Lincoln High School (2005 – present)
The School of Education has engaged actively with Tacoma’s Lincoln High School to prepare educators for effective, collaborative work in urban schools. Each year, MAT candidates are involved in various experiences at Lincoln, including completing practicum experiences, participating in after-school programs, joining professional development activities with experienced educators, and completing student teaching.
Stafford Elementary School (2008 – present)
The School of Education has been closely connected with Stafford Elementary in South Tacoma, since it opened in 2008. MAT candidates are placed with highly experienced mentor teachers at Stafford, who guide beginning teachers through a formative internship experience.
Edna Travis Elementary (2009 – 2019)
Professors Amy Ryken and Monica DeHart developed an educational exchange and community development partnership with Edna Travis Elementary School (formerly McCarver Elementary) in collaboration with the University of Washington, Tacoma, the Greater Metro Parks Foundation, and other local community groups. The initiative included extended classroom collaborations between elementary and college students and active contribution to community-based projects. See Cook, S. (2018). Common Ground. Arches 45 (2): 24-31.
Point Defiance Elementary school (2006 – 11)
Our intentional partnership with Point Defiance Elementary emphasized the intersection of multiple voices (teacher candidates, mentor teachers, university professors, principal, & clinical supervisors) to create dialogue across university and school-based contexts. Goals included:
- Creating opportunities for shared examination of teaching and learning.
- Supporting the development of beginning teachers.
- Developing a greater awareness of the practical work and aims at each institution.
The central practice of this intentional partnership was discussion of specific dilemmas of teaching by analyzing student, teacher, and/or curriculum artifacts.
University of Puget Sound Partnerships
Race & Pedagogy Institute
The Race and Pedagogy Institute educates students and teachers at all levels to think critically about race, cultivate terms and practices for societal transformation, and act to eliminate racism. School of Education students, staff, and faculty support the institute by planning conference sessions focused on K-12 teachers and students, presenting at and attending conference sessions, supporting undergraduate students to present their work, and serving as guest editors for the Race & Pedagogy Journal.
African American Studies
The School of Education and the Department of African American Studies work to develop intentional and mutually beneficial opportunities for programmatic and curricular collaboration. Our collective work is focused on unearthing, processing, and sitting with racist and historical legacies; imagining generative cross-program collaborations; supporting the ongoing work of the Race and Pedagogy Institute, and grounding teacher and counselor education in the specific context of Tacoma’s urban education environment.
Community Partnerships
Community Partners Forum / Vibrant Schools
As a part of our partnership with the Race and Pedagogy Institute, the School of Education students and faculty engage with community members who participate in the Race and Pedagogy Community Partners Forum and Vibrant Schools. The Race and Pedagogy Institute, Vibrant Schools, and the School of Education collaborated to write a successful grant proposal for the Pilot to Policy: Advancing Systemic Equity Grant. The purpose of the grant is to increase equity in educator preparation programs and to inform Professional Educator Standards Board (PESB) policy related to cultural responsiveness and equity.
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