Vision: Every student in Alaska has the benefit of a great teacher.

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Great teachers help our children to learn, grow, and thrive. They make learning exciting and tap into the knowledge, skills, and resources of local communities to help students achieve both personal and academic success.

Mission and goals: Give every new teacher the support they need to succeed.

The Alaska Statewide Mentor Project exists to lift up and support the profession of teaching in Alaska. The project provides individualized support to first- and second-year teachers, developing an effective teaching force that is responsive to the diverse academic needs and cultural backgrounds of all students.

The project goals include:

• Improved teacher retention
• Enhanced quality of instruction
• Improved student achievement

Distribution of Participating Teachers and Principals, 2006 (click image for larger version)

The setting: Vast distances and educational challenges

Alaska is the largest state, about two and half times the size of Texas and about one-fifth the size of the entire lower 48 states. With only about 648,000 residents occupying 572,000 square miles, there is plenty of space to go around. If all residents were distributed evenly, there would be just short of one square mile per person, however, most of the population is centered in the metropolitan areas of Anchorage, Matanuska/Susitna valleys, Fairbanks, and Juneau. The Anchorage school district, for example, is one of the 100 largest school districts in the nation, with 3,000 teachers and 50,000 students. Most of Alaska's 54 school districts are located in the "bush;" places isolated from each other and off the road system, accessible only by air, boat, dog sled, or all-terrain vehicle. Of Alaska's 506 schools, 135 schools have fewer than 50 students and 82 schools enroll 25 or fewer students. The distances between rural schools, coupled with their isolation, create gaps in many aspects of the education system.

In addition to geographic isolation, many school districts in Alaska suffer from high teacher turnover; up to 85% turnover in some schools. High turnover rates not only result in loss of continuity and cohesiveness within the school community, but are also correlated with low quality of teaching and poor student performance.

Professionalizing the profession

Making the transition from a student of teaching to a teacher of students is not an easy one. As Richard Ingersoll notes in his book Teacher Turnover, Teacher Shortages, and the Organization of Schools:

"Teaching is the only profession where entry-level personnel are expected to do the same job and perform at the same level of competence as experienced practitioners. There is typically no staged entry through residency, internship, or apprenticeship. This is unfair and unrealistic. Every district should offer a multiyear induction program that provides systemic help and support, and this cannot be done adequately by another teacher with a full-time load who drops by when time permits or when a problem arises."

Teaching is, after all, a clinical profession. Whether setting up a classroom, interacting with parents, planning lessons, assessing the needs of different children, or constructing tests, a teacher must be able to assess, diagnose, prescribe, and modify their strategies in light of ever-changing circumstances.

Studies of teacher turnover have shown that 50% of new teachers leave the profession within the first five years, citing a lack of a feeling of efficacy and lack of support as the main reasons they quit.

The Alaska Statewide Mentor Project provides a structured support for teachers when they first enter the "clinical environment" of their classroom. The mentors are fully released from their regular classroom duties so that they can provide consistent ongoing support through the school year.

Values: Quality education is good for everyone

• Good teachers are at the heart of successful education.
• Every child in Alaska should have equal access to high-quality teaching.
• Lifelong learning is essential to the health of individuals and communities, and involves an ongoing process of planning, action, and reflection.
• Effective communication, trust, and acceptance of diverse opinions are fundamental to successful organizations.
• Successful organizations are built upon the growth, creativity, and voice of all individuals.

A brief history of one teacher who didn't give up

As a beginning teacher, Lorrie Scoles knew what she wanted her classroom to look like, feel like, and sound like, but it just wasn't coming together. She was in a great school, with very supportive colleagues, but it was still extremely frustrating for her during her first years of teaching. Reflecting back on this time, Lorrie says, "Learning by trial and error is painful! There were many times when I felt overwhelmed and exhausted. There were many times when I felt like quitting."

"As a principal of a small school with 50% of my staff either new or second year teachers, I found the support that they received from the Mentor Program to be invaluable."

—Carl Williams, Principal
Akiuk Memorial School
Kasigluk, Alaska

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Thankfully, Lorrie didn't quit, but kept working until she became the teacher she wanted to be. With the help of lots of reading and an ongoing dialogue with teachers she admired, she gained the skills to build a learning community. Her classroom was a place kids wanted to be, where they felt safe and respected. She developed lessons that were both fun and meaningful. She crafted a variety of structures to keep her students challenged and accountable for their work. In time, Lorrie began to be a resource for other teachers, too.

Lorrie continues to have a positive influence on teachers in Alaska today as she directs the Alaska Statewide Mentor Project. When the University of Alaska obtained funding for a statewide mentoring pilot project and she was asked to be the lead, Lorrie was thrilled to say yes. The University's project began in the 2003/2004 school year with one mentor working in five school districts. By early spring 2004, Alaska Department of Education & Early Development (EED) Commissioner Roger Sampson had learned enough about the mentoring program to ask University of Alaska President Mark Hamilton, "How can we make this happen statewide?"

EED linked arms with the University to make it happen, pooling both state and federal grant resources. By April 2004, 22 mentors were selected out of 150 exemplary teachers who applied. The teachers were released from their districts to work full time for the project and attended their first mentor training session in June of 2004. By the 2004/2005 school year, mentors were provided to over three hundred beginning teachers in 31 school districts across Alaska.

"We know from talking to our mentors and beginning teachers that what we are doing is having a positive impact on teachers and students alike," said Lorrie, "The Mentor Program is a shining star in Alaska and for other states that are looking to develop comprehensive mentoring programs. We are very proud of our state for recognizing the need to support our beginning teachers, and I am very grateful to President Hamilton and Commissioner Sampson for working together to make it happen."