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The North Branch model of collaboration and site-based instruction

An unlikely partnership began in 1999 when the North Branch School District came to the College of Education at St. Cloud State University with a unique proposal. The district was spending time and money on professional development only to have 57 percent of their new teachers relocate to another district within a year or two.

The North Branch school decided it might be more advantageous to prepare people to teach who already lived and/or worked in the community. They proposed that the College of Education offer a full four year teacher preparation program that would be based within the North Branch schools.

The Teacher Preparation Partnership (TPP) was established among the Cambridge Campus of the Anoka Ramsey Community College, the North Branch School District and the College of Education at St. Cloud State University to address this need.

It seemed like a great idea, but would there really be “enough” interest? Within two months, 56 people came to the information meetings and 30 students were admitted into the cohort. “It turned out that, ‘if you build it, they will come,’” College of Education Research Director Pamm Minden said.

The cohort actually started with 28 students. Only 4 were recent high school graduates; the others included one paramedic, 11 paraprofessionals and one college graduate. One third of the cohort lived in North Branch, the other two-thirds lived in the surrounding area. The TPP students ranged in age from 19 to 51.

“The support network the cohort students have developed over the past three and a half years is remarkable,” Beverly Kochmann, Teacher Development professor and liaison to the North Branch program said. “They have supported each through births and deaths, surgeries, and even call and check up on each other if someone doesn’t make it to class.”

“They also formed a bond with the school children and with the school staff,” Kochmann said. “When the TPP cohort is doing course work and are not in the school classrooms, the school children miss them. This cohort is comfortable in their skins as teachers and everyone in the schools knows who they are and are very accommodating.”

When they graduate in the spring, they are not guaranteed jobs in North Branch, but because of their extensive field experiences, they should be able to compete very well for jobs in or near the district.

All TPP classes are taught on the North Branch school campus. For the first three years TPP classes were held
at North Branch high school in the late afternoon and evening, so that the cohort could work their classes around their employment. In their final year the TPP students are enrolled in education classes, which meet in the mornings at the elementary school. School space is extremely limited, so the cohort classes are now being held in a creatively renovated locker room.

Cooperation is not inherent between 4-year institutions and community colleges, but this case proved to be the exception to the rule. This partnership really worked.

“The principle reason this program works, is that all the partners are respectful of each others’ roles and are willing to work together,” Minden said. “Problems were brought to the joint steering committee to be solved collectively. And we worked until they were solved. This dedication to collaboration was the key to our success.”

During the first two years Cambridge Campus faculty taught a majority of the classes at North Branch. However, for the full 4 years, SCSU professors also have traveled the 71 miles to teach education and content courses at North Branch. Most students will have completed an AA degree at Cambridge and will get their bachelor’s degrees from SCSU.

All the program requirements are the same as if the North Branch students were on the SCSU campus. “This program has the same quality and courses that students would receive on the SCSU campus, it is just a different method of delivery with additional field experiences.” Minden said.

In addition to student teaching, North Branch students will have had four years of field experience along with their course work. They work in eight different areas in grades K-8 at North Branch and surrounding schools during the four years.

The close working relationships of key personnel has been a critical factor in the program’s success. Dona Yetter, a teacher at North Branch elementary and Kochmann, have both worked together on a variety of projects involving the North Branch school district. They are both incredibly focused and hard working. “They make a dynamic team and deserve to be acknowledged for their collaboration,” said Minden.

“We’ve developed a unique program,” Minden said. “It really does meet the needs of the community, the students, the school children and staff, the community college and the SCSU College of Education.”

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