BPS Teaching Fellowship

The BPS Teaching Fellowship was a 12-month, practicum-based teacher preparation program operated by Boston Public Schools. It held a unique distinction: it was the only district-based initial licensure program approved by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). This meant that Fellows could earn a Provisional Teaching License through a pathway designed, delivered, and supervised entirely by the district they would serve.

The Fellowship was created for individuals who wanted to enter the teaching profession through an alternative to traditional university-based preparation. It was especially well-suited for career changers bringing professional expertise from other fields, recent college graduates with strong content knowledge, and community members who had long been involved in education in informal or support roles.

Program Design

The Fellowship followed a carefully sequenced structure that combined intensive coursework with full-time classroom experience:

Summer Intensive

Fellows began with a rigorous summer training program that covered foundational teaching skills. Topics included lesson planning, classroom management, culturally responsive pedagogy, assessment design, and Massachusetts curriculum framework alignment. The summer intensive also included practice teaching opportunities in BPS summer school programs, giving Fellows their first supervised experience leading instruction before the academic year began.

Academic Year Placement

Following the summer intensive, Fellows were placed as the teacher of record in a BPS classroom for the full academic year. Unlike student teaching arrangements where candidates observe or co-teach, Fellowship participants were responsible for planning and delivering daily instruction, managing their classrooms, assessing student progress, and communicating with families. This immersive model reflected the program's philosophy that teaching is best learned by doing — with strong support in place.

Ongoing Coaching and Support

Throughout the year, each Fellow received regular coaching visits from an experienced BPS educator assigned as their mentor. Coaches observed lessons, provided written and verbal feedback, modeled instructional strategies, and helped Fellows troubleshoot challenges in real time. Fellows also participated in ongoing professional development sessions with their cohort, creating a peer support network that many described as essential to their success.

Licensure Pathway

Upon successful completion of the Fellowship — including passing the required MTEL exams, completing all practicum hours, and receiving a satisfactory performance evaluation — Fellows earned a Massachusetts Provisional Teaching License. This license allowed them to continue teaching in Massachusetts public schools while working toward the Professional license through additional coursework and years of service.

The DESE-approved status of the Fellowship meant that the Provisional license earned through the program carried the same standing as one earned through any accredited university preparation program in the state. Fellows were fully qualified to apply for teaching positions across Massachusetts upon completion.

Who Applied

The Fellowship attracted a diverse pool of applicants. Career changers brought experience from fields including public health, social work, science, technology, journalism, and the arts. Recent graduates applied with degrees in subjects they were passionate about teaching. Community members who had served as tutors, mentors, or volunteers in BPS schools saw the Fellowship as a way to formalize their commitment to Boston's students.

The program's emphasis on recruiting from communities historically underrepresented in the teaching profession aligned with BPS's broader strategy to build a workforce that reflected the diversity of its student body. Research consistently shows that students benefit academically and socially when they have teachers who share their cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

Contact

The BPS Teaching Fellowship was administered by the Office of Human Capital within Boston Public Schools. Historical inquiries were directed to bpsteachingfellowship@bostonpublicschools.org.