PHARR, Texas - Daniel P. King, executive director of Region One Education Service Center, has praised Pharr Economic Development Corporation, for making a big investment in teacher certification.
King was at a check presentation event as Pharr EDC presented a $189,000 check to Region One ESC’s Educator Preparation & Development Program to support 45 aspiring teachers who live or work in Pharr over the next two years.
“One of the things that I've always felt is very, very important for EDCs is investing in the human capital of the community,” King said.
The former PSJA superintendent said it is always big news when an EDC attracts a big business to its city.
“A lot of money is spent… recruiting those (businesses), and that's important. But a balance is really important as well. And one of the best payoffs is investing in your own people, investing in the people of your community, to up-skill them, to improve the quality of life.”
King said a big initiative when he was in school in the 1960s and early 1970s was trying to recruit clothing manufacturers like Levy’s to come to the Rio Grande Valley.
“It was great. People got great jobs. But what happened eventually is those big companies moved on, to other locations where they could make more profit. They were here for two or three decades, and then they moved on,” King said.
“When you invest in your own citizens, they stay. Your own citizens are here so that investment lasts. Not only does it last, that investment flows through to their children. So anytime that we're helping to up-skill our citizens, up-skill our families, help them to get better education, better degrees, better certification so they can get better jobs, we're strengthening our community in a way that has deep roots.”
Yes, King acknowledged, some of those newly skilled workers will leave town, but most will stay.
What is great about Pharr EDC’s new investment is that it is helping create better qualified teachers.
“The biggest source of teachers was something called uncertified. What does that mean? That means they have not had the quality training,” King said. “Because of the shortage of teachers, districts began turning to individuals (that were) coming into the classroom that had no real preparation.”
In the recent past, King said, there has been leadership at various levels of government that have undersold the importance of certified teachers. But research has been done, by the Texas Education Agency and others, which shows that having certified teachers “makes a huge difference.”
King said: “Teachers that go through a preparation program and get certified are more likely to stay in the classroom. Teachers that don't are more likely to not be there three years later. Not only that, but teachers that go through certification programs are more likely to get better results from their students.”
The “top level” King said, is when a teacher goes through a residency-type program.
“Either residency or apprenticeship, meaning, instead of traditional student teaching, they go through a quality on-the-job training program. They’re being supported for a semester or a year before they can become a teacher of record.”
King likened it to a residency program for a doctor.
“Teaching medicine is pretty complex. Guess what? Teaching is quite complex. You're working with the human mind (of a student). You're working with their motivation. You're working with any barriers they may have. You're working with what's happening in their home life. You’re working to teach them to read, to think creatively, to learn math. That is not something that should be undervalued.”
Sadly, there was a trend around the nation for a few years of just bringing anyone in to teach, King said.
“Maybe they were in the workforce, or maybe they were the military, all of which is great. But they still need that specialized training, and, better yet, a residency apprenticeship, where they learn with a master teacher. Just like we want a doctor to do or an engineer to do, to go to residency period first, or an apprenticeship period first, before we entrust them with the future our children.”
King said it was a “big deal” last year when Pharr EDC invested $21,000 in teacher training. But this year’s investment of $189,000 was incredible, he said.
“You just made a big mark,” King said of Pharr EDC. “That’s kind of a challenge for everybody else, saying we're going to start investing significant dollars in making sure that people who live in Pharr, work in Pharr, and want to become a teacher, get to go through a quality program and become a certified teacher. That is going to be a big difference.”
