UMaine program aims to train rural educators

Photo / Courtesy University of Maine Patricia A. Duran Elementary schoolteacher Julie Zucchi, left, mentors UMaine education student Avery Morrell.

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By Laurie Schreiber

In Maine, where more than two-thirds of the population is rural, numerous programs aim to build Maine’s lagging rural workforce, including expanded training and career advancement opportunities in the health care, dairy and forest industries.

Aiming to do its part, the University of Maine has launched a program to provide providing mentoring and a support network to build the rural education workforce.

Rural Thrive, a rural education resilience program, launched this school year with a $3.3 million in federal funding secured by Maine's two senators.

“Rural schools and communities have unique workforce issues,” said Catharine Biddle, associate professor of educational leadership at UMaine and the program’s lead.

"Rather than take a deficit-minded approach that asks, What’s wrong with rural schools?, we wanted to look at the many benefits to teaching in rural environments, such as access to nature and smaller class sizes," she noted.

The program is led by UMaine’s College of Education and Human Development and includes educator preparation programs at other public universities across the state, as well Thomas and Colby colleges in Waterville.

Teacher shortages and other workforce issues are magnified in rural areas, where the pool of potential teachers is smaller, and especially in places where the economy and pay for public school educators have lagged behind other parts of the country, according to a news release.

The Rural Thrive project aims to facilitate mentorship and support at three points in educators’ careers: early-career (years one to three), mid-career teacher-leaders and those in building or district leadership positions.

The program includes regular virtual and in-person teacher gatherings, mentoring and one-on-one guidance between early-career and mid-career rural teachers.

An educator preparation component, called the Rural Substitute Teaching and Innovation Corps, connects education majors to hands-on experience as substitute teachers in rural schools.