[EdTalks] How Greenville’s Future Teacher Academy Is Solving the Teacher Shortage

With teacher shortages making headlines across the country, where will the next generation of educators come from? In this episode, we explore the groundbreaking "grow your own" model being pioneered by Greenville County Schools. Learn all about the Future Teacher Academy Greenville County Schools program, an innovative initiative designed to inspire, train, and retain high-quality teachers right here in our community. We sit down with Rachel Turner, the Future Teacher Academy Specialist, and one of her former students, Joey Muolo, a college senior who plans to return to Greenville to teach, to discuss how this program is providing real solutions to the teacher shortage.

In this deep dive, Rachel Turner explains how the district transformed the traditional teacher cadet course into a robust, multi-year academy. This "grow your own" teacher program provides students with unparalleled hands-on experience and academic opportunities, including extensive high school dual enrollment for teachers through a partnership with Clemson University. Students can earn 12 hours of college credit and spend over 150 hours in real classrooms before they even graduate high school. We also hear the powerful story of Joey Muolo, who initially pursued engineering in college but was drawn back to education thanks to the foundation and passion instilled in him by the program. His journey highlights the effectiveness of these teacher shortage solutions that focus on early exposure and mentorship. The episode also explores the program's focus on teacher leadership development, creating not just educators but advocates and leaders through initiatives like a student leadership board, professional development with district personnel, and mentorship opportunities. Discover how the Future Teacher Academy Greenville County Schools is building a sustainable pipeline of passionate educators, ensuring that students in Greenville County will have dedicated teachers for years to come.

Links:

• Support future educators through the Greenville County Schools Foundation Scholarship

• Learn more about Greenville County Schools

• Learn more about Public Education Partners

Introduction

Catherine Schumacher: Each year, Greenville County Schools hires hundreds of new teachers, but at a time when concerns about teacher shortages have been in the headlines, where do we find them? I'm Catherine Schumacher with Public Education Partners, and on today's episode of Simple Civics Ed Talks, we'll meet Rachel Turner, the Future Teacher Academy Specialist for Greenville County Schools, to learn more about our school district's unprecedented commitment to growing tomorrow's new teachers in our high schools today.

Rachel is joined by Joey Muolo, a Mauldin High graduate and rising senior at University of South Carolina, who dreams of coming home to Greenville to teach middle school math. Rachel and Joey, thank you so much for joining us today on Simple Civics Ed Talks. And Rachel, I think we'll jump right in. Let's start with you. Tell us a little bit about your journey and what everybody used to call teacher cadets, and now it's this incredible, groundbreaking Future Teachers Academy here in Greenville County Schools.

From Teacher Cadets to a Dual Enrollment Academy

Rachel Turner: Yes, I'm very excited about it. I taught the teacher cadet program for 16, 17 years, and it is a really phenomenal program. But what we decided here in Greenville County is that we had a need for more consistency among the schools. We partnered with Clemson University to offer our students an even broader program for becoming future educators.

Through Clemson, the students have the opportunity to take four dual enrollment classes for 12 hours of college credit. In two years, they get one year of instruction and field placement. In their senior year, they have a full year of field placement with professional development classes on Mondays.

Just that increase in the amount of college credit the students receive, but more so the amount of hours they spend in the field. They spend 150 hours minimum working with teachers in the classroom. That's just for our juniors and seniors. Our Future Teacher Academy also opens up a class for sophomores. It's an honors level class, just an introduction to education. Get your feet wet. Do you love it?

Catherine Schumacher: Yeah. Is this speaking to you? Is this where you want to go? It's amazing.

Rachel Turner: Yeah. Is this what you want? And then we'll go into dual enrollment. It's really given the students a lot more opportunity, a lot more experience, and just to find that joy, find that devotion to teaching that we're looking for.

Catherine Schumacher: Yeah. Yeah. It's finding the future.

Rachel Turner: Yes.

Catherine Schumacher: That's right. So speaking of future and future educators, Joey, thrilled to have you here. Joey, just for listeners, is also our summer intern at Public Education Partners. So we're especially happy to have him on the podcast today. You were in Rachel's class when you were a student at Mauldin High School, but you decided you wanted to go study engineering in college. You enrolled at University of South Carolina. I would love to hear how your mindset shifted in college and what was the aha moment that, this is what I want to do and here's how I'm going to do it.

A Future Teacher's Journey: From Engineering to the Classroom

Joey Muolo: This story is back and forth. I grew up loving transportation as a kid and I always thought I was going to pursue that until I took ED 2400.

Catherine Schumacher: Which is one of the classes that Rachel just referenced. Yeah.

Joey Muolo: Which is now part of the Future Teachers Academy. And because of that, I actually applied to the University of South Carolina as an elementary education major. I'm going back and forth whether or not I wanted to do elementary or middle level.

After class ended, I ended up switching my major to math, persuaded by my father. I found it was a middle ground between education because I would be teaching math and between engineering, but then I realized I was probably going to hate upper level math. With a lot of current events happening and with my father and a focus on salary rather than my passions, I ended up switching to civil engineering during that first week of class.

Then I got into what I loved or what I thought I loved when I was a kid and I hated it. Around this time, I got involved on campus and I loved it. My new goal became pursuing student affairs so I could continue working on college campuses. But that's a master's program and you can get your undergrad in practically anything with a master's program. I switched to middle education as I figured that degree would be less time consuming and energy consuming. It wasn't initially to go into education, but I held on to my many student leadership roles. I did work in some not-so-great environments, and I really began to re-evaluate whether or not I wanted to go into student affairs.

Around the same time, my undergraduate degree in middle education became more focused on in-classroom experiences rather than those core gen ed classes. And it really made me fall back in love with middle education. I've gone around in multiple circles. My first two years at USC, I really lost out of my goals. I was really just pursuing what I had in front of me. With my focus on USC and constantly being in Columbia, I really also began to realize how much I love and miss Greenville, which puts me where I'm at today. My love for Greenville and love for education.

Catherine Schumacher: It's so interesting, Rachel, the idea of growing your own. There's a lot of talk right now about the teacher shortage. How are we going to build the next generation of teachers? Joey exemplifies that. But ultimately, to his point, what we see and what we want and why Greenville County Schools is investing in the Future Teachers Academy is this idea that you support these students at the beginning of their journey. You support them as they go through it. And then the idea is that they come back. What are the other bells and whistles around the Future Teacher Academy that you're really leaning into?

Inside the "Grow Your Own" Model: How Greenville Supports Future Educators

Rachel Turner: Yes, let me tell you about it. And I want to point out to what Joey just said, that when he got back into the classroom and really had those classroom experiences, that reminded him of his love for education.

That's what we're doing in our Future Teacher Academy is giving our students time in the field, working with students and falling in love with teaching kids. And then once we get them hooked, we're going to bring them back. We actually have several things that we offer in the Future Teacher Academy. For our sophomore level, we spend a lot of time talking about partnerships between the community and schools. We bring in a lot of speakers from public education partners, for example, that come in and talk about what are the connections that Greenville has to our school system.

How are our teachers, our students supported by our community? They start to see that early on. Then in their junior and senior year, as I mentioned, they spend a lot of time in the schools doing field placements, working with the kids and saying, "Oh, I want to come back and teach in this school," or, "Oh, I'm making connections with this principal. I'd like to come back and see him." We offer workshops once a month. We offer one specifically for our junior cohort that we call "Oh, the Places You Can Go." We invite all the leaders from different schools and different organizations in Greenville County to say, "Hey, this is what we offer. We want you to come back and teach here." We highlight things like Roper Mountain Science Center, our career centers, the Washington Center, the Fine Arts Center, all those wonderful things.

And then their senior year, we actually have weekly PDs or professional development where we bring in district personnel to come and talk to the seniors on Mondays and say, "Hey, this is me in a leadership position in Greenville County. This is what we would offer you as a future teacher. And here's what we want you to come back and work in our district." We also invite all of our members of FTA to come to our school board meetings. If they have anything they want to say, they can step up and say, "Hey, I want to teach, but here's what I want when I come back to Greenville County." And let your voice be known and let's learn a little bit more about teacher advocacy.

Finally, one of my new jobs is to follow these students. When they graduate from FTA and they go off to college, I will maintain contact through letters and through emails. Then their senior year, I'll send their names to HR and put them at the top of the list for an interview for a job. We want them to come back.

Catherine Schumacher: That's right. Joey, I know who hopes to be on that list. Yes, he will be. I'm sure he will be. What you're talking about and one of the ways in which Public Education Partners is working with you in this new role that you have at the district to oversee the Future Teachers Academy is the creation of this leadership board and to have representatives from each of the high schools, the 15 high schools selected by their peers to participate in this ongoing additional leadership development.

I think that idea of teachers as leaders is a really powerful one, especially for young people who want that feeling of empowerment and really want to feel like partners. And speaking of partnership and mentorship and leadership, Joey, you've often said to me that Rachel has been such an important person in your life and your ability to see yourself as a a teacher and model how you approach teaching. What are the qualities that are in Rachel that you most want to bring into your own classroom going forward?

The Heart of Teaching: Mentorship and the "Love First, Teach Second" Philosophy

Joey Muolo: Oh my goodness, where do I start? My middle and high school years were some of the most difficult for me as I tried to find my voice, and I also navigated an experience having a 504 plan. I often found safe spaces with my teachers, especially those who prioritized relationships and were just overall loving. Ms. Turner welcomed me with open arms and gave me a safe space to explore careers in education.

A lot of what I learned in Ms. Turner's classroom has shaped my overall teaching philosophy. Even with my strong love of mathematics, I know I want to establish and build relationships with my students above all else. Very similar to the Future Teacher Academy model, love first, teach second, which, by the way, you are the epitome of. From the get-go, Ms. Turner was welcoming. She let me join at 2400 without hesitation. As class began, you immediately asked how you could serve me with my plan and as a new student in that cohort.

As I found my voice and my path while I was taking your course, you not only allowed me, but you pushed me to do more. You gave me the opportunity to serve at two schools at once, and you allowed me to speak at a board meeting and welcomed me with love afterward. You introduced and connected me to multiple professionals at Greenville County Schools and throughout the surrounding community, and you strive for the betterment of your students because you truly, truly love each and every one. Students from different backgrounds, different walks of life, you love with your whole heart. Just so faithful. You're so loving. You're so welcoming. You're one of the most supportive people I know, and you've changed my life for the better. I strive to do all that for my students.

Catherine Schumacher: I'm not an educator. I'm a parent of Greenville County Schools kiddos and obviously a public education advocate. I think the thing that people don't always realize is that the most effective teachers that we have, and we have literally thousands of them in Greenville County Schools, that "love first" is on t-shirts that we see at events in Greenville County Schools. I think people often don't understand how critical those strong, positive relationships are for teachers to be effective. That comes first. That's certainly something that you see in the most successful schools with school leadership and the most successful classrooms.

Rachel Turner: I agree. And that is the motto of our Future Teacher Academy, love first, teach second. I tell all of our students that if you cannot reach them in their hearts, you will not reach them in their heads. And that's all about the importance of relationships.

Catherine Schumacher: That's right. Because that brain, and this is something we also are really interested in at PEP, is the idea that kids have to be in the right place to learn. If they're anxious or if they're stressed out, their brains shut down and they can't take in what you're trying to give them. I just think that's such a powerful message.

I think, Joey, the way I remember when I first met you and you talked about Rachel. It's just such a treat to be able to talk to the two of you together. At a time when people are saying, "No one wants to be a teacher. Why would you want to be a teacher?" I think between the investments that we are making in salaries, which are important, obviously, we're doing a great job of that here in Greenville County Schools and Greenville County, the community being supportive of that, but also this experience of how do we get young people ready and eager to be part of a really special group of folks, which is our educator workforce. And again, it's a workforce. We have 6,000 teachers here in Greenville County Schools alone.

That gives me such hope. This idea, again, of growing our own and the intentionality with which the district has been pursuing this is really, really valuable and powerful. And another great example of the benefit of having a big unified school district. This is the kind of thing where Greenville County Schools can lead the way. Here's a model that maybe other districts in the state and across the country can say, "Oh, this is really..."

Rachel Turner: Very much so.

Catherine Schumacher: And are you already having conversations?

Rachel Turner: I'm having those conversations and I'm looking forward to seeing the positive results of what we're doing to say, hey, this is working. So let's grow. Let's grow our own while we're at it.

Catherine Schumacher: Yeah. Yeah. No, it's absolutely true. It's absolutely true. I know they feel that way at the district, and having the students show up at board meetings every month and speak about their experience and what's been so great. They come and they say not only about what they're learning in future teachers, but who are the teachers that have had such a positive impact on them as mentors and role models like Rachel's had for you, Joey. It's so wonderful. Rachel, I'm going to give you the last word today. What are some of the things that our community, the folks that are listening to this podcast are civic-minded people, what are some of the things that they can do to support incredible young people like Joey, who see a future for themselves as a teacher here in Greenville or wherever?

How the Community Can Support Future Teachers

Rachel Turner: A couple of things have come to mind, one of which was sparked just a minute ago when you were saying, so many people in the community say, "Oh, who wants to do this job? Who would want this?" Let's keep the whole idea of becoming a teacher a positive mindset. Let's encourage our young people. Hey, you're going to make a difference in the world. You're responsible for changing the change that's going to happen in our lives in the future and molding students to become the adults and the community-minded people that we need. Let's be positive. Let's support our future teachers. Let's offer them encouragement. Stay away from the negative. They'll figure that out eventually. But let's encourage them along the way.

Secondly, we have really great support through the Greenville County Schools Foundation, and they have established some future educator scholarships for our students who are graduating. Right now we gave eight scholarships last year, $1,500 each. If you're interested in supporting future teachers through a scholarship, you can donate at the Greenville County Schools Foundation page. A full scholarship is $1,500. You can donate that and advertise your name as a sponsor. But you could also be a teacher builder and you can donate in any amount and donate in honor of a teacher who's made a difference in your life or a teacher you'd like to honor or even a student who's going to become a teacher in their name. It's posted on our website and it's just building that pot of money to send out to our kids to become teachers in the future. So Greenville County Schools Foundation, their website, feel free to donate and support future educators, we'd love it.

Another opportunity to provide leadership and to provide growth for our future educators, we have established what we're calling a Future Teacher Academy Leadership Board. These are students from each school, we're up to two from each school that are elected by their peers or their teacher to receive the Heart of a Teacher Award. They have the up-and-coming leadership skills, the going-to-be teacher of the year one day, and they serve their schools during their senior year on the board. We meet eight times throughout the year for various professional development meetings, workshops. We have a service project. We participate in conferences. We go visit the statehouse. We went to Columbia together. This year, we're actually partnering with the Greenville County Teacher Forum to have a mentor buddy situation. So an experienced teacher mentoring a future teacher just to connect our community together.

It gives them a lot of leadership skills. They take it back to their senior class and share what they've learned. It really builds their soft skills of public speaking and learning teacher advocacy, learning about policy, and just really all of the things that make you a good teacher.

Catherine Schumacher: Yeah. So they have a holistic view of the world that they're going to be going into. So they get, again, a head start as leaders. I think that's amazing.

Rachel Turner: And we very much want them back and teaching at our schools.

Catherine Schumacher: What a treat to talk to you two. Joey, best of luck, senior year.

Joey Muolo: Thank you.

Catherine Schumacher: You're going to kill it. And we can't wait to welcome you back here to Greenville. I'm excited.

Rachel Turner: I'm so proud of you, Joey. I cannot wait to be a colleague.

Joey Muolo: Thank you.

Catherine Schumacher: What a wonderful way to end this episode. Thank you both. Simple Civics Ed Talks is a joint project of Greater Good Greenville, Greenville First Steps, and Public Education Partners Greenville County.

Catherine Puckett: Simple Civics: Greenville County is a project of Greater Good Greenville. Greater Good Greenville was catalyzed by the merger of the Nonprofit Alliance and the Greenville Partnership for Philanthropy. You can learn more on our website at greatergoodgreenville.org.