Historically, it has been tough to get teachers for urban districts, but this is not the case in Baltimore, Maryland, anymore. Since 2002, the New Teacher Project has been finding at least 10 applicants for each teaching job it fills for the once hard-to-staff Baltimore district. Armed with unorthodox recruitment strategies, the group targets midcareer professionals who are looking for a career change and are willing to consider teaching. The Baltimore City Teaching Residency, as the program is known, has been so successful that the city now hires almost one-fifth of its new public school teachers through it. Experts attribute the organization's success to its holistic approach. Besides recruiting and training, it helps districts streamline and update antiquated hiring practices that, the project's officials say, keep new teachers away. It also offers certification programs in content areas in three states: Louisiana, Maryland, and Texas. The project has also partnered on a multidistrict basis with Arkansas, Texas, and Virginia to provide teachers for both urban and rural schools.