About a year and a half ago, the Semillas del Pueblo (Seeds of the Community) project kicked off with the goal of filling the void of teacher shortages in middle and high schools in Southern Arizona. In this region, there is not only a shortage of teachers, but also a shortage of those who know how to teach in the tradition of Mexican-American Studies (MAS). Semillas del Pueblo grew out of conversations, research, teaching, and experiences. Any teacher can use this student- and community-centered approach to education.

The Semillas del Pueblo project:

Empowers students to construct their own understanding of the world to better serve themselves and their communities

Cultivates interest in teaching in middle or high schools

Offers students the opportunity to become MAS-trained teachers via the M.Ed. Secondary Education Alternative Pathways 

Works with high schools and Pima Community College to create a pipeline for MAS-trained educators, with the goal of expanding to a pipeline of MAS teachers anywhere in the country

Offers a graduate certificate for educators to bring the MAS approach into their classrooms (a four-course sequence, including ethnic studies history, humanizing pedagogy, and equity awareness and literacy)

Serves students in Mexican-American communities

Watch this just-released video featuring Semillas Outreach Coordinator Jesus Jaime-Diaz as he beautifully uncovers how a career in teaching middle and high school students can impact social change for the common good of humanity.

The College of Education Diversity Committee is kicking off its new speaker series on February 23 with Center for the Study of Higher Education alumna Amanda Tachine, a Navajo from Ganado, Arizona. She is Náneesht’ézhí Táchii’nii (Zuni Red Running into Water clan) born for Tl’izilani (Many Goats clan). She is an assistant professor in educational leadership and innovation at Arizona State University.

Tachine’s research centers on exploring college access and persistence among Indigenous college students. Tachine was recognized by President Obama with the White House Champions of Change: Young Women Empowering Communities Award for creating Native SOAR, a multi-generation mentoring program to increase college access among Native youth and families.

Tuesday, February 23

3-4 p.m.

Free and open to the public. Join us!

We are seeking 13 STEM teachers (grades 6-12) in Southern Arizona to become Noyce Borderlands Master Teacher Fellows. Selected fellows in this National Science Foundation-funded teacher leadership program will earn a STEM Teacher Leadership Certificate and $11,000 per year ($55,000 over five years).

The Noyce Border Scholars Program along the Arizona-Mexico border is a collaboration between the University of Arizona College of Education, University of Arizona Biosphere 2, and Cochise College.

For information contact, Program Manager Ali Van Gorp at [email protected] or 520-266-0536.

Worlds of Words presents We the People: Migrant Waves in the Making of America, a virtual summer institute for K-12 educators funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Join us virtually June 21-July 2 as we explore migration as a constant in U.S. history through a case study of Arizona, immersing ourselves in the stories left out of traditional narratives. The institute includes literature, museums, visiting scholars, and digital inquiry to examine the histories that have been erased in Arizona and in other states. Selected participants will receive a $2,200 stipend, 10 books, and other curricular materials.

Deadline to apply is March 1. Apply today!

The Cooper Center for Environmental Learning sits on a large piece of land just west of Tucson that is – there’s no other way to put it – absolutely stunning. But the facilities haven't changed since the 1970s. Now Cooper is in the middle of an extreme makeover to completely transform the center and expand its ecological and cultural mission, thanks to some very generous donors.

Cooper is about to begin construction on an eco-friendly bathroom and shower facility, along with a solar-shaded outdoor classroom. Cooper has raised 80 percent of the funds needed, thanks to gifts both large and small.

Now Cooper needs your help to close the gap by March 1 to break ground in the next few months. And – good news – the next $14,500 we receive will be doubled!

Cooper Director Colin Waite has made the media circuit about Cooper's historical impact on Southern Arizona, how they've weathered the pandemic, and plans for the facility improvements.

He was featured on AZPM’s Arizona Spotlight (watch his interview at the 17-minute mark) and on Tucson’s Morning Blend.

If you’d like to help the Cooper Center expand its ecological and cultural mission, please contact Colin Waite.

We previously told you about student Amy Spotted Wolf, an elementary education student through the Indigenous Teacher Education Project, who was crowned the 59th Miss Indian Arizona. Her platform is to embrace change to strengthen and learn from the connections of the Indigenous People of Arizona. She recently spoke with Tucson’s ABC affiliate, KGUN 9, on Absolutely Arizona about the history of A Mountain and its significance to the Tohono O'odham.

Tucson Sentinel featured a five-part series about opportunity in Tucson written by College of Education alumnus Jim Kiser '66 '70.

The series analyzes income in Tucson and how the gaps in income affect the opportunities available to children. Kiser writes, "These differences in effect have created two Tucsons – one Tucson in which kids grow up to be financially successful, and another Tucson in which children are set up to struggle to provide for themselves and their families, for their entire lives."

Kiser is a former editorial page editor and columnist for the Arizona Daily Star. After retiring from the Star, he worked for the Southern Arizona Leadership Council. Previously, he spent three years as vice president of Finance for the Des Moines Register and Tribune Company, and he has an MBA from Stanford University. Though her name is not in the byline by her choice, his wife Shirley, a former nonprofit and public education executive and high school English teacher, is a full partner in the effort to call attention to Tucson’s lack of opportunity for the city’s young people.

Get ready for a free, two-day virtual conference, 2021 Prelude to Tucson, February 18-19.

The Association of Academic Programs in Latin America and the Caribbean’s 32nd Annual Conference is in “two parts in two places” — virtual February 18-19 and in Tucson October 27-30 — to accommodate the likelihood of curtailed travel early in the year and to promote the collaboration, exchange, and local immersion experiences for which the annual conference is known.

Prelude to Tucson will feature two guest roundtables, video and image galleries, and two days of interaction. It’s a great opportunity for educators, researchers, and students to learn and discuss interculturality, diversity, identities, transnational, and migrant education across the Americas.

Several of the college’s faculty members will present and moderate.

Register to get the link to attend.

Our Borderlands Education Center is offering monthly teacher collaboratives for regional teachers as part of the Sin Fronteras Professional Learning Community. The free collaborative supports new teacher induction and professional development for K-12 educators and includes CEU credits.

Two of the workshops will be led by Sin Fronteras Director Eric Meyer, who also is the program coordinator for our Alternative Path Program Secondary Education, M.Ed.

Upcoming workshops include Mindfulness in Motion: From the Mat to the Classroom, A New Cosmology for STEM Teaching and Learning, and Whiteness.

Workshops are free and held on Saturdays. The next workshop is Saturday, February 20.

Other workshops will be March 13 and April 17.

RSVP for all workshops.

The Arizona Teachers Academy offers free tuition for Arizona's future teachers.

We are now accepting scholarship applications for the summer and fall. Applications due March 1 (summer is open for graduate students only) and applications for fall are due June 7 (open to both undergraduate and graduate students).

Learn more and apply today!

The Arizona Department of Education Virtual Job Fair is an event you don’t want to miss! This free, virtual job fair on Saturday, February 27, will connect you with dozens of districts and charters looking for applicants just like you.

You will be able to search for available positions, upload your resume, visit employer booths to chat with them via text or video, and find out about their communities and schools.

If you have questions regarding the virtual job fair, email Julie Lenza at [email protected].

Our 2020 crowdfunding was a huge success. We could not have made our goal without the support of everyone who donated and shared. Thank you from Project FOCUS!