Forced to compete for the best of the next generation of academic professionals to fill critical classroom assignments to improve academic achievement of all students in some of the most critically high-need schools in the nation, Broward County developed the Transition to Education and Accelerated Certification for Teacher through Higher Education (TEACHER) Project through Broward’s Educational Collaborative Alliance (BECA). BECA is an alliance of institutions established with the goal of improving the quality and number of new teachers joining the Broward County district's schools. Through the TEACHER Project, the BECA partners will take a two-pronged approach to improving teacher quality. Together with BCPS, the BECA partners will create and implement a high-quality competency-based accelerated route
to certification program for the district's hardest-to-staff subject areas and neediest schools. The BECA partners have also partnered with the district to institute key reforms and streamline the hiring process so that the district could secure the highest-quality candidates for Broward’s highest need schools. This project’s goal is to expand the pool of quality mid-career professionals and recent college graduates who become highly qualified to teach in high need subject areas and professionally certified, and remain in Broward’s high need schools. The expected outcomes are to enhance the quality of the pool of teacher applicant; prepare teachers to meet students’ educational needs and improve student achievement; increase the number of professionally certified teachers; increase the number of quality teachers teaching in high need schools; increase teacher retention; and improve the hiring system. The project will target mid-career
professionals and recent college graduates.
