THE TEACHER ACADEMY IS A NEW AND INNOVATIVE model of undergraduate teacher preparation. In most cases, prospective teachers are not placed in school classrooms and do not even begin taking education courses until the final two years of their undergraduate career. And the courses they take in their major subjects don't necessarily prepare them to teach those subjects. However, students in The Teacher Academy are immediately introduced into New York City's middle and high school classrooms. Teacher Academy students are in public schools from the very beginning of their studies.

Our goal is for students to spend nearly 1,000 hours in schools or other learning environments before they graduate. Students are also actively engaged in courses designed to help them think about how people learn. Students take college courses in math and science with faculty who know they're preparing to become math and science teachers themselves. This creates opportunities for students (and current faculty) to better understand the relationship between learning and teaching on both collegiate and secondary school levels.  

In addition, Teacher Academy students will become part of an extraordinary community. The Teacher Academy is, in many ways, a college within a college. Students will have the opportunity to network not only with peers at their same college but with fellow Teacher Academy students at nine different CUNY campuses. When Teacher Academy students graduate, they will be eligible for initial certification as a teacher in the New York State Education Department. But more importantly, with the support of their college program and the Department of Education mentors, they will be ready to teach.

“I was attracted to the program because it was unique in that it gave students the experience that most aspiring teachers do not receive until the later years of their college education. The Academy has a friendly environment with great staff and offers you entrance into a field that actually wants and needs you.”

            -Teacher Academy Biology major, The City College