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“After dropping out of college three times, I’m finally
finishing with my first degree. I’m the first in my family
to graduate college with a degree, something I’m very proud
of. I want my sons to see this and know that it all pays
off,” said Amber Alleyne.
Alleyne, Marisela Haack, and Michael Polk graduated with the
designation High Scholarship, meaning they maintained a 3.3
(out of 4) grade point average or better throughout their
degree coursework.
Haack shared Alleyne’s view that setting an example for
children is key. She noted, “I am most proud of the
personal and educational growth I’ve experienced these past
two years at UT, and the example I have set for the children
in my family in getting my degree.”
Haack’s daughter Lisandra (or “Cita”) has clocked quite a
few hours herself for a college degree, attending classes
several times a week with her mother; however, at
five-years-old, Cita is about to embark on her own journey:
She will enter kindergarten at TPS’s Grove Patterson Academy
this fall. One thing is sure: she enters knowing how to
study!
The Teach Toledo Initiative employs a “2+2” design: Students
complete two years of coursework toward an associate degree,
with those courses held at TPS’s Jones Leadership Academy of
Business, Monday through Thursday, 4:30-7 p.m.
It is a rigorous schedule—especially since most of the
cohort works fulltime and has family responsibilities, and
several work several jobs. However, the off-campus location
means they can park two minutes from the classroom, and the
set schedule means they are available for first shift
employment and can get home in time for a late supper with
family.
Oftentimes, however, students reconvened at UT’s Carlson
Library for late-night study sessions—with late-night
sometimes stretching to 3 a.m. If someone was missing from
class or needed to get to the library, their classmates blew
up their cell phone with texts. “We are a family” is a
common refrain, and students cite the cohort model, in which
they have all their classes together, as key to their
success.
The second “2” of the “2+2” is junior and senior years on
campus in the University of Toledo Judith Herb College of
Education. If the seven associate degree graduates keep up
the same pace they have set, they will graduate with their
Bachelor’s of Education degrees in May 2021. This will
qualify them for an Ohio teaching license. At that point,
they will be licensed to teach in their own classrooms.
A key feature of the Teach Toledo “2+2” is its 100 percent
match between the plan of study for the associate degree and
core requirements for the B.Ed., Intervention Specialist
degree, which is the degree for special education licensure.
The associate degree is just a bonus: it is nice to
complete a degree after two years hard work, and because no
credits will be lost toward the goal of the bachelor’s
degree and licensure, it is a good deal.
Five of the seven associate degree graduates plan to
continue on campus in the UT JHCOE to earn their B.Ed.,
Intervention Specialist. They will be able to continue
their fulltime work as paraprofessionals because classes are
after 4 p.m, and as Teach Toledo students, they will be able
to do required methods and student teaching within their
positions.
The transition should be seamless, though it will require
rigorous work and long hours on their parts. Kaleene
Hairabedian explained, “My plans upon graduation are to
switch positions at Toledo Public Schools and become a
licensed Intervention Specialist. I’ve been working as a
paraprofessional for the past six years and I am extremely
excited for this new chapter in my life.”
Two associate degree graduates will take different routes
through their junior and senior years to their B.Ed.
degrees. Mike Polk has decided to pursue licensure to teach
junior high and high school social studies, and says he also
plans “to teach abroad at some point—maybe in China or Hong
Kong.” Robert Fletcher intends to pursue his lifelong dream:
licensure as a music educator.
The author is coordinator of Teach Toledo and is very proud
of these students and grateful to be part of this
collaboration between the University of Toledo and Toledo
Public Schools. UT’s Teach Toledo is recruiting for Cohort
II, with May 31 being the deadline for application.
Requirements are a GED or a high school diploma, and all
ages are welcome. Classes will begin in August. Contact
Hamer at 419-283-8288 or
lynne.hamer@utoledo.edu, or go to the website
at
www.utoledo.edu/education/teachtoledo to apply
for admission on line.
This article is part I of a three part series: Part II will
focus on research characterizing the lack of teachers of
color as a civil rights crisis, and part III will offer an
assessment of Teach Toledo’s progress in addressing that
crisis.
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