Dakota ASSETS Overview
Dakota ASSETS Overview
Two federal grants from the U.S. Department of Education are combined under the umbrella of Dakota ASSETS. The word “ASSETS” is derived from the grant’s over-arching goal: All Students will be Served by Exceptional TeacherS. A Teacher Quality Enhancement grant (TQE) and a Transition to Teaching grant (TTT) were both awarded in the Fall of 2007. The goal and objectives of these two programs are similar and were combined to maximize resources. Maggie Austin and Doug Rowe assumed the responsibilities of co-directors when the grants were awarded, and continue in these roles today.
Although the goal and objectives of the TTT and TQE programs are similar, there are several key differences. One is the length of their funding cycles. The TQE is a three-year award which ended September 30, 2010 and the TTT award is for five years which ends September 30, 2012. Each federal program has a specific and different definition for high need schools, eligible scholarship recipients, and the type of participant awards.
Now that the TQE portion of Dakota ASSETS has ended, the current focus of our work is to recruit and select candidates to fill shortages for teaching positions in South Dakota high need schools as identified by the TTT program rules.
Dakota ASSETS’ performance objectives are:
- To recruit and select outstanding candidates to fill shortages for elementary, secondary, and special education teachers in high need schools in western South Dakota.
- To provide intensive, field-based training and preparation for teacher candidates that result in the attainment of teacher certification.
- To place 80% of participants in secondary, elementary and special education teaching positions in TTT high need schools for three years.
- To provide support (once they are teaching in a high need district & school) to participants for a minimum of one year through on-site mentoring/coaching and extended opportunities for professional development.
- To review for revision, selection and hiring procedures in partner schools to remove barriers to recruitment and employment for qualified candidates.
Co-directors Doug Rowe and Maggie Austin of Technology and Innovation in Education (TIE) have established collaborative partnerships with Black Hills State University, South Dakota Teach for America, Sinte Gleska University, Oglala Lakota College, and the South Dakota Department of Education to successfully implement this grant’s goals and objectives.
Shown below is the organizational structure of this project.
In addition to utilizing the collaborative strengths of the above cited partnerships, the Dakota ASSETS’ project was designed to incorporate the strengths, successes, and partnerships of previous federal grants which have been awarded to TIE.
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