Alison Todd, assistant education professor at Trine University, instructs future teachers in a classroom redesigned with help from a $250,000 donation.
When prospective education majors visit Trine University, Tony Kline has much to brag about.
As dean of the Franks School of Education, Kline is proud of the program's 100% job placement rate in recent years, its average class size of 13 students, its redesigned classrooms and its ability to let students earn multiple teaching licenses within four years.
Enrollment in teacher preparation programs is declining nationwide, but the Angola university is seeing the reverse. The number of its education majors has increased 92% over the past four years, growing from 82 students in 2016 to 158 students this fall.
“When we're recruiting, it's really a team effort,” Kline said in a recent interview.
Indiana hit hard
Enrollment in teacher preparation programs has dropped more than 33% nationwide since 2010, and Indiana has been affected more than most, according to a report this month from the Center for American Progress.
The nine states where enrollments dropped at least 50% include Indiana, 54%, and neighboring Michigan and Illinois, 67% and 60%, respectively, the nonpartisan policy institute found.
The report, “What to Make of Declining Enrollment in Teacher Preparation Programs,” examined federal data from 2010 to 2018, including the number of students who completed such training. That figure dropped 28% in that period.
The trend is worrisome for Fort Wayne Community Schools, the state's largest school district. It serves nearly 30,000 students.
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