UC Celebrates Success of Program to Fill Critical Teacher Shortage

A reception for 45 teachers completing a UC program to ease Ohio’s critical shortage of special education teachers will be held from 3-4 p.m. Tuesday, July 11, in Room 100 of the Science and Allied Health Building at UC’s Raymond Walters College in Blue Ash. The one-year program was funded by a $200,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Education and paid full tuition for 25 students. UC’s College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services (CECH) supported partial tuition through scholarships for the others, because of the overwhelming demand for the program.

Anne Bauer, UC professor of teacher education and principal investigator of the grant, says the program addresses critical shortages of teachers specifically prepared to work with children who have mild or moderate disabilities in K-12 classrooms. Students were recruited for the program through Cincinnati Public Schools as well as the Hamilton County Educational Services Center and the Clermont County Educational Services Center. Program facilitator Hope Davis, a CECH graduate assistant, adds that many of the teachers in the program represent charter and parochial schools.

During fall and winter quarters through the 2005-2006 academic year, the students who completed the program took one distance-learning class and a course that required meeting once a week at Mayerson Academy. During spring quarter, they took two online courses and fulfilled an internship requirement in their own classrooms, under the guidance of a UC mentor and supervisor. Their preparation this summer involved taking a series of classes during two 10-day sessions at Raymond Walters College as well as two courses online.

The students earn a total of 36 hours of academic credit to be recommended for licensure by UC, pending passing rates on their required PRAXIS II tests that measure teaching skills and knowledge of content area of expertise, in this case, special education.

Scott Horstmeier is one of the teachers completing the program. He’s a seventh-grade science teacher at Mt. Healthy Middle School who earned his undergraduate and master’s degree from UC’s College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services (CECH). “I saw this as a way to make a difference,” he says. “I’ve worked in inclusion settings for a number of years and developed a one-on-one program focusing on social skills. This is a way to further open my heart to children with special needs.

“The program has been a fulfilling experience and has prepared me for the next step in my career,” Horstmeier says. “I feel prepared to go into classrooms, work with the classroom teachers and make a real difference for students.”
 
Bauer says the success of the program has resulted in renewal of a $200,000 Ohio Department of Education grant to prepare an additional 25 licensed teachers who will begin the program at UC this fall. Bauer says the funding pays full tuition for 25 previously licensed teachers who want to become intervention specialists.

UC’s College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services has a few spaces remaining for the program that begins this fall. Those interested must hold current teaching certificates or licenses and either be teaching with a temporary license in a special education setting, or currently teaching in a general classroom but planning on leaving that position to spend at least three years as a special education teacher. For additional information on this program as well as full-time and part-time online programs for licensure in special education, contact Anne Bauer at 513-556-4537 or e-mail anne.bauer@uc.edu