Hello all! I am really excited to share with you today about all things The Educator Academy! We believe the best way to improve educational equity throughout our city is to increase the number of excellent teachers in our schools for our kids. In order to do that, we are already off to a great start with our winter recruitment season, and the The Educator Academy Talent Team is currently looking for passionate people to join our team as teaching residents. Today, I’m going to answer a couple of FAQs.
One of the top questions that I receive is, What are you looking for in a candidate? Our basic eligibility requirements are that you must have a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution and meet our GPA requirement of a 2.75. All majors are eligible to apply so you don’t have to have a background in education. Beyond those basic requirements, we are looking for candidates that display a few other key characteristics that you could probably name as qualities that you remember about your favorite teachers when you were in school! We are looking for people that are passionate about educational equity in Kansas City like we are and are committed to teaching in KC for at least four years. We also love seeing candidates that display a growth mindset, empathy, grit, and flexibility.
Another popular question that is asked is, Why should I join The Educator Academy over other options out there for new teachers? I may be a little biased.. but I truly believe The Educator Academy is the best option for someone who is interested in becoming a teacher! There are about a million reasons why I believe this, and you can find most of them on our website but for now I will try to stick to my top three.
Lauren’s Top 3 Reasons to Join The Educator Academy
First, the support and development during the residency year is unlike anywhere else. Our residents get to spend an entire year learning the ropes with a successful mentor teacher so that when they are a teacher in their own classroom, they know what they are doing and the students that they teach get the quality education that they deserve. The residency year is an INCREDIBLE learning opportunity that I think all teachers should be able to experience.
Second, the coaching and feedback. In order to be an expert at anything, whether it be baseball or dance or teaching, you need great coaching. You need someone who can tell you what you are doing well and what will make you even better. Our residents get to receive feedback not just from their mentor teacher but also from their The Educator Academy coach and that is hands down one of the keys to our success.
And lastly for now, The Educator Academy is Kansas City focused. All of our schools and partnerships are in KC. This means that we have developed strong relationships and connections with schools and within the region so we are able to support our residents in a way and to a level that they might not get somewhere else. Not to mention Kansas City is just an all around great place to live and work (and eat BBQ)!
So, what are you waiting for?! Our application portal is open now, and it will close on March 14th. Our application process begins with an online application, the second stage is a phone interview, and the final stage is an all day in-person event called Selection Day (my favorite part!). If you have questions about the application process or about the program you can email me at lauren@educator-academy.org or you can schedule a phone call with me through my calendar here.