Division: Academics and Performance 

Office:  Recruitment, Preparation and Induction

View Published NGO Document (Microsoft Word)

Purpose: 

The purpose of the Minority Teacher Quality and Retention Program (MTQRP) NGO is to establish a sustainable program of instructional coaching for teachers in high-poverty school districts. This is a ten (10) month grant program – June 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022. Year two will run April 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023 contingent on the availability of state appropriated funds.

The successful grantee will develop and implement a sustainable, comprehensive program of instructional coaching and professional development in eligible high-poverty school districts with an emphasis on serving the needs of newly hired teachers (see Appendix A for a list of eligible high-poverty school districts). The program is to identify best practices and proven strategies to support new teacher effectiveness and retention, with a focus on the needs of minority teachers. This first year is to be considered a planning grant for the purposes of developing a scalable and sustainable direct instructional coaching model with full implementation through June 2023 (funding for Year 2 is dependent on budget allocations in FY 22). The instructional coaching program will:

(1) Establish a partnership with at least one high-poverty school district (Appendix A) to identify and implement best practices for instructional coaching programs that promote retention.

(2) Develop a framework for providing effective instructional coaching to new teachers with an emphasis on minority teachers that includes, at a minimum, developing cohorts of school-based instructional coaches that will provide direct support to new teachers, in addition to the mentoring required pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6A:9C-5.1.

The New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) has established a two-year, limited-competitive grant program. This grant program is open to organizations that recruit, train, and place new teachers, with special emphasis on minority teachers, in high poverty school districts in the State. Eligible organizations cannot charge tuition or fees to participants in the MTQRP.

Based on the availability of FY21 state appropriated funds, the first year of this two-year grant program will begin June 1, 2021 and will end on March 31, 2022. One award of up to $250,000 will be made.

Eligible Agencies: New Jersey City University (NJCU) and Rutgers University New Brunswick, Graduate School of Education.