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Teacher and Leader Development

Teacher and Leader Development

GYO Tools and Resources

This section contains forms and templates Local Education Agencies (LEAs) can customize as they design or expand their Grow Your Own (GYO) programs. The Needs Assessment and Network Inventory forms are fillable PDFs, and the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) template is one of many MOU formats institutions can use to formalize their GYO partnerships. All three tools can be customized to meet Local Education Agency (LEA) needs and interests. This section also contains a hyperlinked list of research literature that informed some of the Grow Your Own (GYO) guidance materials. LEAs are encouraged to peruse the list for further reading on GYO programs and teacher pipelines.

If there is GYO research you would like to know more about, or GYO research or initiatives you would like to share with us, please email us at GrowYourOwn@NYSED.gov. If there is a GYO program that should be included in the GYO Program Highlights section, please Let Us Know!

Needs Assessment

The Needs Assessment is an opportunity for all Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and community stakeholders to provide input on the current and projected needs for educators in their LEA, as well as potential candidates in the community to meet those needs.

Network Inventory

The Network Inventory is an opportunity for Local Education Agency (LEA) staff to share potential partnership opportunities based on established connections they have at neighboring LEAs, Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs), and community organizations. 

Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Template

The MOU Template is a document for partners to detail their shared goals and individual responsibilities in establishing and sustaining a Grow Your Own (GYO) program.

Research and Further Readings

Darling-Hammond, L. (2022). Breaking the legacy of teacher shortages. Educational Leadership, 80(2), 14–20.

Educational Equity for Rural Students: Out of the Pandemic, but Still Out of the Loop. A Five-Part Series. Part 3: Thinking Broadly and Deeply about Rural Student Achievement and Teacher Pipelines. (2023). Center for Public Education, National School Boards Association.

Gist, C.D., Bianco, M., & Lynn, M. (2019). Examining grow your own programs across the teacher development continuum: Mining research on teachers of color and nontraditional educator pipelines. Journal of Teacher Education, 70(1), 13-25.

Gist, C.D., White, T., & Bianco, M. (2017). Pushed to teach: Pedagogies and policies for a black women educator pipeline. Education and Urban Society, 50(1), 56–86.

Goings, R. B., & Bianco, M. (2016). It’s hard to be who you don’t see: An exploration of black male high school students’ perspectives on becoming teachers. The Urban Review, 48(4), 628–646.

Goldhaber, D. & Mizrav, E. (2021). The prospective teacher pipeline: Simulation evidence on levers to influence teacher diversity. (CALDER Policy Brief No. 28-1121). Arlington, VA: National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research.

Goodwin, A. L. (2023). Enduring problems, rethinking process, fulfilling promises: Reflections on the continuing shortage of teachers of color. Journal of Teacher Education, 74(2), 167–170.

Herman, K. (2023). What we know now: Urban teacher residency models, teacher shortages, and equity. Issues in Teacher Education, 32(1), 56–73.

Hunt, E., Gardner, D., Hood, L., & Haller, A. (2011). Illinois grow your own teacher education initiative: Formative evaluation and preliminary recommendations. Center for the Study of Education Policy.

Ingersoll, R. M., & Tran, H. (2023). Teacher shortages and turnover in rural schools in the US: An organizational analysis. Educational Administration Quarterly, 59(2), 396–431.

Jackson, N., & Wake, D. (2022). Exploring the impact of a grow your own teachers program. Research Issues in Contemporary Education, 7(1), 109–135.

Klein, E., Taylor, M., Onore, C., Strom, K., & Abrams, L. (2013). Finding a third space in teacher education: Creating an urban teacher residency. Teaching Education, 24(1), 27-57. 

Kretchmar, & Zeichner, K. (2016). Teacher prep 3.0: A vision for teacher education to impact social transformation. Journal of Education for Teaching : JET, 42(4), 417–433.

Lachlan-Haché, L., Kimmel, L., Krohn, C., Dolby, D., & Causey-Konaté, T. (2023). How districts and states are addressing teacher turnover. Learning Professional, 44(1), 30–33.

Leslie, D. (2011). Seeking symmetry in a school-university partnership: University of Chicago and Chicago Public Schools--A collaborative approach to developing models and tools for professional development and teacher preparation. Planning & Changing, 42(1-2), 120–154.

Morgan-Fleming, B., Simpson, D. J., Curtis, K., & Hull, W. (2010). Learning through partnership: Four narratives. Teacher Education Quarterly, 37(3), 63–79.

National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). (2010). Transforming teacher education through clinical practice: Report of the blue-ribbon panel on clinical preparation and partnerships for improved student learning. Washington, DC.

Nguyen, T. D., Lam, C. B., & Bruno, P. (2022). Is There a National Teacher Shortage? A Systematic Examination of Reports of Teacher Shortages in the United States. EdWorkingPaper No. 22-631. In Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University.

Scott, L. A., Bell, N., Dayton, M., Bowman, R. W., Evans, I., Grillo, M., Spence, C., & Layden, S. J. (2023). Special education teachers of color retention decisions: Findings from a national study. Exceptional Children, 89(3), 256–274.

Simieou, F., III, Miller, Q., Grace, J., & Decman, J. (2023). The road less traveled: Why black males choose alternative routes that lead to education. School Leadership Review, 17(2).

Swanson, P. B. (2011). Georgia's grow-your-own teacher programs attract the right stuff. The High School Journal, 94(3), 119-133.

Valenzuela, A. (2017). Grow your own educator programs: A review of literature with an emphasis on equity-based approaches. San Antonio, TX: Intercultural Development Research Association.

Zeichner, K. A., & Brayko, K. (2015). Democratizing teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 66(2), 122–135.