PIERRE, S.D.(KJJQ)- The South Dakota Department of Education has applications available for the new Teacher Apprenticeship Pathway. It will be a pilot program for the 2023-24 school year. This school year, about 175 teacher vacancies went unfilled in the state and it looks like shortages will be an issue again next year. This program is designed to cut into that number.

Dr. Joseph Graves is South Dakota Secretary of Education. He says the intent is to take successful teacher assistants and help them become fully accredited teachers.

They’ll finish as a student-teacher in the person’s home district, resulting in the completion of a bachelor’s degree in education. All coursework is offered virtually in the evenings or other convenient times.

The program has room for 60 participants.

Anyone can apply but there will be a focus on special education.

Graves says they’re expecting as many as 300 applicants for the 60 spots
in the program.