Yong Leads Grant to Establish STEM Teacher Corps Pilot Program

A holistic focus on teacher wellbeing is guiding a regional alliance of teacher professional development programs that have united to support 30 grade 4–12 math teachers in the greater Los Angeles area. The project, “RAMTD-UP-LA: Regional Alliance for Mathematics Teacher Development, Uplift, and Professionalization in Los Angeles,” has been funded by a $5 million National Science Foundation (NSF) grant to be led by Darryl Yong ’96, math professor and McGregor-Girand Chair in STEM Equity Innovation and Research at Harvey Mudd College.

Lower-income areas of Los Angeles face persistent teacher shortages. School districts struggle to fill vacancies with fully credentialed teachers, particularly in STEM subjects. As a result, students across the region face inequal access to engaging and challenging math learning opportunities, creating barriers to further pursuing STEM subjects or careers. Teachers can have a significant impact on student learning and can be important change agents within their schools and districts.

“The working conditions for teachers are the learning conditions for students,” says Yong, an award winning educator, author and researcher of effective strategies for teaching and learning mathematics in higher education. This is his 10th NSF grant supporting work to enhance teacher quality, retention and empowerment as well as student learning.

The STEM Corps Pilot Program is the result of a collaboration of Math for America Los Angeles, UCLA Mathematics Project and the Cal Poly Pomona Mathematics Project. “The program brings together people from higher education institutions across Southern California who have expertise in providing teacher professional development,” says Yong. “We wanted to combine our forces to do something larger that would serve the needs of math teachers in the greater Los Angeles area. The grant is also a chance for me to get to work with people that I have long respected in our area.”

The program aims to heighten STEM learning experiences for all students (particularly those who have historically been marginalized from STEM fields), to promote the retention of excellent STEM teachers, to elevate the STEM teaching profession and to develop teacher leaders. Two cohorts of 30 teachers will each receive an annual $20,000 stipend, time for teacher collaboration, on-site coaching, funding for supplies and travel to conferences.

“By raising teachers up to be leaders in their schools and providing them with the resources to be leaders, we can make a difference in the math education that students receive,” says Yong. “The grant is a huge encouragement that the work that we are doing is important and needed.”

The program’s impact is anticipated to grow beyond the cohorts. If one cohort teacher reaches 120 students a year, the 30 corps members are anticipated to reach 14,400 students during four years of support. The hope is that each cohort member will mentor other teachers and bring about systemic changes in their schools and districts to broaden access to high-quality math education.