About the Seattle Teacher Residency
The Seattle Teacher Residency (STR) is a program that trains future educators to teach in culturally and linguistically diverse communities and supports them in securing teaching positions in SPS Title I schools. STR participants earn a Master in Teaching (MIT) degree from the University of Washington College of Education, and upon graduation, commit to teaching in a Seattle elementary or special education setting for five years. Residency graduates reflect the rich diversity of the SPS students they teach, serving at 87% of the district’s Title I schools.
STR Mission
Our Mission at the Seattle Teacher Residency is to accelerate student achievement through the preparation, support and retention of a group of exceptional teachers who reflect the rich diversity in Seattle Public Schools.
It Matters because schools can and must be an important means to change and dismantle social inequities and improve educational outcomes for students. While Seattle educators have long been committed to this work, the persistence of inequity requires us to act with increased urgency and collaboration with the community. The Seattle Teacher Residency deepens this commitment by recruiting, preparing, supporting and protecting teachers equipped to make sure that each student excels and feels connected to the school community, regardless of circumstance.
Our STR Team
Meet the Seattle Teacher Residency team who are dedicated former educators working together to prepare, support, and sustain the next generation of teachers for Seattle’s classrooms.
STR Guiding Beliefs
We believe every student deserves a teacher who:
- knows and deeply cares about them
- believes in their limitless capacity to make sense of the world and excel at the highest levels
- draws on the strengths of their identities
- brings deep subject-matter expertise
- continually learns and collaborates with others
- leads with perseverance through challenges
- creates spaces where students can show up as their authentic, joyful selves
Our STR Partners
The Alliance for Education is an independent, local education fund that works in partnership with Seattle Public Schools since 1995 to address big challenges facing Seattle students and schools. The Alliance develops, invests, and partners in programs that advance educational justice and increase racial equity for students in Seattle Public Schools. The Seattle Teacher Residency is a program of the Alliance, alongside other work designed to challenge systemic inequities in public schools and create a more equitable and just education system that allows all Seattle students to thrive.
The University of Washington College of Education strives to transform inequitable systems of education to create just, sustainable and culturally-thriving democracies by engaging in dynamic, collaborative partnerships, practices and research.
Seattle Public Schools, the largest K-12 school system in Washington state, has a deep commitment to every student’s journey. SPS believes it is essential to place the interests of students above all others in every decision made. The core work of Seattle Public Schools is supporting student learning. We believe it is our responsibility to do whatever it takes to ensure that every child, regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status, language proficiency, learning style or disability, achieves to their highest level.
The Seattle Education Association represents the nearly 5,000 educators who work in Seattle Public Schools. Comprised of both certificated and classified employees, it is the largest local within the Washington Education Association family. The Seattle Education Association is the voice of Seattle’s public school educators, uniting members as powerful activists for professionalism, equity and integrity in public education.