BOULDER, Colo. — High school students in Colorado who want to study education in college can now earn a guaranteed admission to the University of Colorado Boulder’s School of Education.
Thanks to a new agreement between CU Boulder and two high school concurrent enrollment programs, the students can apply this year for the 2019-2020 academic year.
The two high school programs, Teacher Cadet and Pathways2Teaching, offer college readiness courses and college credit for students in 11th and 12th grade who are interested in a career in education.
This means that the students who enroll at CU Boulder's School of Education for the 2019-2020 academic year won't only have a passion for education, but will also be armed with the tools needed to start their journey toward succeeding as a teacher.
According to recent reports from the Colorado Department of Higher Education and Colorado Department of Education, the state faces significant teacher shortages, especially in rural areas and among teachers of color.
The data shows that enrollment in teacher preparedness programs have experienced declines in enrollment as well.
"We care deeply about recruiting and supporting excellent teachers, and it's an honor to work with Teacher Cadet and Pathways2Teaching programs to help collectively address critical teacher shortages, especially in areas where it matters most,” said Kathy Schultz, dean of the School of Education. “Given the strength and caliber of these programs, we are confident students will thrive in our education and leadership programs, persist to graduation and become life-changing teachers for many generations to come.”
Students who want to participate must have the following qualifications:
- Be in good standing within their program
- Meet both the Colorado Commission on Higher Education’s admissions requirements and the university’s minimum academic preparation standard curriculum
- Maintain a B- or higher in Teacher Cadet or Pathways2Teaching courses
- Have a weighted high school grade point average of 3.0 or higher
- Earn an ACT composite score of 22 or higher or SAT score of 1110 or higher
- Complete the CU Boulder application process by Jan. 15, 2019
The Teacher Cadet and Pathways2Teaching high school programs are available in the following school districts:
- Academy School District 20
- Adams 14
- Aurora Public Schools
- Boulder Valley School District
- Cañon City School District
- Cherry Creek School District
- Colorado Springs School District 11
- Denver Public Schools
- District 49
- Douglas County School District
- Elizabeth School District
- Fountain-Fort Carson School District 8
- Haxtun RE-2J School District
- Jefferson County Public Schools
- Lamar Re-2 School District
- Littleton Public Schools
- Morgan County School District Re-3
- Poudre School District
- School District 27J
- Weld County School District 6
- Weld RE-4 School District
- Widefield School District 3