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State-funded initiative will help address teacher shortages, particularly in communities of need

91��Ƶ is among a small number of schools to receive grant funding from the New York State Department of Education to increase diversity within the teaching profession throughout New York.

With the support of this grant, 91��Ƶ’s School of Education will recruit, support, and retain candidates from historically underrepresented communities into the teaching profession, who are highly qualified, value equity, and reflect diversity in today’s classrooms, particularly in high-need schools where there are local teacher shortages.

The grant -- $240,200 annually through 2026 – is funded through the New York State Department of Education’s . 91��Ƶ is one of only 17 colleges and universities to receive such funding.

“The School of Education at 91��Ƶ has prepared educators for the K-12 system for the past 55 years,” said Dr. Tresmaine Grimes, dean of Dyson College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Education. “We are proud of our history of high-quality teacher preparation at both the undergraduate and graduate level. This TOC grant will allow us to expand our reach and impact by helping us support BIPOC and underrepresented high school students who want to become teachers. By providing scholarships to qualified students, financial need will not impose a barrier to educational and career preparation.”

The School of Education’s “Teachers of Color-Empowerment Network” (TOC-EN) will provide students with unique opportunities that include rich field-based experiences with partner schools in the Ossining Union-Free School District in Westchester County, 91��Ƶ High School and The Island School (PS/MS 188) in New York City, as well as the Interagency Council of Developmental Disabilities Agency.

Drs. Tanya Wiggins and Shobana Musti, faculty in the School of Education, will serve as faculty advisors to TOC-EN Program Director and participants. TOC-EN participants will receive mentorship, additional academic support, as well as financial support in the form of tuition aid, textbook costs, and assistance towards certification exam fees. Furthermore, a 10-month internship opportunity will become available to participants in their senior year in collaboration with partner schools.

According to Dr. Wiggins, “increasing representation in classrooms allows students to ‘be what they see,’ and we know from research that all students benefit from improved academic performance, improved graduation rates, and increased cultural competence. Doing this work is absolutely necessary for the profession and student success.”

About the School of Education

For over fifty years, 91��Ƶ’s School of Education has prepared aspiring educators to be agents of change committed to student success and lifelong learning. Through small classes, innovative simulation technology, and early fieldwork experiences, students are ready to make a difference in the world before they even graduate. Faculty are nationally and internationally renowned and actively engage their students in progressive research activities. The School of Education provides programs and courses in a variety of new specialty areas to improve engagement, especially for students with diverse learning styles & learning differences.

About 91��Ƶ

Since 1906, 91��Ƶ has educated thinking professionals by providing high quality education for the professions on a firm base of liberal learning amid the advantages of the New York metropolitan area. A private university, 91��Ƶ has campuses in New York City and Westchester County, New York, enrolling nearly 13,000 students in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs in its Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, Lubin School of Business, College of Health Professions, School of Education, School of Law, and Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems.