On November 2nd, Butler University’s College of Education hosted the first Indiana Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (IACTE) Summit on recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers in Indiana. Led by COE Associate Dean, Dr. Deb Lecklider, the keynote speakers were President Lynn Gangone of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), our national association, and Commissioner Teresa Lubbers, from the Indiana Commission for Higher Education. Deans and associate/assistant deans from universities all around Indiana were in attendance, as well as various stakeholders, who contributed to panel discussions. President Gangone spoke about the national portrait of diversity in Teacher Education.
L to R: Dr. Deb Lecklider, IACTE president-elect, Alex Cuenca, AACTE Board, state rep. Ed Delaney, state rep. Terri Austin, state senator John Ruckelshaus, Shawn Sriver, current IACTE president, and Dr. Ena Shelley, Dean for Butler University College of Education and IACTE past-president.
State representatives Terri Austin (D), 36th District and Ed Delaney (D), 86th District appeared on a panel state senator John Ruckleshaus (R) to discuss the “Indiana Teacher Shortage and the Statehouse.” They answered audience questions and listened to recommendations made by Indiana educators regarding promotion and pay concerns, state legislation, and the challenges that arise from these important issues.
The panel on “Challenges and Opportunities in Recruiting High-Quality Teachers” featured stakeholder voices including:
- Dr. Gwen Kelley, Research Associate for The Equity Project, Indiana University
- Joe White, Vice President for The Mind Trust
- Dr. Lemuel Watson, Dean for the School of Education, Indiana University
- Amar Patel, Executive Director for Teach for America Indianapolis
- Temitope Adeoye, Holmes Scholar, Purdue University
- Chris Henderson, Partner, The New Teacher Project
This panel was moderated by Jill Shedd, Assistant Dean for the School of Education at Indiana University.
The final panel consisted of local practitioners, including JT Coopman, Executive Director of the Indiana Association of Public School Superintendents (IAPSS), Colleen Moran, Superintendent for North Montgomery School Corporation, Matt Prusiecki, Superintendent for MSD Decatur Township Schools, and Mindy Schlegel, Human Resource Officer for Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS). The panel was moderated by Dr. Tony Klein, Dean for the Franks School of Education at Trine University.
Over 150 panelist and attendees left with action items and were challenged to reach out to state legislators to keep the conversation going. Indiana wants to solve the teacher shortage crisis for our state and this is a good starting point.