We prepare teachers who are equipped to handle the challenges of high-needs and hard-to-staff classrooms. The program is rigorous. It will take courage, perseverance, and flexibility to grow into an extraordinary teacher. If you have a calling to teach historically marginalized students along with the passion for social justice, then this hard work is not only an investment in becoming a first rate teacher. It is an investment in every student you will teach. Education matters. So does every student.
Our residency year is an intensive 13-14 month preparation process. Throughout this time, our residents will devote 60+ hours a week to learning how to teach both as a co-teacher or teaching resident in the classroom and as a full time VCU graduate student.
New cohorts begin in the summer, and you will be immersed in VCU coursework and opportunities to develop relationships with fellow cohort members. In the fall, you will begin your clinical work as a co-teacher in the classroom while you continue your VCU coursework. In the spring, you will solo teach and finish up your courses for your certificate or degree.
The Residency Year looks like this:
Graduate Coursework: 18-21 credit hours
The RTR Forum provides in-depth orientation, structure and support for residents’ upcoming year as co-teachers, residents, and cohort colleagues. This series continues throughout the year on a monthly basis.
Co-teaching: Alongside a Clinical Resident Coach (CRC)
Graduate Coursework: 9-12 credit hours
Solo or Co-teaching (Solo teaching majority of the semester)
Graduate Seminars: 9-12 credit hours
After Year One
Since our inception, we have maintained a 100% job placement rate. After your residency year, you will be well-positioned for your own classroom in the school division in which you served as a resident. You will teach for an additional three years to fulfill your agreement to teach in a high-needs school. After three years of teaching, it is our hope that you will continue to teach for change in your respective school.
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.