ASU program seeks Native American teachers

American Indians have long had a complicated relationship with education, stemming in large part from the policies in the late 1800s and early 1900s of using schools as an instrument of assimilation. Children were forcibly removed from their homes and given new names and clothes. They weren't allowed to practice their religion.

In Tallsalt's case, her grandmother and mother still don't like talking about their experiences when they were taken from their homes in Arizona and sent to boarding schools in Oklahoma, where they weren't allowed to speak their native language. For her grandmother in particular, education was synonymous with harshness, and she wanted to protect her granddaughter from those experiences.

Their experience wasn't Tallsalt's, although she recalls having nothing but Anglo teachers and distinctly remembers being made to feel that their culture was more advanced than hers.

Tallsalt, 33, is enrolled in a teacher-preparation program through Arizona State University in Sells, Ariz. that aims to change the demographic mix in the profession by focusing on recruiting more American Indians into the teaching ranks.

Like others in the brand-new program, funded by a three-year, $1.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Indian Education, she'll work with Tohono O'odham youths during her student teaching at Indian Oasis Elementary School in January.

District officials hope the program will benefit students in the district, which is beginning to turn things around after long-standing struggles at the district and school level to meet goals as defined by federal and state accountability measurements.

But at the same time, the program, which is recruiting now for the spring semester, also aims to help those who might otherwise not get into teaching.

It offers full tuition.

It offers academic tutoring in math and writing to help students pass the state's teacher certification exams.

And it pays a living wage during student teaching. That's a huge boon, given that most student teachers must plan on having zero dollars coming in during those intense weeks, since they're discouraged from working any outside jobs.

Corrine Pancho, 49, and Monica Morgan, 41, will be the first two Tohono O'odham tribal members to be funded under the new grant. The two drive buses for the Indian Oasis-Baboquivari Unified School District and work as classroom aides.

Both women said that because they have families to support, they might have had to back away from their goal if it weren't for the additional financial help, especially since their student teaching will immediately back into the downtime of the summer.

"It gets harder when you don't have any income," Pancho said.

Pancho said she had to think long and hard about joining the program. She knew it would be a lot of work, she had many responsibilities at home already, and she'd been out of school for so long. On the other hand, she said, "I figured I could do something for kids. There are a lot of Anglo teachers here, and I really think culture should be a part of the students' education."

District officials say they hope the program will help address a problem that has long plagued administrators — recruitment and retention of teachers.

Indian Oasis Elementary School lost 40 percent of its teachers last year, and other district schools weren't far behind.

The drive is part of it. The district is 60 miles southwest of the south side of Tucson. And because it is a small and rural district, it doesn't pay as much as some of the bigger nearby districts.

District officials have tried to be creative to address those hurdles.

The district is on a four-day workweek, although one Friday every month is devoted to professional training.

It has a shuttle to take teachers in from the city.

It has some limited affordable housing for teachers as well.

The district, which has struggled academically in the past, had some good news this year. For the first time in recent memory, none of its schools received an "underperforming" label — which officials chalk up to more emphasis on poring through data to pinpoint academic holes and better professional development.

Second-grade teacher Catherine Anderson, 53, has taught for decades but is in her first year at Indian Oasis. Tallsalt is assigned to her class for her coursework, and Anderson said she saw the advantages of that cultural background on the first day. The students, who had recently returned from recess, were wriggling and talking, she recalled. Tallsalt chastised the class, saying something akin to: "This is not respectful. This is not our culture. We do not treat our elders this way." The kids immediately settled down.

Superintendent Alberto Siqueiros, a former Tucson Unified School District chief academic officer who took the helm of the district at the beginning of the month, said it's not a deficit to have Anglo teachers. In fact, he said, it's important to have a mix, to expose children to different perspectives.

But he does hope to see more balance.

"Students need adults in their lives who look like them and who can serve as role models," Siqueiros said.

If the grow-your-own program works, it could have the added benefit of denting teacher turnover, because the tribal members are embedded in the community already.

"We want to see continuity here," Indian Oasis Elementary Principal Jonathan Eddy said. "It takes a lot of different elements to turn things around, but turnover definitely has an effect."

Tallsalt said she plans to stay on in the district once she's fully certified.

She left the reservation 15 year ago and had assimilated into city life. "I needed to get back to my roots," she explained.

She concedes that she's not so fond of the drive from the east side of Tucson, but said it's worth it.

"It's the children who bring you here. It's nice to teach in a community that needs you."