For immediate release — Sept. 21, 2007
(DALLAS) — Tomorrow's teachers who will graduate from the Dallas County Community College District are receiving help today thanks to the Credit Union of Texas. A $15,000 gift from the credit union, presented by members of its board of directors recently, will provide funds for student and marketing initiatives for the district's teacher education programs; those teacher preparation students also will be eligible to receive some of the same benefits that credit union members already enjoy.
Dr. Wright Lassiter, DCCCD's chancellor, accepted a $15,000 check from Ada Williams, chair of the board of directors for the Credit Union of Texas; John Lederer, the credit union's CEO; and board members Judy Pouncey and Nancy Couch. Representatives from DCCCD's seven colleges received sponsorship banners from Karen Coffey, vice president of marketing for the credit union.
Lassiter and Joyce Williams, interim district director of workforce education and the district's liaison for its teacher education programs, presented Lederer with a crystal apple as a token of thanks for the credit union's long-term support for DCCCD and its teacher education programs. Williams said, "This apple, which is a symbol of the teaching field, is a nutritious fruit that provides energy. Teachers nurture students, and we feed the minds of our students; therefore, we feel that this apple is the best symbol of our commitment to and support of economic growth and the quality of life that our teacher education programs provide."
Graduates of DCCCD's teacher preparation programs attend local universities and teach in area school districts. During the last seven years, the district's teacher education programs have taught more than 900 students who received associate degrees or certificates. Most of those graduates transfer to four-year institutions, where they earn bachelor's degrees and become teachers; others pursue careers as teacher assistants or certified child care assistants.
In addition to various Associate of Arts in Teaching degrees and Associate in Arts or Sciences degrees emphasizing bilingual and early childhood education, DCCCD's teacher preparation programs also includes alternative teacher certification programs in bilingual education, Spanish and English-as-a-Second-Language in response to area school districts' needs for qualified teachers in mathematics and science or who are multilingual and can teach in a dual-language classroom. A program for alternative certification in Vietnamese is under development.
DCCCD also has collaborative teacher education program agreements with the University of Texas at Arlington, the University of North Texas, Texas Woman's University, Texas A&M University and Stephen F. Austin State University to provide transfer programs for currently employed paraprofessionals and child care assistants who want to earn a bachelor's degree after they have completed an associate degree at one of DCCCD's seven colleges.
For more information, contact Williams at (214) 860-2450 or
williamsjoyce@dcccd.edu. For details about DCCCD's teacher education programs, visit the DCCCD Web catalog page about the
Associate of Arts in Teaching degree.
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Press contact:Ann Hatch
214-860-2478;
ahatch@dcccd.edu