Montgomery County Public Schools received $6 million in grants from the state of Maryland for its “Grow Your Own” teacher hiring program.
The state program is designed to get more certified teachers into the classroom, and the money will be used for recruitment efforts.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced Thursday that a total of 13 school systems across the state would be getting $19 million for the program. Other school systems receiving the grant money include Prince George’s County, which is getting the second-largest amount awarded to a single county at $3 million.
Margie Lope Moutsatsos, the director of professional learning for Montgomery County Public Schools, said the Grow Your Own program answers a problem many school districts are facing: a shortage of people entering the education field as licensed teachers.
Lope Moutsatsos explained where the hiring emphasis is directed.
“We’re really looking at focusing on shortage areas or high-needs teaching areas with this grant, and getting folks certified to teach in areas where we have high need, like special education, like the sciences,” she said, adding there will be funding for those seeking dual licensure in elementary and special education.
The targets for the program, as the name Grow Your Own suggests, are staff who currently work in schools, but don’t hold a teacher’s license. That could include para-educators, Lope Moutsatsos explained.
“We hope to get around 200 folks through licensure with this grant,” she said.
In Montgomery County, one of the goals will be getting more men in front of classrooms. Lope Moutsatsos said the hope is that more men will enter teaching, “so that kids see themselves in the teaching population.”
She added, with a diverse student population, the county is hoping to make sure that “our diverse student population is taught by a diverse teacher population.”
Among the perks being offered through the grants to bring current school staff members into the future teacher pipeline are free or discounted tuition, books and licensure exams. Teacher candidates will also be provided with substitutes, allowing them to take coursework during the workday instead of nights and weekends.
Lope Moutsatsos said many current school employees have families: “So one of the reasons they haven’t gotten the degree is because they can’t afford not to work.”
The hope is to have as many as 80 candidates in the program by this fall, she said.
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