Elementary Education Post-Baccalaureate Teacher Licensure

Have you already earned a Bachelor’s Degree?

Are you working in a school but in a lower paying, non-licensed position?

Maybe you’re a career changer seeking to impact elementary schools?

Through our post-baccalaureate licensure program, you complete relevant coursework for teacher licensure in elementary education in Colorado. In your licensure coursework, you will develop the pedagogical knowledge to teach literacy, mathematics, science, and social studies. Additionally, you are prepared to serve culturally and linguistically diverse students through meeting the state’s English Learner Professional Development Standards. Your teaching methods coursework is infused with Trauma-Informed Practices (TIP), inquiry-based teaching methods, and opportunities to learn experientially in elementary schools.

In addition to immersive field experiences throughout the program, you will experience two consecutive semesters in the Elementary Teacher Residency.  You will spend significant time in an elementary classroom each semester at one of our partner public schools in the Denver metropolitan area.  Each residency semester is intentionally paired with a hybrid co-requisite course and a residency seminar to further strengthen the professional abilities you bring into your first year of teaching.

Benefits of Program Coursework:

• Extended knowledge of serving diverse populations with a social justice lens
• Coursework with integrated focus on Trauma-Informed Practices (TIP)
• Methods courses dedicated to inquiry-based teaching of mathematics, science, and social studies paired
• Content courses paired with supervised clinical experiences
• Expanded literacy methods coursework and clinical experiences
• Opportunities to expand your knowledge with additional coursework (ask your advisor!)

Benefits of the Elementary Teacher Residency for licensure students:

• Cohort-based learning within our partner schools with highly qualified mentor teachers
• Intentional structuring of your time in schools each residency semester to allow more time outside of the classroom to focus on developing lesson planning and curricular knowledge
• Individualized, multi-layered support from MSU Denver faculty and district staff
• Teacher candidates co-teach across two consecutive semesters with gradual release of responsibility for lead teaching responsibilities
• Opportunity to earn additional endorsement in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse CLD Education (English general education classroom) and/or CLD-Bilingual Education Specialist (BES) (Spanish-English general education classroom) within one of our partner school
• Opportunities to engage with grade-level teams in data-informed practices
• Expanded opportunities through school- and district-based professional development, interviews, and hiring events

Typically, teacher candidates from our post-baccalaureate teacher licensure program are hired as general education classroom teachers. Earning a state teaching license affords you more opportunities for expanding your professional career within districts, often leading to teachers on special assignment (TOSA), instructional coaches, or other administrative or leadership positions within schools or the district.

Dr. Sue Ahrendt

Dr. Sue Ahrendt’s specialization is in inquiry-based mathematics with a focus on a growth mindset. You’ll meet Dr. Ahrendt in one of her free Praxis review workshops offered each fall or spring – or perhaps in the Math Praxis Study groups that she hosts.

Our residency partner districts recruit our Elementary Residents during their residency year, with hires occurring in these partner districts.  However, residents are impacting communities beyond our partner districts as their expanded skills developed through a two-semester residency are valued by all districts.

Our partner districts include:

• Denver Public Schools
• Jefferson County Public Schools
• Littleton Public Schools
• 27J Schools
• Aurora Public Schools

All School of Education teacher licensure programs are authorized by the Colorado Department of Education and the Colorado Department of Higher Education.