DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
P.O.
SUPTS. MEMO NO. 135
May 30, 2008
INFORMATIONAL
|
TO: |
Division
Superintendents |
|
FROM: |
Billy K.
Cannaday, Jr. Superintendent
of Public Instruction |
|
SUBJECT: |
|
The Virginia
Department of Education is pleased to announce the
continuation of the Virginia Middle School Teacher Corps for the 20082009
school year. This program is designed to
reinforce the quality of mathematics instruction in middle schools and help
ensure that students receive a solid foundation in mathematics as they prepare
to enter high school. This initiative
addresses middle school mathematics, one of the top 10 areas of critical
teacher shortage in 20072008. The
Teacher Corps also provides support for middle schools likely to have
difficulty finding highly qualified mathematics teachers to comply with the No Child Left Behind
Act of 2001.
The Virginia
Middle School Teacher Corps will provide the structure and incentives to place
qualified mathematics teachers in middle schools that have been designated as
at risk in mathematics by virtue of being either accredited with warning in
mathematics or not meeting the Annual Measurable Objectives (AMO) in
mathematics performance as required for Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
Teachers
selected as members of the Virginia Middle School Teacher Corps should be
dynamic teachers who have demonstrated success in teaching mathematics in
challenging environments and are willing to teach sixth-, seventh-, or
eighth-grade mathematics. While their
priority will be teaching, they also may work with school administrators and
faculty to help less experienced teachers.
Upon the approval of a school grant application, participating middle
schools may be eligible for funds from the Virginia Department of Education to
provide a salary differential to assist in hiring a member of the Virginia
Middle School Teacher Corps.
Members of
the Teacher Corps are eligible for up to a $10,000 salary differential for up
to three years from the participating school division contingent upon the
availability of funding. If an eligible
middle school hires an individual new to that school who is accepted into the
Teacher Corps, the school may apply to the Virginia Department of Education to
receive funding for a $10,000 annual salary differential for the Teacher Corps
member. If a Teacher Corps member is
currently teaching at an eligible school, the school may apply for funding to
provide a $5,000 annual salary differential for the Teacher Corps member. Additional
information about the program, the school grant application, and an application
to participate as a teacher in the Teacher Corps are available at http://www.doe.virginia.gov/VDOE/Instruction/OCP/teachercorps.html.
We encourage
school divisions with eligible schools to use the Teacher Corps program as an
incentive for recruitment and retention.
If you have
questions about the Virginia Middle School Teacher Corps, please contact Ms. Connie
Fisher, teacher quality specialist, Division of Teacher Education and Licensure,
at (804) 3717583 or e-mail at Connie.Fisher@doe.virginia.gov.
BKCJr/PSP/cf