The four-year degree will end in a teacher certification in elementary education, said Rebecca Saiz, LSCS executive director for the educator preparation program. The Bachelor’s of Applied Science in Early Childhood Education and Teaching will serve early childhood to third grade and early childhood to sixth grade, according to the release.
"It's been a long time coming with this teacher shortage in the state of Texas, trying to figure out ways that we can make an impact in that workforce environment,” Saiz said.
How we got here
There has been a significant rise in the number of uncertified teachers in Texas for the past five years, according to the Texas Education Agency.
“We are ready to make the impact. We are all mothers too. ... We have children in the schools, so we want to make sure that our kids and then our grandkids have teachers that are well prepared and ready to serve all of our students,” Saiz said.
Looking forward
The initial cohort will launch with 150 teacher candidates, pending approval by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board as well as the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, per the release.
