and about 205 former residents now employed as CMCSS teachers.
The board heard outcome data that Baker said the district is using to refine supports: among 171 program graduates eligible for a state-level effectiveness score (LOE), 90% scored a 3 or higher, and roughly 59% scored above expectations. Baker highlighted Praxis results: "90 percent of the 2024–25 graduating cohort passed all required Praxis assessments before completing the program versus 46 percent of the previous completing cohort," she said, attributing the improvement to earlier intervention, diagnostic testing, boot-camp assessments and increased practice supports.
Board members asked for detail about an apparent retention dip; Koloski said prior-year retention was 87.5% versus 87.1% in the most recent chart—a less-than-half-percent change that she attributed in part to alternatively licensed teachers who separated and were later rehired after obtaining full licensure. When asked how candidates are selected for Grow Your Own pathways, Baker said the district conducts information sessions, an application and interview process and reviews applicants’ academic background; completion rates vary by cohort and average about 75%.
Teacher residents who appeared in a video described on-the-job training, mentoring and the ability to earn a degree while working. One resident said the program gave hands-on experience and close mentorship; another called the decision to join the residency pathway “the best decision that I could have made.”
Koloski and Baker said next steps include continuing monthly information sessions, ongoing practice support, closer collaboration with the professional development team and tracking licensure conversions through June. Baker also said the district will explore partnering with other districts that have established educator-preparation programs to assess feasibility for CMCSS.
The presentation did not include a formal vote; board members raised questions and asked staff to continue reporting outcome and retention data.
