Now, as a part of the inaugural class of graduates from the Louisville Teacher Residency program, Daugherty has signed a contract to launch her career as a teacher in a Jefferson County Public Schools classroom.

鈥淚鈥檓 so glad I did the residency program,鈥� Daugherty said. 鈥淭here is no other teaching program in the state that prepares you to provide an equitable education to a diverse group of students like this one does.鈥� 听听

The program is a collaboration between the UofL College of 成人直播 and Human Development and JCPS to recruit and train more teachers of color for JCPS schools.

Of the 28 students receiving their Master of the Arts in Teaching degree from UofL, 21 are teachers of color. The students received a reduced tuition rate, $30,000 stipend and were paired with a mentoring teacher from JCPS. The accelerated degree program required students to teach four days a week with instruction from UofL professors on the fifth day. It also allowed students to complete their master鈥檚 degree in just one year. In return, they have agreed to teach in a JCPS Accelerated Improvement School, or a school approved by the district, for five years.

The interim dean of UofL鈥檚 College of 成人直播 and Human Development, Amy Lingo, sees the first year of the teacher residency program as a huge success on many levels.

鈥淭his has expanded our relationship with JCPS, furthered UofL鈥檚 commitment to equity, and brought talented people into teaching who might not have otherwise considered it as a career,鈥� Lingo said. 鈥淲e look forward to watching them make their mark with the students in our community.鈥�

Sixty percent of JCPS鈥� enrollment is students of color, and JCPS Superintendent Marty Pollio says the school district is committed to recruiting, training and retaining more diverse teachers.

鈥淭he Louisville Teacher Residency program is a key piece in our equity effort, putting more teachers in classrooms who look like our students,鈥� Pollio said.

These newest teachers range in age from 23 to 60 and come from a broad range of backgrounds. For several, teaching will be a second or third career.

One week before the JCPS schools shut down due to coronavirus concerns, the teacher had been at AM Watch, a National Science Foundation鈥搒upported workshop at UofL鈥檚 Additive Manufacturing Institute of Science and Technology (AMIST). There, Travis was learning the latest trends in using 3-D printing for classroom use. As part of the program, 25 teachers were given a 3-D printer for their classrooms.

Now, Travis is filling a small but vital role, along with other teachers, by putting her printer to work, making components for face shields, part of PPE (personal protective equipment) for front line nurses and health professionals.

The coronavirus pandemic has caused the demand for PPE for healthcare workers to skyrocket 鈥� a demand supply chains cannot keep up with. UofL engineer and Navy vet Ed Tackett coordinated a response at the AMIST facility at UofL Speed School of Engineering to fill this gap. Speed School student volunteers trained on 3-D printing equipment are volunteering their time, with the AMIST facility production team printing face shields as quickly as possible.听

By April 3, Tackett had orders for 27,000 face shields.

Emily Villescas, who has been spearheading the community engagement effort at AMIST, said when they contacted the teachers who attended the recent workshop to help with printing the PPE for local hospitals, the response was immediate.

鈥淲ithin hours, I was getting emails from teachers all over wanting to help,鈥� said Villescas. 鈥淚t was pretty amazing. We sent them files on how to print the face shield frames approved by the state and the CDC, and are coordinating with them to deliver the parts to local drop-off sites. It really shows you their dedication to helping people, both in and out of the classroom. We would not have this kind of movement with this project without the teachers, so we are all so grateful for their support.”

With 25-to-30 teachers already on board, and the word spreading every day, Tackett said the efforts are making a significant impact.

鈥淓very shield they make, that means another healthcare worker is protected in state of Kentucky,鈥� said Tackett. 鈥淚f you do the math, each printer can print two shields every two hours, and with 25 printers, if they run for six hours, that is 300 face shields a day just from JCPS.鈥�

Travis, who teaches computer technology to all 600 K-5^th听grade students at Lowe Elementary, said her principal, Mr. Allain, was immediately on board with Travis taking her printer home to help with the effort. So far, Travis has printed 17 headbands (or face shield frames) and delivered them to a community drop-off site.

The teacher said she feels an obligation to continue printing the shields until there is no more need, even if she has to buy supplies herself.

鈥淚t feels good knowing those pieces I dropped off last week went directly to help fill an order for UofL Hospital. I feel like I鈥檓 doing my part to be part of the solution not the problem,鈥� she said.

For the students Travis teaches, she said there will be a real lesson when they return to the classroom, and beyond.

鈥淚t鈥檚 because of my school administrator letting me go to the AMIST workshop that we are helping with a local solution to this massive worldwide problem,” she said. “The kids might not realize the impact today, but when they鈥檙e old enough they鈥檒l be like, 鈥榃ow we were a part of that.’鈥�

Fourth鈥揼rade teacher Heather Kemp said that after she attended the workshop, she was printing 3-D crayfish with her students at Middletown Elementary. Kemp, who teaches all subjects but focuses on math and science, wanted to incorporate STEM learning. But that can wait, because now it is all about printing face shields.

Kemp said she is heartened to observe that 鈥渁s the virus is growing exponentially, so is the growth of helping hands to combat it. If you look at two teachers, then 35 teachers into one small community, then the designs for the shields being shared and spread to other states, it鈥檚 growing every day.鈥�

When the day comes that students return to the classroom, Kemp said there will many lessons to learn.

鈥淲hen you think about Muhammad Ali鈥檚 maxims about giving back, or the Mayor鈥檚 Give Back Day, next year, my kiddos will have a great example of how the community gives back. This coronavirus is affecting some of them personally, who have moms and dads who are doctors and nurses. They will have lived through this and it will make that day even more meaningful,” she said.

Local drop-off sites include:

• Norton Commons at 9418 Norton Commons Blvd. Prospect, KY 40059
• CORE Combat Sports at 13124 Eastpoint Park Blvd, Louisville, KY 40223.

Both of these have labelled boxes in the front dedicated to drop offs, which will be picked up on Friday nights. No face-to-face contact.

• The AMIST Facility on Belknap campus is taking local drop offs at one of the loading docks that will be labelled
• ALL deliveries can be sent to this address as well: 1940 Arthur Street Louisville, KY 40208.

Holly Hinson of the Speed School marketing team contributed to this report.

She endured a tumultuous childhood, peppered with uncertainty as her father struggled to make ends meet and moved frequently, often causing Megan and her sister to switch schools.

鈥淚 thought, 鈥業 love going to school,鈥欌�� said Baskerville. 鈥淚t was the only thing stable in my life. It was a place I could be a productive member of society just like everyone wants to be. That鈥檚 when I knew what I wanted to do.鈥�

Baskerville鈥檚 journey to become a teacher comes at a good time: the College of 成人直播 and Human Development has kicked off a that helps aspiring teachers by giving them access to experienced educators and opportunities to earn college credit while still in high school.

The Teaching and Learning Career Pathway Program is a collaboration with the Kentucky Department of 成人直播.

For the fall 2017 semester, the college has signed memorandums of understanding with three Kentucky school districts 鈥� Jefferson, Bullitt and Gallatin counties 鈥� and expects to sign agreements with more districts soon. The contracts leverage the , a statewide initiative administered by the Kentucky Higher 成人直播 Assistance Authority that funds college-level courses for high school students.

Although Baskerville embarked on her academic journey before the program was 鈥渙fficially鈥� off the ground, she was able to use college credits earned at Atherton High School toward her UofL degree in elementary education. She said the program at Atherton was demanding.

鈥淏y your senior year, you could be teaching several hours a day,鈥� Baskerville said. 鈥淵ou are expected to develop lesson plans, build a portfolio and are graded on your performance.鈥�

Amy Lingo, the CEHD鈥檚 associate dean for academic affairs and unit effectiveness who worked closely with the school districts to solidify the agreements, is thrilled to find students like Baskerville.

鈥淲hen a high school student expresses an interest in teaching, we want to do our part to help and inspire that student,鈥� said Lingo. 鈥淭hose who earn college credits during high school have a big leg-up because they have already saved time and money and are better prepared for the academic rigors of college.鈥�

Dean Ann Larson said the partnerships with the schools dovetail nicely with the college鈥檚 focus on learning by doing, recruiting, and supporting high school students into a teaching pipeline to jump-start their education career.

鈥淭hese agreements represent the best of both worlds,鈥� Larson said. 鈥淭hey combine traditional education with a strong mentoring component. We鈥檝e learned that when an aspiring teacher, beginning at the high school level with earned college credits, actually walks in the shoes of a seasoned teacher, it鈥檚 a powerful and inspiring听theory-to-practice听learning tool.鈥�

University officials expect about 100 students to take part in the teacher education-focused curriculum during the 2017-2018 academic year. High school students will enter the pathway as freshman with a sequence of courses that include The Teaching Profession, Foundations of Instruction and Building Learning Communities.

UofL is one of four institutions participating in the pilot program. The other universities are Murray State, Northern Kentucky and Kentucky State.

鈥淲e are excited about the potential of this partnership,鈥� said Dr.听, director of the McConnell Center.听鈥淓conomics is one of the areas in which teachers have asked us to provide professional development听opportunities for them. This partnership with will allow us to help Kentucky听teachers and听students better understand and discuss economic issues and principles.”听

This innovative program brings together Kentucky civics teachers with their peers from across the country to study topics such as 鈥淭he American Experience,鈥� 鈥淭he Basics of Economics,鈥� 鈥淲hy Trade?鈥� and 鈥淯nderstanding Taxation.鈥�

A day-long tutorial held last month on the Belknap campus was led by Dr.听, director of academic programs at Strata, and Dr.听, associate professor of economics at Duquesne University. Harrigan said the chance to engage teachers and students alike through the McConnell Center was an opportunity too good to pass up.

鈥淲e are pleased to return to Kentucky this spring and to work with such an accomplished institution like the McConnell Center as we pilot new ways to reach teachers and students with economic education,鈥� Harrigan said. 听