Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is providing scholarships for 22 students, including 12 STEM majors, each receiving two years of support and 10 Masters of Teaching students, each receiving one year of support. The program also provides stipends for 12 master science and math teachers who serve as Noyce Teaching mentors. Using the existing infrastructure of the successful Phase I VCU Noyce Initiative, this Phase II also is providing funds for internships for Pre-Teacher education students from J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College (JSARCC) in an effort to encourage additional students to enter the STEM teacher pipeline. The program is also providing two years of induction support which provides a professional learning community and programming activities to enhance instructional and leadership skills and assist in the professional development of the new teachers. The support during the first two critical years of service is likely to result in increased teacher retention in high-need districts within the target area: high-need schools in the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). The project is providing needed information on the use of culturally-responsive pedagogy and collecting and qualitatively analyzing the efficacy of instruction using a cultural competency framework. The creation of a culturally responsive classroom ecology framework can be used both as a planning tool for instructing pre-service and in-service math and science teachers in high-need districts and used as an analytical tool for conducting research on teaching in high-need settings.
