Residency Foundations

Building Coherence in Reading Instruction: How Preparation Programs Embed the Science of Reading

Teacher preparation programs play a pivotal role in ensuring future educators can deliver instruction grounded in the science of reading. This session highlights practical ways EPPs can build that readiness by integrating high‑quality instructional materials, lesson routines, and content coaching. Participants will explore strategies that create coherence across coursework and clinical practice and leave with concrete actions to strengthen practice‑based literacy preparation.

Session Presenters
Meredith Cotter, The New Teacher Project (TNTP)

Arkansas Ballroom

Scaling & Sustaining

Instructional Coherence During the Year-Long Residency: From Seat Time to Skillful Practice

A year-long residency improves teacher effectiveness only when residents consistently engage in high-quality, aligned instructional practice. This session focuses on building instructional coherence across coursework, mentoring, supervision, and classroom instruction by aligning residency experiences to High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) and the Science of Reading, clarifying expectations for lesson planning and delivery, and using student data to support resident growth. Participants will also examine how structured, scaffolded supports can replace “sink or swim” models and promote gradual release and continuous improvement throughout the residency year.

Session Presenter

Matthew Sutherlin and Brandie Benton, Arkansas Department of Education: Educator Effectiveness and Licensure

Riverview

Residency Foundations

Teacher Residency and Responsive Practices for Bilingual Students and Communities

Teacher residencies offer a powerful model for preparing educators to enact responsive practices while sustaining bilingual communities. This session explores how community-embedded residencies foster asset-based perspectives and pedagogical approaches to effectively serve bilingual and multilingual students. Drawing on research and practitioner examples, presenters highlight alignment between coursework, mentoring, and community partnerships to support  successful academic outcomes for emergent bilingual (EB) students.

Session Presenter
Kristen Lindahl, Associate Dean of Strategic Partnerships, Preparation and Growth, UTSA

Manning

Leadership

From Vision to

Scale

Leaders will explore what quality looks like at scale and how to sustain it over time. This session focuses on defining non-negotiables, maintaining fidelity across programs and partnerships, and making strategic decisions that support growth and innovation without compromising impact.

Session Materials

Session Presenter

Sarah Beal, US PREP Executive Director

Grand Ballroom

Scaling & Sustaining

Practical Tools to Unpack High-Quality Instructional Materials

Effective mentoring is a powerful lever for strengthening instruction and retaining new and novice teachers—but mentors need the right tools to do this work well. In this interactive session, participants will explore key resources, engage with practical tools, and participate in discussions to support across a variety of educator preparation and induction contexts.

Session Materials

Session Presenter
Sarah Saltmarsh, Max Chang and Lauren Gray, US PREP Transformation Specialists

Hoffman

Residency Foundations

Leveraging AI in

Residency

This session explores how teacher candidates can thoughtfully and responsibly integrate AI tools into their instructional practice. Participants will examine practical strategies for using AI to support planning, differentiation, and feedback while maintaining strong pedagogical decision‑making. Through examples and discussion, we will consider both the opportunities and limitations of AI in the classroom. Attendees will leave with concrete approaches for modeling ethical, effective AI use within yearlong residency programs.

Session Presenter

Jenn Bartol Perez and Jessica Pussman, US PREP Transformation Specialists

Grampas

Scaling & Sustaining

Beyond Access: Scaling and Sustaining High-Impact Partnerships with Rural Districts

This session focuses on moving rural district partnerships from short-term placements to durable, high-impact collaborations that support educator pipelines, instructional quality, and long-term workforce stability. Participants will examine practical strategies for scaling partnerships with rural districts while honoring local context, capacity, and community assets.

Session Presenters
Khiandra Woods, US PREP Transformation Specialist

Aaron Marvel, Assistant Professor at TAMUT,  Deborah Shidemantle, Lecturer of Education at TAMUT, and Amy Miller

Ouchita

Residency Foundations

Residency Mentor Foundations: Selection, Preparation, and

Practice

Effective residency mentors move beyond strong classroom instruction to intentionally model practice, coach residents in real time, and support reflective growth. In this session, participants will explore the role of a residency mentor teacher, discuss key selection criteria aligned to effective residency mentoring, and examine how mentor selection and preparation support high-quality clinical learning. Learnings from the Clint ISD–UTEP partnership are embedded throughout the session to illustrate how these practices are implemented in context.

Session Presenter

Jordan Ahrend, US PREP Transformation Specialist and Clint ISD

Neosho