Partners launch teaching fellows program

The University and the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League (MWUL) have launched the Achievement Matters! Teaching Fellows Program, a partnership to increase the pool of students of color studying to become teachers.

MWUL will assist in outreach and recruitment of students of color, and UD will provide guidance to students interested in teacher education programs offered at the University, Edie Corbin, director of education and health for the Urban League, and Terry Whittaker, assistant provost for student diversity and success at UD, said.

“This program will not only make certain that aspiring young teachers have the chance to attend college, but also, and perhaps more importantly, that they receive the academic and financial support they will need to successfully matriculate through our accredited teacher education programs,” Whittaker said.

All Delaware students of color who apply to the University as education majors and meet UD’s admissions standards will be considered for the program. Those who demonstrate financial need will be considered for grants and other forms of need-based financial aid.

“This partnership is reflective of the University’s ongoing commitment to diversifying its student body and recruiting and successfully matriculating talented students of color who desire to become teachers,” Corbin said.

“A strong part of the solution to eliminating the achievement gap is to ensure that more K through 12 minority students and their parents see minority adults as educational leaders in their school systems. This relationship with the University will ensure that there is a steady supply of well-educated and highly qualifed minority professionals ready to assume this responsibility.”

Lisa Blunt-Bradley, president of the MWUL, said, “There are so many young people in Delaware eager for a chance to attend college and make a positive contribution to society. This partnership is extremely important and beneficial to children and families in Wilmington and throughout the state.”

For more information about the Achievement Matters! Teaching Fellows Program, call Whittaker at (302) 831-6092 or Corbin at (302) 622-4300.