Schools in rural northern Minnesota are facing a crisis-level shortage of licensed special education teachers. To bridge the gap, UMD faculty are developing an innovative teacher preparation program that is tailored to meet the needs of partner schools.
Associate Professor Sean Wachsmuth, who holds a doctorate in special education with an emphasis on behavioral disorders, received a $200,000 grant from the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) for this work.
Wachsmuth says only a handful of rural districts in the area are fully staffed with licensed special education teachers. “Because of the shortage, many schools are hiring people with licenses that are provisional or with degrees in other areas,” he says. “Special education teaching is a highly technical, difficult job. This lack of trained, licensed professionals has a negative impact on student outcomes.”
The Northern Minnesota Rural Schools Special Education Teacher Residency and Apprenticeship Planning Project aims to establish a robust alternative pathway to special education licensure at UMD.
“The exciting element of apprenticeship and residency programs is the ability for individuals who currently work in schools to remain in their jobs and learn from licensed teachers while taking classes that fit into their busy schedules,” explains Wachsmuth.
Additionally, by focusing on rural paraprofessionals and residents, the program creates a pipeline of educators who are committed to the success of their home communities. Those enrolled in the program will apprentice with licensed, trained teachers and do much of their learning on the job while taking complementary online and summer coursework in collaboration with UMD.
This collaborative effort will involve administrators, teachers, and paraprofessionals from Northern Lights Special Education Cooperative in Esko and Red Lake Schools. Wachsmuth says he hopes to form partnerships with additional schools as the project progresses. The idea is to build the program in a way that meets the needs of districts and students.
The project will also involve a collaboration with NXT GEN Teach personnel at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities to explore their existing program model as well as opportunities for alignment between the campuses. “We’re partnering to provide the best possible program,” says Wachsmuth.
The program’s expected capacity will be 25 students per cohort. Assistant Professor Annette Romualdo is a co-investigator on the project. The grant allows for two years of planning and program development with an anticipated launch in the fall of 2028.
In another year, Wachsmuth intends to pursue an implementation grant from MDE for an additional $750,000 to help pay teachers and fund students in the program.