Teacher Recruitment

We partner with school districts and states to establish innovative programs that recruit, select and train outstanding teachers. In particular, TNTP is nationally recognized for its expertise in the development of high-quality alternate route to certification programs for urban school systems; in 2006, these "Teaching Fellows" programs boasted an average acceptance rate of 14 percent -- comparable to many of the nation's most prestigious universities. TNTP also works with states to create programs that serve multiple school districts and with charter schools that serve high-poverty populations.

School Staffing

We partner with school districts to improve the flow of qualified teachers into their lowest-performing schools, ensuring that these schools, often in the poorest neighborhoods, open fully staffed. We focus on building the capacity of school principals to take a strategic approach to staffing that allows them to attract and hire the best teachers possible. Through our Model Staffing Initiatives we demonstrate how schools can establish effective teacher hiring practices and put in place model strategies that can ultimately be rolled out to all schools in the district.

Training and Certification

With district and/or university partners, we develop and implement pre-service training, professional development, and certification programs that are specifically designed for teachers pursuing alternate routes to certification. Our programs are anchored in the belief that new teachers can and must have an immediate and positive impact on students and schools, and that research-based instructional practices are the necessary tools to empower alternative route teachers to achieve maximum impact in minimum time. We currently administer programs in Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland and Texas.

Research and Advocacy

We conduct targeted research to identify the obstacles that school systems face to hiring the best teachers possible and quantify the impact of these obstacles on schools, students and teachers. Our data-driven approach enables us to talk plainly and objectively about the problems we find, to argue for key reforms, and to provide effective tools and realistic recommendations to district officials, legislators, and policy-makers.