Buffalo State College has been awarded $1 million from The John R. Oishei Foundation to support urban teacher education reform.



The funds, to be granted over three years, will help Buffalo State's Center for Excellence in Urban and Rural Education (CEURE) recruit, train and retain qualified teachers for urban school districts and improve the education, achievement and test scores of their students.



"There is nothing more important to education than classroom teachers," said Thomas E. Baker, executive director of the Oishei Foundation. "We are pleased to support CEURE's efforts to recruit and retain teachers who will be specially prepared to help improve the quality of urban and rural education."



The funds, $400,000 to be awarded in 2002, $350,000 in 2003 and $250,000 in 2004, follow the Oishei Foundation's previous $100,000 grant support of CEURE, and will be used for minority teacher recruitment, urban learning labs and teacher training in an urban setting with at-risk youth.



"Buffalo State College has a long and distinguished history of teacher education. We are proud that The Oishei Foundation recognizes that legacy and supports our efforts to shape the future of urban and rural teacher education," said Muriel A. Howard, Ph.D., president of Buffalo State College.



Buffalo State's Center for Excellence in Urban and Rural Education was established nearly two years ago by the New York State Legislature to provide qualified teachers specially trained for urban and rural classrooms, revitalize high-need schools to facilitate teacher retention and close the gap on urban and rural student achievement. Since its inception, it has initiated ongoing, comprehensive efforts to recruit, train and retain committed, qualified urban and rural teachers, improve the quality of education in urban and rural schools and create culturally responsive education strategies that benefit children from inner-city and remote rural schools.



The initiatives to be funded by the Oishei Foundation's grant are:

• Minority Teacher Recruitment




This initiative, which includes teacher-recruiter workshop series, school recruitment mini-grants, high school mentoring and shadowing programs and a master teacher minority recruitment effort, will encourage and support students to enter the field of teaching with specific emphasis on minority recruitment at the pre-collegial, college and paraprofessional levels.




• Urban Learning Labs




This site-based initiative will allow the expansion and replication of CEURE's educational models to meet the ongoing challenge of improved educational standards in urban and rural schools. Partner schools will work closely with CEURE to ensure students in high-need schools achieve state learning standards across the core areas of reading, mathematics, science and social studies.




• Teacher Training In An Urban Setting With At-Risk Youth




This initiative will incorporate a new, introductory education course featuring teaching in urban settings that includes mentoring by and shadowing of exemplary urban teachers. A digital, Internet-accessible library of video clips will allow students to experience teaching and learning specific to a variety of urban classrooms. The initiative will also support curriculum posters in accordance with the state's character education poster series.



Stipends will be offered for high-need schools to participate in CEURE's Professional Development Schools Consortium, a network of schools working collaboratively to reduce student achievement gaps. An urban master teacher network of identified exemplary kindergarten through 12th grade teachers, will work directly with Buffalo State's teacher education programs to facilitate the initiative.

Buffalo State College's professional education programs are accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). Acanced levels of professional education offered at the college. Buffalo State is one of two SUNY colleges to receive NCATE accreditation, and one of only six NCATE-accredited institutions in New York State.



The John R. Oishei Foundation's mission is to enhance the quality of life for Buffalo area residents by supporting education, healthcare, scientific research and the cultural, social, civic and other charitable needs of the community. The Foundation was established in 1940 by John R. Oishei, founder of Trico Products Corporation, one of the world's leading manufacturers of windshield wiper systems.