Carson City School District creates program to hire more teachers

CARSON CITY, Nev. (KOLO) - The Carson City School District has created a new program for people with bachelor’s degrees to become teachers.

The Grow Your Own educator preparation program was created in partnership with iteachNEVADA and is designed to help the district hire more certified teachers amid continued shortages in the field.

They say the program will fast track people with a bachelor’s degree into obtaining a teaching license outside of the traditional pathways.

The CCSD will have full control over the teaching candidate recruitment process, with iteach providing free test prep, as well as assuming creation, maintenance, and assessment of all coursework and educator platforms.

It will also offer educator preparation without the need for a university. The district plans to officially unveil the program on Feb. 13 in the district office’s boardroom at 3:30 p.m.

Those interested are encouraged to bring their laptops to be assisted through the application process. Two Amazon gift cards will also be given out at random to those who attend.

The CCSD will also provide full reimbursement of iteach tuition to any candidate hired by the district that completes the program while working as a contracted teacher in the district.

“We are looking to members of our local community who have earned college degrees and have considered becoming a teacher but may have been discouraged by the cumbersome licensure process,” said Carson City School District Superintendent Andrew Feuling. “Goal 1 of our district’s Strategic Plan, Empower Carson City 2027, is to recruit and retain exceptional personnel. This program will help us do just that.”

Candidates will be provided a one-on-one supervisor for their field experience to provide mentorship, guidance, and perform formal observations. The district will use former principals to guide these new candidates.

“The most significant opportunity to address teacher shortages is investing in those who already know the school community and the students,” said Andrew Rozell MBA, president, iteach. “To this end, establishing a ‘Grow Your Own’ program with iteach provides an effective solution to provide students with highly effective teachers already familiar to the students and schools without sacrificing the cost and resources it takes to establish and maintain a district-wide educator prep program.”

You can register for the event here. You can also call the CCSD for more information at 775-283-2130.

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