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Morehead State outlines teacher pipeline, stipends and traineeship grant to Rowan County board
Summary
Morehead State University officials told the Rowan County Board the college's education programs are expanding dual-credit offerings, student-teacher placements and state-funded stipends/loan-forgiveness; the college highlighted a multi-million Kentucky traineeship grant and a program to prepare teachers for rural Kentucky.
Morehead State University's Volgenau College of Education presented an overview of teacher-preparation initiatives to the Rowan County Board of Education on March 17, 2026, outlining state incentives and local partnerships intended to strengthen the teacher pipeline in rural Kentucky.
Dr. Nicola Mason, dean of the Volgenau College of Education, said the college recently received seven-year accreditation and emphasized the district's role in field experiences: "Since 2020 we have worked with you all for 4,737 field experience hours," Mason said, adding that the university placed 175 students across 316 placements in Rowan County since 2020. She also noted that 48% of Morehead State's current education majors took dual-credit classes with the university prior to enrollment, and that 112 Rowan County juniors and seniors were enrolled in dual credit this spring.
Mason described several state supports aimed at recruiting and retaining teachers: a student-teacher stipend program that provides "almost $5,000 every semester" to admitted candidates (forgiven if teachers remain in Kentucky under service conditions) and a teacher recruitment student-loan forgiveness payment of about $5,000 during the student-teaching semester. She also highlighted a multi-million-dollar Kentucky tech traineeship grant that covers tuition and textbooks for currently certified teachers seeking special-education or early-childhood endorsements.
Presenters detailed MSU's Appalachian Future Educators cohort, designed to bring teachers back to rural communities; expanded MAT and online EdD pathways; and new dual-credit early-childhood courses. The college said it will host conferences in April and July and invited board members to encourage students toward teacher pathways.
What happens next: Morehead State asked the board to continue partnering on field experiences and dual-credit programs; the college also invited districts to refer candidates for proficiency certification pathways and traineeship funding.
