Thanks to an Improving Teacher Quality (ITQ) grant from the U.S. Department of Education awarded through the Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education and an award from Women Investing in Nebraska (WIN), Primarily Math: Greater Nebraska will begin May 31, 2016, in Holdrege. Priority is given to teachers in ESUs 10, 11 and 15 (if your district or ESU does not have another Primarily Math cohort starting in 2016, then you are welcome to apply for this Greater Nebraska cohort).
Applications from grades K-3 teachers are due March 15, 2016. Please note that the first course, Math 800P, is Tuesday-Friday (May 31-June 3).
Teachers selected for the “Primarily Math: Greater Nebraska” program will begin by taking two graduate courses in Summer 2016. Math 800P will be offered May 31-June 3, and Math 801P will be June 6-10. “Primarily Math: Greater Nebraska” will provide funding support for one cohort of up to 30 teachers (20 from high-need districts or schools (at least 50% free or reduced lunch at the school) and 10 from other Nebraska districts or schools). Encourage teachers at your school or district to apply!
Funds from this proposal and other grants will fully cover all tuition and fees for the first course in the Primarily Math program (Math 800P, May 31-June 3), and lower the cost of the remaining five courses from as much as $1,100 in tuition and fees per course to an average of $343 per course for the 20 teachers from high-need schools and to approximately $530 per course for the 10 teachers from other Nebraska schools. For the remaining balance teachers should discuss possibilities for additional tuition support with school or district administrators. See the website for the cost breakdown.
Applications from teachers from all schools and districts in ESUs 10, 11 and 15 are welcome. Teachers from the grant's partner districts will receive first priority for participation in the program with the remainder of the 20 high-need positions offered to teachers from other schools and districts. The 10 other positions that are not for high-need schools are available to all Nebraska primary teachers (except for ESU 3, where teachers should apply to the ESU 3-only cohort of Primarily Math instead).
The Primarily Math graduate program consists of a total of six courses: two weeklong courses at ESU 11 in summer 2016 focused on mathematics content; two courses during the subsequent academic year (one per semester) focused on mathematics pedagogy, each consisting of two in-person meetings and additional activities connected to teachers’ classrooms facilitated online; and two weeklong courses at ESU 11 or 15 in summer 2017, one focused on mathematics content, the other on pedagogy. During all of the courses, master teachers from ESUs 10, 11 and 15 will serve as assistant instructors, mentors and teacher liaisons. Each course is worth 3 graduate credits at UNL and counts toward a master’s degree.
Read through the application requirements for the K-3 Math Specialist Certificate on the UNL TLTE website. Applicants will need to write an essay and gather two letters of recommendation. You do not have to pay the $50 application fee as a current Nebraska teacher. Since the application fee is waived, there is no penalty for withdrawing an application at a later date. Thus, we encourage all interested teachers to apply as soon as possible.
Contact us at nebraskamath@unl.edu with any questions.
http://scimath.unl.edu/primarilymath/gne/