13 July 2023
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — As the school year approaches, the teacher shortage continues to impact schools across Kansas.
Some colleges are offering new programs and scholarships to entice future educators.
Friends University is offering non-traditional degree programs for students who want to switch their profession to elementary and early childhood education.
“If they already have a degree in something else or they have 90 hours of college credit, sometimes it’s an associate degree from community college, we can get them done in about a year,” says Janet Eubank, Friends University Division Director of Education.
Eubanks says Friends also has online and part-time programs for adults who want to pursue teaching while holding a full-time job. She says it’s important to have high-quality educators in the classroom to help students.
“We don’t need to have overpopulated classrooms if at all possible, and it’s just important to make sure we have the best folks in the classroom,” she added.
Wichita State University is also making efforts to help by providing financial help.
“This Grant from the Kansas Board of Regents gives us the opportunity to pay for a course that high school students would take through Butler Community College or WSU Tech. As a transfer student, they can apply for one of 50 transfer education scholarships,” explains Jennifer Friend, WSU College of Applied Studies Dean.
Dr. Friend says WSU is working to eliminate financial barriers for future teachers, even after their degree is attained.
“Through a partnership with Credit Union of America, they have provided funding for four years to help pay those licensure exam fees for our teacher education graduates,” she explained.
WSU also offers a Transition to Teaching” program, allowing people who have a bachelor’s degree in another field to attain their master’s degree in education.
Both schools say that the efforts to inspire students to pursue education begin before college.
“We’re really trying to develop relationships with AVID, whether it’s somebody in high school or middle school who’s thinking about being a teacher,” said Eubank.
“It starts in high school; it goes all the way through the degree program, and then when the teachers are getting ready to apply for their teaching license. We are really partnering to find ways to support that process,” said Friend.