The future of teaching is looking brighter—and more inclusive—thanks to a California State University (CSU) initiative that puts equity at the head of the class.
As the largest producer of credentialed teachers in the state, CSU colleges have made significant strides in recruiting, retaining, and supporting candidates from diverse backgrounds through a targeted effort to ensure that K-12 teachers better reflect their student population.
The CSU Center for Transformational Educator Preparation Programs (CTEPP) is closing out a four-year initiative called the Transformation Lab, which engaged with 10 California colleges to address systemic barriers in existing programs. The lab launched in 2021 with four participating colleges, expanding to add six more in 2022. Each campus team received guidance from improvement coaches, adopting practices such as culturally responsive supervision, strategic recruitment of underserved candidates, and partnerships with districts to secure job opportunities.
The initiative also fostered partnerships, including a California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) collaboration with local school districts to boost the hiring and retention of Latino teachers.
“Our university teams have used improvement science methods to investigate specific problems of practice in their programs and then they’ve taken action so that aspiring Black, Indigenous, and other teachers of color can thrive,” said Shireen Pavri, PhD, assistant vice chancellor of educator and leadership programs, in a CSU press release. And those efforts yielded notable results.
Key achievements of the Lab include:
• Retention for underserved students earning single-subject teaching credentials increased by 10% at Sacramento State University.
• Completion rates increased for Black teacher candidates at CSU Bakersfield and CSU Northridge by 17% and 31%, respectively.
• Assessment pass rates improved at CSU Long Beach and Cal Poly Pomona.
• Teaching placements for underserved candidates doubled at Stanislaus State University.
CTEPP continues to support professional development programs like the CSU Equity and Excellence Certificate Program and is actively seeking funding for future initiatives. California leaders also advocate for a more inclusive teacher workforce through CalStateTEACH, CSU’s systemwide online teacher preparation program, which focuses on recruiting men of color and serving both urban and rural communities.
These efforts underscore CSU’s ongoing commitment to fostering inclusive excellence in California’s classrooms, ensuring that all K-12 students see themselves reflected in their educators.
