Study.com and Teach For America Partner to combat teacher shortages

In an effort to address teacher shortages in the US and support high-quality education, Study.com has announced a strategic partnership with Teach For America (TFA), to assist new educators in meeting certification requirements. 

The partnership originated from Study.com’s Keys to the Classroom Initiative, a programme committed to developing a diverse and representative educator pipeline. This initiative collaborates with various educational stakeholders across 20 states and provides over $4 million in donated test prep materials. 

Hundreds of teacher cadets, including 50% who identify as people of colour, participate in the programme.

Through this partnership, the platform will provide test preparation and educational resources to incoming TFA teachers to aid in their certification process in the various communities they serve. This initiative is part of Study.com’s broader commitment to education and its social impact goals.

Erin Rackers, Vice President for Matriculation at Teach For America, highlighted the importance of this partnership: 

"Every year Teach For America recruits thousands of emerging diverse leaders to teach in high need classrooms across the country. As these new educators prepare to lead classrooms where every student has the opportunity to learn, lead and thrive, they spend months training and earning the certifications necessary to take on their new roles." 

"Study.com's research-backed teacher test prep and resources provide our new teachers important support, so that they can focus even more of their energy on the needs of their students and classrooms."

The partnership grants TFA’s new teachers unlimited access to Study.com’s test preparation tools and academic support. Additionally, Study.com will offer TFA insights into the preparation progress of new corps members, which will inform and enhance TFA’s coaching and support strategies.

Dana Bryson, SVP of Social Impact at Study.com, emphasised the partnership’s role in addressing broader educational challenges: 

"As the teacher shortage and retention crisis continues to affect schools across the nation, we are honored to partner with Teach For America to foster a more diverse and representative educator workforce."

"We are proud to collaborate with innovators like Teach For America who are committed to developing new and sustainable pathways for recent college graduates and other young professionals entering the teaching profession to become certified teachers, nationwide."