Master Teacher Program Takes Center Stage

06/01/2015 

SUNY Cortland hosted nearly 450 science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) teachers from across New York state on May 30, bringing together a select group of educators on the campus that houses the largest accredited teaching program in the Northeast.

The second annual New York State Master Teacher Program (MTP) Professional Development Conference featured remarks by State University of New York (SUNY) Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher via teleconference, a keynote talk from a former New York City deputy superintendent and 32 innovative breakout sessions led by Master Teachers across the College’s campus.

“It was an amazing opportunity to see teachers come together and share the work they’ve been doing with one another,” said Dominick Fantacone M.A.T. ’12, the Central New York region coordinator and the statewide chief campus coordinator for the program. “When it comes to teaching, it’s not very often that teachers from across the state get to share with one another.

“What better place to do that than the campus that’s home to the largest public teacher preparation program in the state.”

SUNY Cortland is the largest regional hub for the Master Teacher Program in upstate New York; an indicator of the College’s leadership in cutting-edge teacher education.

Last November, for example, SUNY launched a new Center of Innovation in Education on campus. The center’s five areas of focus include evaluation of instructional methods and outcomes; project-based learning; clinically rich teacher preparation; teacher preparation strategies; and effective communication in science education. Several of those areas relate to the Master Teacher Program.

Launched by Gov. Andrew Cuomo in 2013, the highly selective MTP includes 552 STEM teachers across 10 regions. They are chosen for their classroom effectiveness, a commitment to personal growth and a willingness to mentor new teachers as well as future educators.

With 70 Master Teachers each, SUNY Cortland and Stony Brook University serve as the largest regional sites for the teacher development program.

The College’s participants meet routinely as a group for mini-courses and workshops and pursue individualized development plans in their STEM content areas. They also share what they’ve learned with other working educators and SUNY Cortland student teachers. The overall goal is to give outstanding teachers in math and science an incentive to continue teaching in New York while sharing their methods, experience and insight with fellow teachers.

“Really, the mission of the Master Teacher Program is professional development created by teachers, for teachers,” said Fantacone, whose office is housed in Cornish Hall on the College’s campus. “It’s not a top-down model with administrators telling you what you need to learn and know.

“It’s teachers recognizing what they enjoy, what they would like to explore and then creating professional development from that.”

The 2015 statewide conference, themed “Leading and Learning Together,” included introductions from SUNY Cortland President Erik J. Bitterbaum and MTP Director Josephine Salvador as well as the live video remarks by Zimpher.

“It wasn’t just a pre-recorded message,” Fantacone said. “It was a two-way, back and forth conversation with the chancellor where teachers could ask questions.”

Lucy West, the founder of Metamorphosis Teaching Learning Communities, delivered a conference keynote talk on the coaching capabilities of teachers. A former deputy superintendent of nearly 200 schools and director of mathematics in New York City, West’s work is grounded in a coaching model that aims to resolve teachers’ most pressing concerns.

Of the 552 Master Teachers, approximately 70 percent teach science and 30 percent teach math. More than three-quarters of the entire group teaches at the high school level, with average teaching experience between 10 and 13 years.

“Getting together as a large group is empowering,” Fantacone said.

The conference’s afternoon breakout sessions were hosted in SUNY Cortland’s Education Building, Corey Union and Cornish and VanHoesen halls. The discussion topics ranged from designing a mentor ambassador program to incorporating “gamification” in the classroom to boosting student teacher success.

“All of these workshops came out of the work teachers have been doing within the Master Teacher Program, so that was great to see too,” Fantacone said.

The MTP requires a four-year commitment from its participants to mentor other secondary school teachers and help both prospective educators and new teachers. The award comes with a $60,000 stipend — $15,000 annually over four years.

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