TEXARKANA, Texas -- The Liberty-Eylau Independent School District recently received a $92,000 Texas COVID Learning Acceleration Supports (TCLAS) "Grow Your Own" grant to assist in growing staff members into teachers.
"This grant program is designed to grow our own teachers to address the growing concern for teacher shortage areas and to close the demographic gaps between students and teachers," Deputy Superintendent Dr. Ceretha Brown said during a board meeting last week. "Our goal is to promote a long-term recruitment and retention program by targeting already-proven and dedicated staff who desire opportunities for advancement."
TCLAS is a set of funding and targeted supports available to Local Education Agencies to accelerate student learning in the wake of COVID-19, utilizing state and federal funds, according to the Texas Education Agency's website.
Applicants may apply for this grant through different pathways. The first pathway is paraprofessionals. instructional aides and long-term substitute teachers who are pursuing a teacher certification only.
These applicants would already hold a Bachelor's Degree. They would be eligible if they received the grant for a stipend in the amount of $7,500 to help them with the expenses of becoming certified.
The other pathway is for paraprofessionals, instructional aides and long-term substitute teachers who are pursuing a Bachelor's Degree and a teacher certification. They are eligible for a stipend in the amount of $18,000 dispersed over two years. They would have to have 75 credit hours to be eligible.
"They have to be ready to go into a classroom for us by fall of 2024, and what they would have to do in return is sign a (Memorandum of Understanding) agreeing to teach for us for three years after receiving that," Brown said.
Brown said she has received calls and emails regarding this item. She sent out a survey before receiving the grant to gauge interest levels.
"For pathway A, which is the certification only, we have two stipends available," Brown said. "And for B, where they can finish their degree and become certified, there are four grants available. So, we can actually help a total of six people in our district with this."
The application process would include an essay and the submission of enrollment documentation. The deadline to apply is during the first week of January.