The Department of Education and Early Development (DEED), Division of Innovation and Education Excellence (IEE), is soliciting proposals from qualified contractors for development of a Teacher Alternative Preparation Program.

The selected vendor will assist the Department of Education and Early Development (DEED), Division of Innovation and Education Excellence (IEE), in designing and implementing an Alaska Teacher Apprenticeship model that creates alternate pathways for potential candidates to become fully certified, Alaska educators. The design will align to Alaska needs and support both rural-remote and urban schools in accessing this pathway for teacher preparation.

As detailed in the Alaska Teacher Recruitment and Retention work plan, Alaska has a severe shortage of educators across communities. One of the challenges Alaska districts face is maintaining teachers in communities due to the unique challenges of living in Alaska. An apprenticeship pathway would allow districts to support identified potential educators in accessing the courses and resources they need to grow into a full-time educator role without uprooting from their local community. A successful outcome of this project would be an educator preparation model that allows interested community members to build the skills required to become quality educators for Alaska students.

Proposal deadline is October 25, 2023 at 3pm Alaska time.  See attached documents for more information.

Procurement Officer:  Kathy Blomquist eed.procurement@alaska.gov