FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
INDIANAPOLIS — Continuing a promise the state of Indiana made eight years ago to recruit, prepare and support excellent teachers for the students who need them most, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis was among five Indiana universities that welcomed the 2016-17 class of Woodrow Wilson Indiana Teaching Fellows.
The Woodrow Wilson Indiana Teaching Fellows program is part of a statewide effort to prepare excellent science, technology, engineering and math teachers for careers in Indiana’s high-need schools.
Forty-three individuals are part of the 2016 cohort of the fellowship program in the state, offered at Ball State University, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Purdue University, the University of Indianapolis and Valparaiso University.
The program recruits both recent graduates and career-changers with a strong background in science, technology, engineering and math.
“At IUPUI, we have designed our Woodrow Wilson STEM teacher preparation program to reflect teaching as a practice-based profession, much like a medical residency,” said Kathy Marrs, director of the IUPUI Woodrow Wilson Program. “Woodrow Wilson fellows at IUPUI complete a master’s degree program that combines a solid academic base, a strong one-year clinical teaching residency in our local urban schools, a three-year new-teacher induction experience, and ongoing opportunities such as Project Lead the Way or special education dual certification.”
Each fellow receives $32,000 to complete a specially designed master’s degree program based on a yearlong classroom experience. In return, fellows commit to teach for three years in the urban and rural Indiana schools that most need strong STEM teachers. Throughout the three-year commitment, fellows receive ongoing support and mentoring.
The Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship partners with a wide range of schools across the state, including Anderson Community School Corporation, Fort Wayne Community Schools, Metropolitan School District of Decatur Township, Gary Community School Corporation, Indianapolis Public Schools, Metropolitan School District of Lawrence Township, Metropolitan School District of Perry Township, Metropolitan School District of Warren Township, Michigan City Area Schools, Muncie Community Schools, Portage Township Schools, Purdue University Rural School Network, School City of East Chicago, Metropolitan School District of Washington Township, Metropolitan School District of Wayne Township, Kankakee Valley School Corporation and Merrillville Community School Corporation. It also works with charter schools such as Charles A. Tindley Accelerated School, Christel House Academy, Herron High School, Thea Bowman Leadership Academy, Lighthouse Academies and Indianapolis Metropolitan High School.
This is the eighth year of the program, which the Woodrow Wilson Foundation administers through the financial support of the Lilly Endowment Inc. and the Indiana STEM Teacher Recruitment Fund grant program.
About the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation
Founded in 1945, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation identifies and develops the nation’s best minds to meet its most critical challenges. The foundation supports its fellows as the next generation of leaders shaping American society.