Thanks to a $2.4 million award from the Indiana Commission for Higher Education (ICHE), Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI) and the Center of Excellence in Leadership of Learning (CELL) are able to continue their successful STEM Teach initiative. This program aids high school teachers needing graduate-level courses in STEM discipline areas to meet the Higher Learning Commission requirement for teaching dual-credit courses by 2022.
This new funding to support STEM Teach IV will also provide opportunities for K-12 teachers such as:
- Regional STEM workshops offered by local colleges and universities to boost STEM instruction
- Undergraduate courses offered through colleges and universities to assist teachers with enhancing STEM instruction and/or adding a STEM content area to their existing teaching licenses
- Scholarships for teachers to attend STEM-based statewide conferences
The STEM Teach award was the largest of 16 awards that totaled $9.6 million granted by ICHE to organizations and colleges across the state through the Indiana STEM Teacher Recruitment Fund. The General Assembly created the fund in 2013 to increase the number and quality of teachers in key subject areas where many school districts experience shortages. This is the fourth time STEM Teach received the grant.
“The STEM Teach program has proven a success for participating Indiana teachers and, most importantly, their students, as well as our higher education partners who have had the opportunity to learn how to collaborate on an academic initiative of this magnitude,” said David W. Wantz, president & CEO of Independent Colleges of Indiana.
In-service teachers will begin applying for acceptance into the program through an online application in late October 2019. Teachers who successfully completed courses in STEM Teach III will not need to reapply for this opportunity. Registration for courses and workshops for teachers accepted into the program are available based on each teacher’s priority status and will occur several months before each semester begins.
About STEM Teach IV
STEM Teach IV has been designed to offer ICI member and public institutions the opportunity to work together to increase the number of qualified dual-credit teachers of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in Indiana. Tuition, books, and materials for these courses will be offered at no cost to teachers employed at public schools, including charters, in Indiana by utilizing funds available through the STEM Teacher Recruitment Fund to pay colleges and universities for these expenses.