Rochester, MN – Rochester Public Schools is pleased to announce its Grow Your Own program, a partnership with the Minnesota Department of Education to increase and support the number of educators of color in our district. Having diverse educators in our classrooms benefits all of the students we serve, especially those from historically marginalized populations, who often do not see educators who look like them during their time in school.
“Our staff are at the heart of what we do, and one of the goals in our strategic plan is to improve our recruitment and retention efforts,” said Superintendent Dr. Kent Pekel. “Grow Your Own will allow us to hire and retain talented staff who reflect our student population. It makes a world of difference as a student if you see educators who look like you, who have the same background as you.”
Grow Your Own is an adult pathway program that will support teachers/individuals of color who want to pursue a career in teaching. The program will be for individuals of color who meet one or more of the following criteria:
A current employee of Rochester Public Schools,
A parent or caregiver of a current RPS student, and/or
Resides within the RPS attendance area.
The program will offer financial assistance through scholarships, a paid-to-teach option where staff who are employed in the district can continue to receive the salary from their current position while completing their clinical experience, a partnership with a Minnestoa PELSB accredited university, and more.
“We believe in the importance of this initiative and want to remove as many barriers as possible,” said Executive Director of Human Resources Karl Bakken. “We’re hoping these incentives and the support we provide will allow us to recruit talented RPS staff and community members to join our teaching staff.”
RPS will be hosting an informational session on Grow Your Own this afternoon, Thursday, November 16 at 4:30 p.m. in the Board Room at Edison, 615 7th St SW. Members of the public are invited to attend and learn more. Interested individuals can fill out an application to be considered for an interview at www.rochesterschools.org/grow-your-own.