Former West Virginia Department of Education leader Carla Warren joined Hawaii educators, policymakers and advocates Wednesday at the Hawaii Education Association’s annual summit to address the state’s persistent teacher shortage through a pre-­apprenticeship program.

Warren emphasized the importance of removing financial barriers, which she identified as the greatest obstacle for aspiring educators, and encouraged Hawaii to continue advancing youth apprenticeship pathways.

Building on Warren’s initiative, multiple state agencies — including the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, state Department of Education and Hawaii Teachers Standards Board — are collaborating to launch the apprenticeship program in Hawaii, with funding from a U.S. Department of Labor grant.

Warren developed the first youth apprenticeship in teaching under the U.S. Department of Labor, which has overseen apprenticeships for nearly a century. Registered apprenticeships in teaching were approved in November 2021, representing a new category within the U.S. Department of Labor.

She noted that Hawaii already has made significant progress.

“Hawaii has already taken a couple of bold steps toward developing those pathways. Number one is getting approval for that first registered apprenticeship pathway last September. The Hawaii State Apprenticeship Council approved that first registered apprenticeship,” she told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

In July the U.S. Department of Labor awarded Hawaii a $4.9 million State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula grant to help develop its first statewide registered apprenticeship program for K-12 teachers.

Of the total, about $2 million has been dedicated specifically to the development of youth teacher apprenticeships, according to HEA Program Director Lynn Hammonds.

The development marks a first step in opening new funding opportunities aimed at expanding and strengthening teacher workforce programs from a younger age.

“It may be challenging for teacher candidates or students to go to school, and maybe they have to quit their job, in traditional programs, to do their student teaching, but that is the beauty of the apprenticeship,” Hammonds said. “So in that model, people get to keep their job as a paraprofessional at a school and earn their degree and their teaching license at the same time. So it helps alleviate a little bit of that.”

A 2022 survey by the Annenberg Institute at Brown University found a national shortage of up to 52,800 full-time teaching positions, placing Hawaii among the 10 states with the lowest teacher-to-population ratio.

In West Virginia the youth apprenticeship pathway in teaching begins in high school, where students enroll in the county’s Grow Your Own West Virginia Teaching Pathway and the Department of Labor Youth Apprenticeship program.

During the high school junior and senior years, students can complete college-­level courses, including dual credit and Advanced Placement courses, while gaining hands-on experience through paid fieldwork.

By the end of high school, students have earned at least 24-30 college credits and upon graduation are certified as Teacher Aides and Teacher Apprentices by the Department of Labor.

In college, students continue in the Department of Labor Pre-Apprenticeship program, completing required coursework and 125 hours of paid field experience.

In the senior year, students either complete a yearlong residency as the teacher of record or, if no vacancies are available, a traditional residency under a cooperating teacher.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in education, the candidates become certified teachers, and gain one year of experience and associated benefits upon completion of the residency as the teacher of record.

The structured pathway offers aspiring educators the chance to earn a degree and gain practical experience, and reduce financial barriers while preparing to enter the teaching profession.

“The trickiest thing about becoming an educator is that there is a huge investment of time, finances and all available resources,” Ka­polei High School teacher and HEA President Joan Lewis said. “Because if you know people who are going into the education profession, particularly in the last two years of their program, it isn’t even as easy for them to say, ‘I’m going to go to school and work this part-time job,’ or ‘I’m going to get a student teaching job’ or whatever, as can happen with many others pursuing bachelor’s degrees.

“There are times when they have to commit solely to this, with no compensation. So, that’s already a financial challenge before they even walk in the door. They’re walking into a profession they’ve invested a significant sum of money to enter.”

Hawaii currently offers a “Grow Your Own” pathway, where several high schools provide courses and opportunities for students to explore teaching.

The proposed initiative — a registered apprenticeship in teaching — would create a clear, structured pathway for high school students to become teachers while earning their degree and getting paid.

While Hawaii registered its first teacher apprenticeship in September, offering education assistants a path to earn their degree and become teachers, there is still no established route for high school students to directly enter the teaching profession in the state.

Registered apprenticeships in teaching address key challenges that affect the development of strong, sustainable and diverse teacher workforces. The programs allow aspiring educators to become teachers while earning a salary and covering the cost of their education.

While apprentices in the program must meet the same standards and requirements as those in traditional teacher preparation programs, the apprenticeship offers several advantages.

Participants do not have to pay for tuition, books or fees, while also being able to continue working in their current roles, such as paraprofessionals or teacher’s aides, without needing to quit their job or take time off for student teaching.

Although the apprenticeship model differs in structure, it ensures that teachers receive the necessary training and meet all required qualifications.