TEACH Colorado launched with a mission to increase the quality, quantity and diversity of the state’s teacher pipeline.
Studies confirm that highly qualified teachers create the largest outcomes for students, and the benefits of a great teacher last throughout a student’s life. Yet, Colorado - like states across the nation - faces a teacher shortage.
According to Colorado Department of Education survey data for the 2018-19 school year, the state’s schools had to fill 7,773 teacher vacancies. Districts hired more than 900 long-term substitutes, retired teachers or emergency hires to fill the gap, while 264 positions remained unfilled all year.
This shortage hits particular subjects and rural areas the hardest, with special education experiencing the largest subject area shortage; small rural districts filled more than half of their teaching vacancies with long-term substitutes or other emergency hires. Compounding this issue, many districts struggle to find teachers who reflect the cultural and linguistic diversity of Colorado’s increasingly diverse student population.
TEACH Colorado is a partnership among Colorado’s school districts, educator preparation programs, state agencies, and business and nonprofit groups to launch a comprehensive digital platform that recruits talented Coloradans into the teaching profession and provides the support they need to enroll in an educator preparation program.
TEACH Colorado is led by Colorado Department of Education (CDE), Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE), Public Education & Business Coalition (PEBC), Colorado Education Initiative (CEI), and TEACH. Funding support is provided by the lead partners, Microsoft, Rose Community Foundation, Colorado Education Association, Boettcher Foundation, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, and Workforce Development Council.
