Effective recruitment and retention strategies of teachers remain elusive for school districts. This study examines the pilot implementation of a year-long teacher residency program throughout four high-needs districts. This program embeds eight residents in these schools and provides various teacher preparation supports to support these beginning…

As school systems work to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, states continue to grapple with persistent teacher shortages, a lack of teachers of color in the workforce, and high turnover rates undermining recruitment efforts. Teachers' effectiveness and their likelihood of staying in teaching are strongly influenced by the quality of preparation…

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to discover perceptions and factors contributing to retention of alternatively certified teachers with one to four year's teaching experience in one of Texas's largest school districts. Schools are facing low teacher retention rates which negatively impact student performance. Podolsky et al. (2019)…

Teacher retention is an ongoing problem in education, especially in small private schools where resources are limited. The purpose of this study was to evaluate educator perceptions of a new teacher induction and mentoring program to support first-year teachers and improve teacher effectiveness and the retention of new teachers. Cycle 1…

The sustained shortage of school-based agricultural educators necessitates novel research into variables impacting teacher career commitment. In the current study, a previously unexplored variable in the prediction of career commitment within school-based agricultural education was considered, teacher connectivity. Four elements of teacher…

Teachers are leaving the profession at alarming rates. As a result, retaining novice teachers has become a major concern for policy makers, school districts, administrators, and teaching staff throughout the United States. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of novice teacher induction support structures in a southwestern…

Systemic challenges for the Texas teacher workforce result from a large yearly demand for new teachers, exacerbated by high and climbing teacher attrition rates. As a result of these challenges, a large majority of new teachers are now hired before they complete preparation. Assigned disproportionately to students from low-income families and…

This report summarizes teacher workforce challenges and recent initiatives in Texas that are shaping the state of the educator workforce in important ways. Ongoing teacher shortages have led to the creation of a wide range of pathways into the profession, featuring varying types and amounts of training. A growing body of research demonstrates that…

Research Focus: The purpose of this study was to explore the role that mentoring played in the professional development of minority faculty in the Texas State higher education system. Research Methods: A phenomenological qualitative research design was employed for this study. Data was collected using open ended in-depth interviews with eight…

This Special Issues Brief from the Center on Great Teachers and Leaders (GTL Center) outlines the unique characteristics of high-need schools, supports state and district leaders as they consider their role in implementing initiatives with a focus on equity, and explores how programs can be customized to meet the unique circumstances of a…

The purpose of our study was to examine mentors' conceptualizations of mentoring residents (preservice teachers) in a teacher residency program. Understanding the nuances of mentoring in a year-long placement in a mentor's classroom may further illuminate mentoring in this context. In this qualitative, longitudinal study, we used constant…

This brief is the first in a series of reports examining the teacher shortage dilemma. It considers what the research says about teacher shortages and highlights recent state task force findings. Designed to guide state leaders in policy decisions, the briefs that follow examine five strategies states are using to address shortages: (1)…

This special issue of the "Journal of Educational Foundations" explores the struggles faced by Latina faculty. These struggles became evident through an examination of Latina faculty members at a specific Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). The essays in this special issue examine the experiences and trajectory of several Latina faculty…

Research studies have found that an integral part of being a tenure-track faculty member is the relationship between the higher education institution and individual faculty members (Mawdsley, 1999). Tenure-track positions are competitive spaces that demand and expect assistant professors to excel in publishing, teaching, and scholarly activity.…

In an urban Texas Independent School District (TXISD), novice teachers leave the field of education for different careers within the first 3 years of employment at a rate that is nearly twice the Texas average and near the top of the national novice teacher attrition rate range. This study examined the lived experiences of 23 TXISD novice teachers…