Though the company has hired a new CEO and initiated drastic steps toward compliance, Texas Teachers of Tomorrow, the largest educator preparation program (EPP) in the state, still finds itself imperiled in several certification areas and at risk of losing its accreditation status.
Once known as A+ Texas Teachers, the company was placed on probation after a 2021 audit found the company to be out of compliance in key state standards including admission, curriculum, and governance. In December 2022, the Texas Education Agency found the company did not meet its standards for improvement in these areas, as well as candidate support, and issued a recommendation to revoke accreditation. But last May, a Travis County district judge ruled in favor of Texas Teachers of Tomorrow, granting the company’s request for a temporary injunction.
Dr. Heath Morrison, former superintendent of Montgomery ISD, was named the new CEO of Texas Teachers of Tomorrow in July 2023. Morrison has expressed confidence he can right the ship and keep the largest alternative certification program moving ahead. Time may not be on its side, however. If Texas Teachers of Tomorrow candidates do not demonstrate significant improvement on passing certification exams this year, the company will lose the ability to prepare teachers in certain content areas, notably in elementary core subject areas.
As the teacher shortage crisis persists, the number of teachers entering the classroom without certification is skyrocketing. This frames the fate of Texas Teachers in both a legal and moral light for the state of Texas. In a time when 1 in 3 new teachers are uncertified, does the state persist in steps to close the largest valve in the educator preparation pipeline? The future is uncertain, but we will be sure to keep our readers up to date as decisions are handed down.