Master Teaching Fellows Program

What

The Master Teaching Fellows (MTF) Program supports bi/multilingual professionals to become certificated teachers with secondary and bilingual endorsements. 

This is a 17-month partnership between Highline Public Schools and Western Washington University that follows a residency model⎯⎯with candidates working one school year in the district as Bilingual Annual Substitute Teachers while completing internship experiences with a mentor teacher, and participating in a 6-quarter Master in Teaching Program with a Multilingual Education emphasis.

The MTF Program centers dual-language settings and leads to a WA State residency teaching certificate and endorsement in grades 6-12 (by the end of quarter 5 of the program) and a Masters in Teaching (by the end of the final 6th quarter of the program). 

Who

Master Teaching Fellows are Bilingual Annual Substitute Teachers in Highline Public Schools. The program is available to current employees and new applicants. 

The fellows are bi/multilingual professionals who… 

• Demonstrate a high level of language skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing in English and an additional language (i.e., Spanish, Vietnamese, and Somali)
• Are passionate about becoming secondary-level teachers in dual-language settings
• Hold a Bachelor's degree in an endorsable subject prior to start of the program, such as:
  • World Language (Spanish and Vietnamese)
  • Social Studies

When

The first cohort began in Spring of 2023. Fellows will work and study over 17 months, be able to apply for a WA State residency teaching certificate in June 2024, and graduate with and master’s degree in August 2024.

There will be an ongoing recruitment and application process for Cohort 1 beginning April 2022:

• April - October  2022: Recruitment of fellows for Cohort 1
• January 15: Master Teaching Fellows Application Deadline
• March 2023: Classes at WWU begin
• April 30, 2023: Deadline to submit Emergency Substitute Teacher Certification
• September 1, 2023: Annual Teaching Substitute position in HPS begins
• Winter/Spring 2024: apply for teaching positions in Highline Public Schools
• June 2024: Able to apply for teaching certificate. End of Annual Teaching Substitute position.
• August 2024: Master’s program graduation
• September 2024: Can start teaching

Where

Master Teaching Fellows are placed in middle and high schools throughout Highline Public Schools in Southwest King County. Western Washington University courses are taken online and in-person at the Puget Sound Educational Service District in Renton. 

Why

Highline Public Schools has a bold goal that all students will graduate bilingual and biliterate, and seeks to recruit bi/multilingual professionals from our community.  This program will provide fellows the opportunity to learn and grow with colleagues at Highline and develop in-depth understandings of the role of cultural and linguistic diversity in each student’s education and an ability to use research-based instruction when teaching in Spanish, Vietnamese, or Somali. 

How

Master Teaching Fellows work in Annual Substitute Teacher roles, maintaining a salary with benefits. Along with their work as Annual Substitute Teachers, they will work in collaboration with a mentor teacher for a full year, practicing and deepening their study with Western Washington University’s Woodring College of Education. 

Program Tuition Estimates

 

 

Application

The application for the next cohort will be available in Fall 2024.