FOR RELEASE: Tuesday, July 18, 2017

CONTACT: Patrick Riccards | [email protected]  |  (703) 298-8283

New Jersey Continues to Strengthen Pool of STEM Teachers With Fourth WW New Jersey Teaching Fellows Class

PRINCETON, NJ (July 18, 2017)—The Governor’s Task Force on Higher Education recently found that New Jersey would need to fill 269,000 STEM-related jobs by 2018. As the state moves to address that goal, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation today announced its fourth class of Woodrow Wilson New Jersey Teaching Fellows. The 2017–18 class of WW New Jersey Teaching Fellows brings to nearly 200 the number of STEM (science-technology-engineering-math) teachers prepared for high-need schools in New Jersey through the program.

Sixteen Fellows will be part of this year’s cohort of the Woodrow Wilson New Jersey Teaching Fellowship program, offered at the College of New Jersey, Montclair State University, Rowan University, Rutgers University–Camden, and William Paterson University. The highly competitive program recruits both recent graduates and career changers with strong backgrounds in the STEM fields and prepares them specifically to teach in high-need secondary schools.

The Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship focuses on preparing top-quality educators for many of New Jersey’s most underserved public schools. Each Fellow receives $30,000 to complete a specially designed, cutting-edge master’s degree program based on a yearlong classroom experience. In return, Fellows commit to teach for three years in the urban and rural New Jersey schools that most need strong STEM teachers. Throughout the three-year commitment, Fellows receive ongoing support and mentoring.

“To succeed in the future, every New Jersey child needs a strong STEM education, and that education is the result of exemplary teachers leading our classrooms,” Woodrow Wilson Foundation President Arthur Levine said. “The New Jersey Teaching Fellowship program ensures the Garden State’s high-need secondary schools have access to the teachers they need, both today and tomorrow, while providing the next generation of STEM teachers with the knowledge, skills, and support they need to succeed in the classroom from day one.”

The WW New Jersey Teaching Fellowship is funded through the generous support of donors such as the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, M. Brian and Sandy Maher, Overdeck Family Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, PSEG Foundation, JP Morgan Chase Foundation, Schumann Fund for New Jersey, Educational Testing Service, William E. Simon Foundation, Drug, Chemical & Associated Technologies Association, and Jennifer A. Chalsty, with additional funding from a number of other foundations and philanthropists.

This is the fourth year of the New Jersey program. Before the first class of Fellows was announced in 2014, the five selected universities spent more than a year tailoring their teacher preparation programs to meet the Fellowship’s standards for intensive clinical work and rigorous related coursework.

As part of the effort, the Woodrow Wilson Foundation partners with a wide range of school districts across the state, including Bridgeton Public Schools, Burlington City Public Schools, Camden City School District, Clifton Public Schools, Ewing Township Public Schools, Glassboro Public Schools, Gloucester Township Public Schools, Haledon Public Schools, Hamilton Public Schools, Millville Public Schools, Newark Public Schools, New Brunswick Public Schools, Orange Public Schools, Passaic City Public Schools, Paterson Public Schools, Pemberton Township Schools, Pennsauken Public Schools, Trenton Public Schools, Union City Public Schools, Vineland Public Schools, and Willingboro Township Public Schools.

New Jersey is one of five states offering the Woodrow Wilson Teaching Fellowship program, joining Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio in the effort. More information on the national program can be found at: http://woodrow.org/fellowships/ww-teaching-fellowships/.

###

About the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation
Founded in 1945, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation (www.woodrow.org) identifies and develops the nation’s best minds to meet its most critical challenges. The Foundation supports its Fellows as the next generation of leaders shaping American society.

 

The 2017-18 Class of Woodrow Wilson New Jersey Teaching Fellows:

The College of New Jersey

• Brandon Linde
• Alexandra Oldock
• Prafullata Vuppula

Montclair State University

• Gavin Harter
• Ashley Iguina
• Mayra Munoz
• Katherine Perry

Rowan University

• Robert Brennan III
• Brittany John
• Colin Lubner

Rutgers University-Camden

• Joseph Dalessandro
• Ian Hansen
• Norbert Weber

William Paterson University

• Anna Dowd
• Gabriela Terlemezian
• Timothy Tsai

---