Get Certified

The Urban Teaching Fellowship at City on a Hill is a one-year, $16,000 fellowship intended to train and certify individuals interested in a career teaching in urban public high schools.

Applications for the 2012-2013 Fellowship will be accepted starting March 2, 2012. Admissions are rolling. Applications are being accepted for high school math, English, history, science, and Spanish.

Table of Contents

• 2012-2013 Calendar
• Application Process
• MTEL
• Out of Pocket Costs
• Certification at City on a Hill: Rationale and Background
• Why would one choose to be trained and certified at City on a Hill?
• Mission and Vision of School and Department of Certification
• Responsibilities of Teaching Fellows
• Support For Teaching Fellows
• The Fellowship

 

The 2012-2013 Calendar*
(All dates subject to change.)
 August 13 2012: Orientation
 August 12-August 24 2012: 9th Grade Orientation
 August 27-31 2012: Faculty and Staff Orientation
 September 2012-June 2013: Full-Time Practicum at City on a Hill Charter Public  School
 June 2013: Final Portfolio Presentation (Juried)
 July 1-August 9, 2013: Summer School Teaching City on a Hill Charter Public School
 August 9, 2013: Commencement

*City on a Hill follows the same calendar as the Boston Public School system.

Application Process
 Send a resume, a cover letter, and undergraduate transcript to:
 Urban Teaching Fellow Hiring Committee
 City on a Hill Charter Public School
 58 Circuit Street
 Boston, MA 02119

UrbanFellowship@Cityonahill.org

Cover letter must introduce applicant, indicate teaching subject area, and explain desire of applicant to seek a career in urban public education.
 Applicants will be interviewed by phone followed by on-site interviews and the delivery of a sample lesson.

City on a Hill is an equal opportunity employer. Minority and bilingual applicants are strongly encouraged to apply

MTEL
 All applicants must take and pass the MTEL Communication and Literacy Skills test (The subject-area test may be taken during the Fellowship year).   One can sign up for the test online: www.mtel.nesinc.com

Out of pocket costs of a Teaching Fellow (Estimated)

Certification at City on a Hill: Rationale and Background

Well into its second decade as an effective urban high school, City on a Hill believes that certifying teachers through a rigorous, on-site, immersion program is the most effective method of training and certifying urban public high school teachers.  City on a Hill also believes that training teachers on-site contributes to school-wide teacher improvement, school-wide student improvement, and further contributes to urban public school reform.  In 1995, City on a Hill was founded by two high school English teachers who believed they could create a successful urban public high school where teachers are included in the process of running the school.  This could be achieved, they believed, if (1) high standards were set for all students while (2) teachers were empowered in the decision-making process to meet those standards.  In order to achieve this end, the teachers who work with students and drive decision-making must be highly qualified.  With the goal of improving urban public school teaching and supporting the mission of City on a Hill, City on a Hill seeks to certify teachers in what the Department of Education (DOE) of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts calls a Site-Based Licensure Program.
 City on a Hill seeks to effectively train urban teachers by 1) meeting the standards of the five Massachusetts Department of Education competencies:  (a) Plans Curriculum and Instruction, (b) Delivers Effective Instruction, (c) Manages Classroom Climate Operations, (d) Promotes Equity, and (e) Meets Professional Responsibilities, and by (2) instilling the habits of mind of motivated teacher-leaders.  City on a Hill is small; has a community of collegial, reflective practitioners; encourages teacher-leadership through local autonomous self-government; is held accountable for its results; and has high expectations of its students.
 As David Perkins (1995) professor at the Harvard school of education describes in his book, Smart Schools: 

Most current educational settings neither labor very hard to build teachers’ understandings of new instructional perspectives nor allow teachers the flexibility or freedom from the coverage fetish to pursue more enlightened instruction.  This is why improvement in teaching practices has to go hand in hand with some restructuring of the way schools work as organizations.  Thoughtful practice should mean practicing the very performances one is seeking to develop (p. 52). 

CoaH demonstrates thoughtful practice as an organization by having the adults embody what it seeks to develop in its students.  City on a Hill strives to achieve what Roland Barth (1990) describes as a community of learners and a community of leaders.  A community of learners is a place where students and adults alike are engaged as active learners in matters of special importance to them and where everyone is thereby encouraging everyone else’s learning; a community of leaders is a place where students, teachers, parents, and administrators share the opportunities and responsibilities by making decisions that affect all members of the school community.

Why would one choose to be trained and certified at City on a Hill?
 City on a Hill strives to embody and provide a nurturing and effective environment for aspiring teachers to become licensed and effective urban teachers. At City on a Hill a student teacher is called a Teaching Fellow.  By training to become an urban teacher at City on a Hill, a  Teaching Fellow will:

experience an urban public school setting where students are academically successful.
 At City on a Hill students are required to demonstrate their abilities directly—to “show” what they know and can do—at the end of each course during each of their four years.  Credits are not a culmination of seat-time or a verification that students have jumped through a sufficient number of hoops.  Because learning is the result of thinking, City on a Hill students experience activities that stimulate higher order thinking while being supplied the academic capital required to be productive citizens in a diverse democratic society.  Since its very first graduate in 1998, every City on a Hill senior that has applied to college has been accepted to college.  100% of City on a Hill students have passed the MCAS test (the mandatory state graduation exam) and City on a Hill is consistently among the highest scoring public schools in the city of Boston.  In order for aspiring teachers to demand high achievement of their students, the must know what demanding high achievement looks like and the steps required to achieve it.  By earning certification at City on a Hill, Teaching Fellows will learn that all urban students can succeed because they will experience their own students’ success first hand.  (See City on a Hill Annual Report for further data regarding student performance.)

A Teaching Fellow will experience an urban school where the mission and vision is alive. 
 All schools have a written mission, but very few schools have a living mission.  The mission of a school should serve to focus all members of the community on teaching and learning.  A mission is rarely effective unless it has an eloquent and detailed vision that articulates the parameters within which a mission can be carried out.  CoaH’s mission and vision fosters a sense of belonging for all members of the CoaH family; it is clear that everyone is responsible for student achievement.  By having a living mission, Teaching Fellows will experience firsthand the connection between a written mission and concrete action in the name of that mission.  The result is a cohesive school community and quality instruction in the classroom. 

A Teaching Fellow will experience an urban school where teachers have time to work together. 
 In order to be successful, teachers must be given time – in addition to their planning periods – to meet with fellow teachers and administrators to discuss teaching and learning.  At City on a Hill, departments meet weekly so that teachers can work with colleagues who are the experts in their subject area.  In addition, there are student-focused meetings by grade level to enable teachers to discuss struggling students and strategize for success.  Finally there are weekly all-faculty meetings when best practices are shared, inspirational culture building events occur, school-wide data and systems are shared and analyzed, and democratic decisions are carried out.  Teaching Fellows are included in all meetings and all professional development activities.

A Teaching Fellow will experience an urban school where collegiality is strong. 
 Significant relationships must be developed between faculty and administration, faculty with each other, and faculty and administration with students and their families in order to raise and sustain student performance.  As Perkins (1995) describes, a school culture must transform from a culture of congeniality, enjoying each other’s company, to a culture of collegiality.  At City on a Hill, teachers discuss teaching, share techniques and skills, observe each other’s classes, co-teach and co-plan, and foster curricular overlap.  The principal exemplifies effective relationships by functioning not as a boss, but as a supportive instructional leader engaged in the school-wide educational process.  Through self-government, teacher-driven professional development, significant meeting time, and a principal who demonstrates the reflective-practitioner model, City on a Hill faculty and staff endeavor to foster a collegial community in order to assist each other in the fight against complacency and the journey to reach their professional potential.  Teaching Fellows are not considered “student teachers” in the typical sense.  They are considered full-time teachers earning licensure.

A Teaching Fellow will experience an urban school where there is a strong culture of celebration. 
 Building a positive culture is an important aspect of a successful school.  A community that values and encourages motivation publicly celebrates success.  At City on a Hill, school-wide celebrations are valued rituals held on a weekly basis.  Because academic achievement is a central tenet of City on a Hill, the community endeavors to eliminate a competitive culture that regards high grades as finite rewards to be fought over or believes failing grades are ample punishment to be dispersed liberally.  Elimination of a competitive culture is achieved by fostering a culture of consistent, inclusive celebrations.  City on a Hill celebrates all students and faculty by consistently encouraging the participation of all members of the community.  Celebration at City on a Hill is an important fuel for intrinsic motivation.  At City on a Hill, teachers and administrators endeavor to remember, as is stated in the vision of the school, that within all this work we remember to be joyful.

A Teaching Fellow will experience an urban school where there is a pro-student philosophy. 
 A motivationally-conducive school environment is pro-student.  Pro-student is not the same as student-centered (a methodology of teaching).  City on a Hill is a pro-student environment because all community members understand that every action is performed with the goal of enabling each student to reach their potential.  City on a Hill’s pro-student philosophy is governed by the belief that there are no bad children—only children who make bad decisions—and the belief that all students can learn.  Adults understand that the power to enable students to reach their potential primarily resides in the hands of all those working at the school each day.  We work to give our students the knowledge and skills to make healthy and positive choices.

A Teaching Fellow will experience an urban school where standards for academics are high. 
 High and explicit standards for academic achievement are essential to achieving them.  High achievement is more likely when a whole community believes that all students can learn while understanding that all students learn differently.  When students struggle to meet high standards, it is incumbent upon teachers to find the method to enable students to succeed.  At City on a Hill, grades are not given, they are earned.  In order to prepare students not only to be admitted to colleges but to succeed once in college, all internal assessments act as feedback to students to facilitate improvement.  Because of the high academic expectations at City on a Hill, there is no equivalency diploma; a student either earns their diploma by meeting the standard, or not.  Graduation ceremonies, therefore, have integrity; everyone who walks the graduation stage at City on a Hill is graduating having earned the same diploma. 

A Teaching Fellow will experience an urban school where the standards for student comportment are high. 
 Strict standards of student behavior are important to enable effective teaching and learning throughout an entire school.  The standards and expectations for positive and professional student behavior at City on a Hill are high and explicit.  There are swift and transparent consequences for inappropriate behavior at City on a Hill.  When dealing with student behavior, however, the emphasis is not on discipline but the process of teaching the skills to enable a student to make better choices in the future.  At City on a Hill, the fundamental belief to changing student behavior is that there are no bad students, only unacceptable behaviors.  Consequences do not teach students, teachers and administrators do.  At City on a Hill, consequences are levied to send the clear message that inappropriate behavior is unacceptable, but the focus of the process is on teaching the student why they did was unacceptable, and what they can do in the future to insure the behavior does not repeat.

A Teaching Fellow will experience an urban school that is small. 
 The size of a school must be conducive to foster collegiality and eliminate anonymity among all members of its community.  With less than 300 students and approximately 60 faculty and staff, all teachers at City on a Hill know the students and colleagues within their grade level intimately.  City on a Hill follows the common community rule that if your staff cannot fit in one room, your school is too big.  Not only can all faculty and staff at CoaH fit in one room, the faculty and student body fit in one auditorium for a weekly assembly called Town Meeting.

Mission and Vision of School and Department of Certification

Mission of City on a Hill:  City On A Hill graduates responsible, resourceful, and respectful democratic citizens prepared to advance community, culture, and commerce, and to compete in the 21st century.  We do so by emphasizing:
•   Academic Achievement.  Academic achievement means that we strive to maintain high academic standards and ensure results.  It means we acknowledge our students’ competition and seek to find additional resources to prepare our students to compete.
•   Citizenship. Citizenship means we strive to maintain standards of civility, promote our students’ civic engagement and participation, and link our school to the best of Boston.
•   Teacher Leadership.  Teacher leadership means teachers take responsibility for the performance of students and of our school.  It means teachers drive decision-making in doing, building, and growing City On A Hill.  It means teachers are reflective practitioners and managers.  It means that teachers contribute to urban public school reform in our city, state and nation.
•   Public Accountability.   Public accountability means that City On A Hill expects to show the tax-payer results and to invite the public in to ensure that we are delivering on our promise to educate our students.

 

Mission of the department of Certification at City on a Hill:

The department of certification at City On A Hill graduates qualified, resourceful, and skilled teachers to improve and advance urban public high schools.

Core Beliefs of Department of Certification

The Department of Certification at City on a Hill will prepare its Teaching Fellows:
•   To be able to meet the unique demands of an urban public school community;
•   To be able to build relationships with students and families of diverse ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds;
•   To uphold high standards of academic achievement set by the Massachusetts frameworks and City on a Hill Public Charter High School;
•   To be pro-child;
•   To be able to instill intrinsic motivation within their students toward their personal learning process;
•   To uphold high standards of student comportment;
•   To uphold high standards of democratic citizenship;
•   To be able to demonstrate the characteristics of teacher-leaders;
•   To uphold high standards of public accountability;
•   To be able to demonstrate collegiality and disseminate best practices;
•   To be able to demonstrate that learning is the result of higher-order thinking.

 

Vision of Department of Certification
 New teachers learn to become effective teachers by working with experienced teacher- mentors in a collegial community of learners and leaders.  To improve student performance within an educational community, the entire learning community is committed to raising teacher performance.  Mentoring of fellow teachers and aspiring teachers fosters collegiality and professional growth among all members of the City on a Hill community. 
 Because teachers drive the decisions to implement the most effective methods of teaching and learning within City on a Hill, teachers drive the spirit of the curriculum and practices for licensure. Licensure at City on a Hill entails and compliments the all-school professional development plan; licensure at City on a Hill incorporates and supports the goals of the all-school accountability plan essential for charter renewal.
 The process of earning licensure in an innovative urban charter school is not a distraction to the licensure process; it is integral to it.  More than a vocation, teaching is service.  The communities of our nation that most require applied and sustained service are our urban communities.  Improving urban public schools will occur, not in years, but over decades. The best practices of teacher-leadership and teacher-accountability are integral to the certification program at City on a Hill.  It is the goal that by fostering these traits in the teachers it certifies, City on a Hill will contribute to the improvement of urban public education.

City on a Hill’s Certification Program

All Teaching Fellows in the CoaH Licensure program must demonstrate mastery of the Massachusetts Department of Education’s Professional Standards for Teachers.  Teaching Fellows will do so by immersing themselves in the collegial, teacher-centered community at City on a Hill while following a rigorous path of coursework at City on a Hill and at our community partner, Simmons College.
 There are four major components that comprise the CoaH Certification program: 
•   Academic Courses at Simmons College, taught by Simmons professorial staff
•   City on a Hill Urban Teaching Prepracticum and Practicum Seminar
•   Teaching Practicum of 150 Hours at City on a Hill
•   Teaching Portfolio Compilation and Presentation 

Academic Courses at Simmons College

City on a Hill has established a partnership with its neighbor, Simmons College.  Teaching Fellows at City on a Hill will attend graduate courses at City on a Hill as part of the Simmons MAT program.  The courses Teaching Fellows attend will be taught by Simmons professors.  Teaching Fellows will have the potential option of applying credits toward a masters at Simmons upon completion of the CoaH certification program at a later date (Course sequence may vary).

Fall
 GEDUC 460 Teaching Strategies for the Inclusive Classroom.  4 sem. hrs.
 Examines a variety of teaching strategies applicable to students in heterogeneous classrooms: techniques to individualize instruction and promote mastery learning, development of cooperative learning strategies, and consideration of specific classroom and behavior management procedures. Requires fieldwork.

SPRING
 GEDUC 455 Issues in Teaching and Learning for Middle and High School
 4 semester hours
 Considers professional issues for middle and high school teachers and students, including current school reform efforts; the multicultural debate; and other issues of race, gender, and sexual orientation. Examines the effect of school culture and the influence of television. Requires fieldwork if not taken concurrently with subject area methods course.

DEDUC 482 Practicum: High School (Grades 9-12)
 4 semester hours
 Assigns supervised teaching responsibilities in an inclusive classroom at the ninth-grade to twelfth-grade level. Involves demonstrating effective classroom management procedures, implementing daily class lessons, developing long-range curriculum materials, and demonstrating effectiveness in serving students who are below the expected classroom instructional level. Requires documentation of a minimum of 135 hours of direct instructional time.

SUMMER
 Summer Institute: Reading and Writing Across the Curriculum in the Secondary School
 4 semester hours
 Focuses on understanding the issues in reading comprehension and on learning a wide range of strategies for understanding text in the content areas. Emphasizes readings used in social studies, science, and English. Examines instructional practices that demonstrate the value of writing as a tool for learning. Attends to assessment techniques that contribute to planning effective instruction and monitoring progress.

City on a Hill Urban Teaching Seminar
8 semester hours

Taught by the Director of Teacher Development at City on a Hill, the CoaH Seminar is an eight credit graduate course that meets from August to June of the Teaching Fellows’ school year.  It is a seminar-style course that supports the prepracticum and practicum phase of development that the fellow will be engaged in.

Objectives of City on a Hill Seminar

Upon completion of the City on a Hill seminar, the Teaching Fellow will be able to:
•   Define the “City on a Hill philosophy” of teaching and education.
•   Define and describe the relationship between the eight main interrelated topics of education: learning, teaching, students, curriculum, school, community, parent/guardian, and teacher.
•   Define his or her personal philosophy of education.
•   Describe the content of the MA Curriculum Frameworks in his or her field of licensure.
•   Describe the skills necessary to be an effective teacher and compare and contrast these skills to that of an effective urban teacher.
•   Manage a classroom effectively.
•   Define the parameters necessary to instill intrinsic motivation in his or her students and colleagues.
•   Describe the parameters and skills necessary to foster a collegial community of learners among colleagues.
•   Define the parameters necessary for autonomous teacher-leadership to exist.
•   Write measurable objectives and thorough lesson plans.
•   Define essential events, reports, legislation, and regulations in U.S. public education such as: NCLB, A Nation at Risk, Brown v. Board of Education, IDEA, MCAS, Title I, Title IX.
•   Describe the procedure for establishing and maintaining close and effective relationships between students and their parents or guardians.
•   Describe methods of empowering students with choice in their education.
•   Describe the methods used to establish challenge for the student in the learning process.
•   Demonstrate all requirements established by the DOE necessary for certification.

 

Texts for CoaH Seminar

Meier, D. (1994).  The Power of Their Ideas.  Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
 Delpit, L.  (1995).  Other People’s Children.  Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
 Ryan, K.,  & Cooper, J. C.  (2000).  Those who can, teach (9th ed.).  Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
 Ryan, K., & Cooper, J. C. (Eds.).  (2000).  Kaleidoscope: Readings in education (9th ed.).  Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
Course packet: Selected Readings provided by Director.

 

Teaching Journal

In addition to exams and papers, all Teaching Fellows will keep a teaching journal.  The purpose of the journal is to help Teaching Fellows develop habits of reflection, observation, and analysis (making connections between seminar and the classroom), as well as to help them explore their own commitment to teaching.  Teaching Fellows will record their reflections on the course, the readings, and observations in the field in their journal.  Teaching Fellows must complete at least one log entry each week as outlined in the syllabus (approx. 3-4 pages).  At first reflections will mainly concern issues related to the readings, lectures, and past experiences.  Later, most of entries will link practical insights from the practicum to the more theoretical and philosophical aspects of the course.

End-of-year Portfolio Presentation

In order for Teaching Fellows to earn certification from City on a Hill, they must demonstrate that they have attained competency according to all the objectives of the certification program.  They will compile a portfolio of their work and will present it to a jury.  The jury will consist of the Director of the program, the Principal of City on a Hill, the Executive Director of City on a Hill, and a CoaH teacher.  The objective of this presentation is for Teaching Fellows to demonstrate proficiency in the state standards of licensure and the City on a Hill standards of effective urban teaching.  The session will last one hour, consisting of a 20 minute presentation and 40 minute question and answer session.

Fellows must demonstrate proficiency in the following categories in addition to the City on a Hill standards of professional teaching.

 

Responsibilities of Teaching Fellows
 Teaching Fellows at City on a Hill (CoaH) are considered integral members of the community.  They are not regarded in the old fashioned image of “student-teachers.”  They are expected to uphold the standards and carry out the rules and regulations of CoaH as any full-time employee of the school.  In turn, they have a full duty load in nonacademic areas (lunch duty, chaperones). Teaching Fellows support teachers by sometimes subbing classes or covering duties.  Fellows are paid additionally when asked to do so (following the same protocol for all teachers).  At the beginning of their tenure, this will be especially true.  Fellow orientation, 9th grade orientation, faculty orientations and the first quarter are essential for getting the Teaching Fellows established in their classroom environment.  Teaching Fellows will assist in all tasks relating to helping prepare their mentor’s class, such as Xeroxing and lesson planning.
 During orientations and the first months of school the mentors and the director of certification will provide significant guidance and constant support for each fellow.  It is the expectation that Teaching Fellows experience intense rigor and palpable support.  Teaching Fellows will accomplish the following tasks at a rate reflective of their skill as determined by their mentor and the Director of Certification:
•   Observing their mentor teach in the classroom,
•   Discuss with their mentors the planning of their lessons,
•   Assist in the planning of lessons that Teaching Fellows in turn observe,
•   Process with their mentor the success of lessons to obtain measurable outcomes,
•   Attend department meetings and become familiar with the school’s curriculum and how, as well as what, other members of the department are teaching.

Once both the mentor and fellow agree that a fellow is ready to assume the responsibility, the fellow will begin to teach individual lessons within the class with their mentor present; this will soon be followed by teaching a lesson on their own.  Lesson plans will be the plans of the mentor or will be made under the strict supervision of the mentor.  Lessons will be conducted with the mentor present at all times.  The mentors will observe and give formal feedback to the Teaching Fellows with the goal of improving the performance of the fellow.
 Once mentor and fellow agree that the fellow is ready to assume the responsibility of teaching an entire class period from beginning to end, they will seek approval from the Director of Certification during a formal “Triad” meeting.  During this time, the fellow should teach an entire class from beginning to end with the mentor present followed by a class when the mentor is not present.  This is an essential step in the maturation of the fellow as they develop their skills and confidence.  This should occur by the end of the 2nd quarter or at a time designated by the director of certification.  The fellow will then teach an entire unit of at least three days

Sequence of Requirements During Prepracticum
•   Attend fellow orientation
•   Support 9th Grade Orientation
•   Attend faculty orientation
•   Attend CoaH Prepracticum and practicum seminar
•   Attend Simmons class
•   Begin developing professional portfolio as outlined in CoaH syllabus
•   Complete weekly journal
•   Observe mentor Teacher
•   Lesson plan with mentor teacher
•   Attend department meetings
•   Co teach with mentor teacher
•   Teach a lesson(s)
•   Teach a class(s)
•   Teach a whole unit of at least three lesson plans
•   Maintain teaching-hours log to document 150 hours of teaching
•   Observe all other teachers in their department and one teacher from the other four departments
•   Attend triad meetings with mentor and director of certification to receive and record feedback
•   Complete Mid-year self-evaluation
•   Attend final prepracticum meeting to gain approval of commencing formal practicum (see rubric).

Sequence of Requirements/Continuing Requirements During Practicum
•   Attend parent conferences for students in class with mentor
•   Attend faculty meetings
•   Attend Simmons Graduate Courses
•   Attend CoaH Prepracticum and practicum seminar
•   Continue developing professional portfolio in anticipation of end-of-year presentation to jury
•   Complete weekly journal
•   Attend department meetings
•   Continue to co-plan lessons with mentor
•   Assume responsibility for two of mentor’s classes for duration of school year
•   Maintain teaching-hours log to document 150 hours of teaching
•   Observe all other teachers in their department and one teacher from the other four departments
•   Attend triad meetings with mentor and director of certification to receive and record feedback
•   Completes End-of-year evaluation.
•   Completion of a video of their teaching at least 10 minutes in length.
•   Attend summer-school as co-teacher or teacher.

Support For Teaching Fellows

“Rigor with support” is one of the mantras central to the intended success of Teaching Fellows enrolled in the City on a Hill (CoaH) Certification Program.  Teaching Fellows will learn how to teach by working with an experienced and effective teacher and by teaching as soon as and as much as possible.  Teaching Fellows will experience as much of a “real” public school world as possible.  Receiving tangible guidance and support throughout this process is essential to the Teaching Fellows being successful.  Teaching Fellows will never have the opportunity to feel isolated or lost in the shuffle.  There are five specific ways Teaching Fellows will be supported:
•   Through peer support of fellows in their cohort
•   Through participation in the CoaH weekly seminar
•   Through daily interaction with their trained and experienced mentor
•   Through daily interaction with the director of the certification program
•   By being an integral member the unique collegial and teacher-centered community of City on a Hill Public Charter High School
•   Through peer support of Teaching Fellows and weekly seminar.

The fellow cohort at City on a Hill will always be small (<6) to ensure they are familiar with and are able to support each other.  The Teaching Fellows will meet together with the director of certification on a weekly basis during the two hour CoaH Prepracticum and Practicum Seminar.  An agenda item will always be related to the work they are doing and their spiritual and emotional state during the difficult process of fist-time teaching.  Advising the Teaching Fellows on their responsibilities and requirements will be a consistent agenda item as well.  The director of certification is the primary advisor and supervisor of the Teaching Fellows and mentors.

The Fellowship
 The Urban Teaching Fellowship at City on a Hill is one-year immersion program to train fellows to become effective teachers in public urban high schools.  It is intended for teachers who know they want to teach in urban public high schools.  The fellowship is a $16,000 fellowship plus health (school pays 80%) and dental (school pays 50%) benefits.  The fellowship is a contractual agreement that a fellow enters into with the understanding that he or she will complete the fellowship and teach in an urban public school for two years upon completion of the fellowship.  If a fellow does not complete the fellowship or teach for two years in an urban public school the fellow must repay the fellowship.