FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Rachel Dumeny
Communications and Outreach Coordinator
Office of the Commissioner
Vermont Department of Labor
Rachel.Dumeny@vermont.gov
(802) 272-4509
Vermont Department of Labor Highlights Teacher Registered Apprenticeships: Strengthening Local Communities and Schools
Montpelier, VT – The Vermont Department of Labor is proud to spotlight the growing success of the Teacher Registered Apprenticeship Program, a recent initiative designed to support aspiring educators, strengthen Vermont’s schools, and foster community investment in education.
“The Teacher Registered Apprenticeship Program exemplifies the power of local investment in our workforce,” said Labor Commissioner Michael Harrington. “By supporting teacher registered apprentices who already have deep connections to their communities, we are strengthening Vermont schools and ensuring a brighter future for our students.”
The concept of the program is simple: take established members of a community with a bachelor’s degree (often already working in a school as a paraeducator or support staff) and provide them with a low-cost, peer-supportive pathway to teaching credentials. Following the “earn while you learn” Registered Apprenticeship model, participants leverage work under a two-year provisional teaching license to accumulate the requisite experience, instruction, and portfolio to lead to full licensure.
The Teacher Registered Apprenticeship Program was initially rolled out across the Northeast Kingdom in seven school districts, and over 25 Registered Apprentices are set to complete it in May. These graduates will immediately add to Vermont schools' rapidly shrinking roster of licensed teachers. For more information on this program, visit the Vermont Rural Education Collaborative website: www.vtruraledu.org/nek-gyo-apprenticeship.
With the successful completion of the inaugural class, expansion of the Teacher Registered Apprenticeship Program is expected to generate positive results across the board, from the Registered Apprentice to the school, its students, and its district, to Vermont as a whole:
- Registered Apprentice: receives hands-on, peer-supported experience, a paycheck while they learn, and a clear career path in the teaching profession.
- Schools: expand the teacher talent pool and retain experienced educators who understand their community’s needs, leading to stability for students and administrators.
- Vermont: work to solve the teaching crisis by engaging residents who are already entrenched in their communities.
For more information on the Registered Apprenticeship Program, please visit labor.vermont.gov/apprenticeship.
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