Our Basic Qualifications

All RTR Residents

RTR is looking for individuals who have a desire to teach in high-needs, hard-to-staff, and historically marginalized schools, who are passionate about social justice and equity in education.

RTR residents…

  • Advocate for students
  • Are caring
  • Are committed
  • Are culturally sensitive
  • Have integrity and take personal responsibility for actions
  • Are cooperative
  • Are critical thinkers
  • Are strong communicators
  • Become reflective practitioners
  • Become change agents in our partner schools
  • Make a difference in the lives of students

We have prepared more than 300 teachers in the last 12 years…Teachers who have gone on to serve numerous students and make a difference in the classroom and beyond as they advance in their careers. If you have what we are looking for and are interested in becoming a teacher through RTR, apply today!

Elementary Education Pathway – Graduate Certificate

  • Any undergraduate degree
  • 3.0 GPA overall or in the last 60 hours of your college work
  • 3 credits of human growth and development
  • 12 credits of English (composition, oral, and literature)
  • 12 credits of math
  • 12 credits of in science (2 disciplines + 1 lab course)
  • 9 credits in history (American and world history)
  • 6 credits in social science (geography and economics) and 6 credits in arts and humanities
  • Passing scores on the VCLA and the Praxis Multi-Subject Test: Elementary Education (5001) which includes 4 sub-tests in Math, Reading & Language, Science and Social Studies.
  • A passion to impact high-needs and hard-to-staff schools
  • A fundamental respect for all students
  • A desire to teach for change

Special Education Pathway – either Master of Education or Graduate Certificate

  • Any undergraduate major
  • 3.0 GPA overall or in the last 60 hours of your college work
  • Passing score on the VCLA (Virginia Communication and Literacy Assessment /both reading and writing)
  • Current employment as an Instructional Assistant in a high-needs school in an RTR partner school division if applying for the graduate certificate pathway
  • A passion to impact high-needs and hard-to-staff schools
  • A fundamental respect for all students
  • An understanding that all students learn differently; and that all students can be positioned for success
  • The creativity, ability and passion to translate complex ideas into a variety of medians to meet the differing needs of learners
  • A desire to teach for change

Secondary Education Pathway – Master of Teaching

  • A major in what you would like to teach (math, biology, chemistry, physics, geology, environmental science, English, history, international relations or political science).
  • Relevant content courses in the area you would like to teach (English, Math, Science, Social Studies).
  • 3.0 GPA overall or in the last 60 hours of your college work
  • Passing scores on the VCLA (Virginia Communication and Literacy Assessment /both reading and writing) and the Praxis Subject Test for your content area (what you will be teaching)
  • A passion to impact high-needs and hard-to-staff schools
  • A fundamental respect for all students
  • A desire to teach for change

If you are passionate about social justice — about teaching for change — about changing lives, communities, and student outcomes — then RTR is where you need to be.