Lerner says he has always lived with a passion for nature and sustainability. After founding FRESH New London in 2004 and working there for more than 10 years, he was ready to try similar work, but in a different capacity.<\/p>\n The Neag School\u2019s\u00a0Teacher Certification Program for College Graduates (TCPCG)<\/a>\u00a0seemed a perfect fit \u2014 in addition to offering extraordinary financial support. The 11-month program, in which students earn a master\u2019s degree in education as well as teaching certification, was awarded a $1.2 million grant last year to sponsor aspiring teachers at UConn\u2019s Avery Point campus \u2014\u00a0an average of six future teachers per year for four years. The grant, known as the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship, is funded by the National Science Foundation and was created to provide higher education institutions nationwide with scholarship funding and other financial support for aspiring science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) teachers.<\/p>\n Thanks to his $30,000 Noyce grant, 43-year-old Lerner is now advancing his education through TCPCG\u00a0at the Avery Point campus. The scholarship is helping to create a smooth transition for him as he goes from nonprofit work to pursuing a career as a biology teacher.<\/p>\n \u201cI was doing informal education [with FRESH], and now I\u2019m doing formal education,\u201d Lerner says.<\/p>\n TCPCG encourages master\u2019s candidates who have an undergraduate degree in a STEM field and who plan to study at the Avery Point campus to apply for the grant upon acceptance to the program. It is an accelerated program in which candidates earn both a STEM teaching certification and master\u2019s degree in curriculum and instruction. Students from nontraditional backgrounds are encouraged to apply. Completion of the program with the Noyce scholarship requires a two-year commitment to teaching at a high-needs school after the 11-month program, an aspect that Lerner found especially appealing.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m into helping marginalized communities,\u201d Lerner says. \u201cIt was serendipity to me; it also has a philosophy that fits me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you find a way to connect, that\u2019s what teaching is there for, and it\u2019s empowering and beautiful.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Arthur Lerner, Noyce Scholar and current student in the Neag School\u2019s Teacher Certification Program for College Graduates<\/small><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Like-Minded People<\/strong><\/p>\n TCPCG alumna Beth Raynor \u201911 MA, also a Noyce Scholar and today a biology teacher at Manchester High, majored in art history and minored in biology during her undergraduate years at Wheaton College. After spending a few years working in the different art fields and curating art galleries, Raynor realized that she missed the field of science.<\/p>\n Raynor found the TCPCG program online while working to get another undergraduate degree in biology at UConn. For her, obtaining a master\u2019s degree in curriculum and instruction, along with a STEM teaching certificate, in less than one year was the right fit, as opposed to seeking to complete the degree and earn certification separately over time. The strong sense of camaraderie between students in the program and their teachers and mentors was another powerful aspect of the program for her.<\/p>\n \u201cFinding like-minded people was the main thing that helped me get through it,\u201d Raynor says. \u201cI truly believe that TCPCG has great faculty and staff that taught me everything I needed to know.\u201d<\/p>\n The TCPCG curriculum is divided into three parts: The first part is 12 weeks of coursework in the classroom, completing state requirements for becoming a STEM teacher; the second part centers on student teaching at a nearby school district; and the third part involves students firsthand in research focused on improving some aspect of a school, as well additional coursework on campus.<\/p>\n Raynor\u2019s passion for helping students in high-needs school districts was another key factor in joining the program. TCPCG, she says, is \u201cputting people who are extremely well educated and who are driven and passionate about what they do in these schools. We\u2019re really targeting a need that hasn\u2019t been addressed up until now, and I think that\u2019s really effective.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018Empowering and Beautiful\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n According to Neag School Professor John Settlage, the TCPCG site director at UConn\u2019s Avery Point campus, the student teaching experience during the second part of the program tends to focus, at first, on mentoring. In order to gain exposure before student teaching begins in earnest,\u00a0TCPCG students teach at a middle school science camp<\/a>\u00a0for a week before going into the traditional classroom. They then gradually transition from mentoring and watching the classroom teacher lead the lesson to taking over their roles, from writing tests to running parent-teacher conferences, Settlage says.<\/p>\n \u201cStudent teaching is the hardest part, because you\u2019re not permanent, so everything is off-balance,\u201d Lerner says. But \u201cI gave my students a [Neil deGrasse Tyson] video to watch for homework, and when they came in, they all had done it. When you find a way to connect, that\u2019s what teaching is there for, and it\u2019s empowering and beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n Connecticut requires teachers to get a master\u2019s degree within five years of getting certified; TCPCG takes care of all that, Settlage says. \u201cIt\u2019s a combination of being very rigorous and very practical,\u201d he says. \u201cThe more we blend those, the better.\u201d<\/p>\n The program is rigorous in learning and practical in applying, Settlage says. After intense classroom work, students get the opportunity to apply that knowledge before embarking on their teaching career.<\/p>\n Raynor says she found that, after completing TCPCG, she was not only able to compete for job interviews, but also seemed to have a less difficult transition to becoming a teacher than some of her peers who had not gone through such a program. \u201cMy first year of teaching was hard, but it wasn\u2019t as hard as other people I\u2019ve talked to,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n For aspiring teachers looking to go into the STEM field, Settlage thinks of Connecticut as a playground of career options, particularly, he adds, given that not many other competing schools of education in the region are focused specifically on STEM education.<\/p>\n \u201cBe prepared to work; be prepared to question yourself and your previous knowledge of what education is,\u201d Raynor says. \u201cI can\u2019t speak highly enough about this program. You really will probably be among the top prepared teachers in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Arthur](\"https:\/\/education.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1621\/2016\/10\/DSC_3043_Arthur-Lerner-400x267.jpg\")
![\"Noyce](\"https:\/\/education.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/1621\/2016\/10\/Beth-Raynor-2_Cropped-400x300.jpg\")
Learn more about the Teacher Certification Program for College Graduates at Avery Point and Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/em><\/h3>\n