Dear Parents and Students:
The Teacher Preparation Program is a very special program available to students interested in becoming teachers. It is a collaborative initiative among Dallas County independent school districts, Dallas County Community College District and area public universities. The kindergarten-through-college program has five specific objectives:
- To identify students interested in exploring a career in teaching as early as possible and to provide them with hands-on teaching opportunities, beginning in elementary school and continuing through college.
- To use Future Teachers of America clubs as vehicles to provide a wide array of support services to these students, including mentoring, tutoring, assistance preparing for the Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) exam, individual career counseling and a personalized introduction to college-level teacher education programs.
- To eliminate bureaucratic red tape and make it easier for students to navigate the educational system by developing a clearly defined teacher education curriculum that enables students to move seamlessly from one educational institution to the next.
- To provide financial aid to students in the form of traditional loans and grants, special programs like Rising Star that pay tuition, books and fees for qualifying DCCCD students, and scholarships such as the BEEP program and Building Futures in Education for students who want to become bilingual teachers.
- To guarantee graduates of the program jobs in Dallas-area school districts that enable them to earn a starting salary of $27 to $30 per hour, plus an annual bonus of $3,000 to $4,000 for teachers who are bilingual.
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This information is designed to provide answers to the most frequently asked questions about the program. It also provides contact information for the Teacher Preparation Program project leader at each DCCCD campus and participating four-year universities. Our goal is to make sure Dallas County students and their parents are aware of the program and of the strong support system put in place for those who want to take advantage of this opportunity. If you know of anyone interested in becoming a teacher, please share this information.
Quality teachers are the heart of an educational system. The Teacher Preparation Program is a bold step toward ensuring there are enough teachers to go around.
Best wishes,
J. William Wenrich
Chancellor
Dallas County Community College District