What's Happening in Spring, TX…

Students in Texas A&M University’s teaching program will have the opportunity to teach in the Spring Independent School District, specifically Thompson Elementary School.

Working alongside teachers in the classroom, four A&M students will receive hands-on training four days a week and return to the university campus to finalize coursework. The student teachers will also take part in new teacher orientation, community programs, and professional development.

The Urban Student Teacher Advanced Residency (U-STAR) program lines up perfectly with the district’s strategic plan, which has as one of its priorities to recruit and retain high quality teachers. Students participating in U-STAR, who after graduating as fully certified teachers apply with the Spring School District, will be given first consideration for full-time teaching position.

The U-STAR program is one of only a few in the U.S. and is designed to immerse senior-level teaching students in the district’s classrooms, helping them learn firsthand about the local culture. It is hoped that U-STAR will help to address a challenge facing school districts across the country – preparing teachers for the unique situation they will encounter in urban schools and equipping them to thrive in that environment.

The Spring Independent School District is the first to partner with A&M University in the U-Star program. If the program proves successful, Texas A&M’s College of Education and Human Development will likely ask that information about the program be included by its brochure printers in its promotional literature.