04-08-2025
Cherry Creek School District hopes to improve teacher shortage with program to recruit and train aspiring educators
Cherry Creek Schools in the southern part of the Denver metro area is finding a way to address the national teacher shortage by growing and training their own teachers. Through a program, aspiring teachers get hands-on experience with the support of district teachers, while still attending college.
The Aspiring Educator Pathway program is now in its second year and has more than doubled in size since starting. The program has grown from 16 apprentice and aspiring teachers last year to now nearly 60 this year. All the apprentice teachers have been paired with mentor teachers at 15 schools across the district. For the past couple weeks, they've also met to prepare for the start of the school year.
Shae Brock worked in a 5th grade classroom last year as part of the aspiring educator pathway program.
"It was something that was super exciting for me, and I knew it could be super life changing," said Brock.
Brock attends the Community College of Aurora, which has a partnership with Cherry Creek School District for the program. While students take college classes, they also work full-time in a classroom and will become licensed teachers when they graduate.
Melissa Klemenz, is the assistant director of the program, and said in traditional teacher-prep programs, students go to school for 3 ½ years and then during their last semester, they begin student teaching. She added that's why the district's superintendent worked to come up with a better way to prepare teachers. She said the goal is to recruit and retain teachers in the district and also provide the best education to students.
"We really believe that educators need better preparation to in order to be the best for their students in the classroom," said Klemenz. "There is a teacher shortage, and so the more that we can have teachers that are prepared and feel comfortable in the classroom, as well as growing our own pathway to become teachers, will really help students benefit."
In the first year of the program, Klemenz said there was improved student assessment and more positive classroom environments.
For mentor teachers like Katrina Shroyer, she's also seen the growth in her students.
"They have another person that cares about them, that wants them to be successful, that is there to impact their growth," said Shroyer. "We were a team and because they (apprentice teachers) were there every day, they knew the kids just like I knew them.
As part of the four-year-program, mentees get more than 4,500 hours of experience inside the classroom, compared to 700 hours through a traditional pathway or regular student teaching.
"I was in kindergarten as a student teacher, but it wasn't as intense as this program. I would go to school about two days a week and only be at the school part time," said Brock. "I think during student teaching, I was missing so many key opportunities that was Important for my journey as a teacher."
The program also addresses student debt. While apprentice teachers are working at the district, their costs for college classes each year drops down to $15,000.
Not only is Brock working a full-time job and getting a paycheck, but she's also getting a jumpstart in her career.
"I really have been immersed in a school and school environment and working alongside with a teacher in their classroom, and what it's like to co-teach," said Brock. "I've learned a lot about how to build relationships with students, lesson planning, and, you know, really knowing what it takes to become a teacher," said Brock.
This year as part of the program, the district also launched a Special Education Aspiring Educator Pathway. With special education position hard to fill, people are not going into that field of education as often. More than 20 teacher apprentices have signed up are focused in special education.
Cherry Creek School District teachers will return to their classrooms this week and the apprentice teachers will also be joining them to get classrooms prepared and ready to welcome students back next week.
