River City Partnership
The River City Partnership is a collaborative partnership between the UofM College of Education and Shelby County Schools, the Achievement School District, and other local charter schools. The River City Partnership seeks to recruit local teachers, equip them to teach in Memphis schools, and support future teachers throughout college and as they enter the workforce. The Partnership includes the River City Summer Program, the I AM A MAN- I TEACH Program, the Master of Education: Eureka Math Program, and the High School Teacher Cadet Program.
Key drivers to the River City Partnership strategy:
- Selecting and preparing local future teachers who demonstrate cultural competence
- Deepening future teachers' understanding of the Memphis context
- Engaging future teachers with the communities in which they will teach
- Preparing future teachers who have strong content knowledge- both subject matter expertise and pedagogical approach- in support of effective standards-based instruction
The River City Partnership Difference
- Local Memphis recruitment and pipeline development with an emphasis on African-American males and Latino candidates
- Co-developed culturally relevant and community-centered preparation/programming
- Intentional and deliberate clustered placements of undergraduate teacher candidates in high-need/high-priority schools
- Collaborative induction and retention
- District or school-wide support for teaching and learning