Radio Address: Granholm Hails New W. K. Kellogg Foundation Woodrow Wilson Michigan Teaching Fellowship
In this week’s radio address, Governor Granholm announces that Michigan has been chosen for a new teaching fellowship program that will benefit almost 20,000 Michigan public school students in high-need schools.
Hello, this is Governor Jennifer Granholm.
Twenty-first century jobs require 21st century minds. If Michigan is to compete in the global economy, all our children have to have world-class education and skills.
That’s why the news of Michigan being chosen for a new teaching fellowship program is so exciting. This program is going to train 240 new math and science teachers to teach in middle and high schools that desperately need teachers in these subjects – math and science. Over a period of five years, almost 20,000 Michigan public school students will receive high-quality education in science, technology, engineering and math from these new teachers.
This statewide teaching fellowship program is made possible by a $16.7 million grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. The result is the W.K. Kellogg Foundation Woodrow Wilson Michigan Teaching Fellowship. Michigan is now one of only three states – the others being Indiana and Ohio – who have been chosen for this teaching fellowship.
The candidates who will be recruited for these 240 teaching fellowships will be a diverse mix. They can be college seniors, recent college graduates, people who have changed careers, or veteran educators. They also could be engineers or other professionals who have recently lost their jobs in this tough economy. Regardless of their backgrounds, they’ll all need two key attributes: expert knowledge and an enthusiasm for teaching young people.
This fellowship will be transformational not only for teachers and students but also for the Michigan universities that will educate the new math and science teachers. That’s because participating universities will first have to agree to overhaul their teacher education programs. Existing math and science programs will be replaced with new ones based on collaboration between the schools of arts and sciences and education.
There are many details that are still to be worked out. In January, the participating universities will be announced as will the Michigan school districts where these new teachers will be placed. And, of course, the 240 teachers need to be recruited and trained.
The most important thing, though, is that vulnerable students in high-need schools are going to receive innovative, high-quality instruction that otherwise they wouldn’t have gotten. As John F. Kennedy once said, “A child miseducated is a child lost.”
No child will be lost in Michigan thanks to the W.K. Kellogg Foundation Woodrow Wilson Michigan Teaching Fellowship.
The Michigan teaching fellowship is an investment in the future of our children, the future of our workforce, and the future of Michigan. It will transform education for both children and teachers, and it will prepare 21st century minds for 21st century jobs.
Thank you for listening.
